THANK YOU

I am completely overwhelmed with how many people responded to my request for money to get me to the first National Women's Bicycling Summit in Long Beach, CA.  You are the wind at my back, Friends.  The goo in my jersey pocket.  The pop-tarts in my trail mix.  My cats' pajamas!

Thank you for your support!  Because of your dollars, I'll be able to go to Long Beach and meet people that are working hard to make biking easy and accessible, and to support and encourage women and transgender cyclists.  Pretty much a dream come true, for me!

I get more and more excited each day as I read about all of the amazing people that are going to be speaking at this event.  

I need to take a moment here to shout out to the MASSIVE CONTRIBUTION that Carolyn Szczepanski, the League of American Bicyclist's Communications Director, has made on their blog. Let me put it this way... I didn't even know LoAB had a blog before she started writing.  I wonder if I will get to meet her, and how much of this Summit was her doing...  For proof of her wonderful writing, read some of these articles with the "Women" tag.

The following information was taken from the League of American Bicyclist blog.

The keynote speaker will be Leah Missbach Day, a documentary photographer, based in Chicago.  She cofounded World Bicycle Relief, a global non-profit organization, which since 2005 has provided over 100,000 bicycles to families rebuilding livelihoods, caregivers combating disease, and students seeking access to education.

After the keynote I have a hard choice to make!  There are three concurrent sessions, and each sounds like they would be worth my time.  I'm leaning toward attending "Beyond Spandex."  I would like to hear more about "Low Car Living," and I am curious about "Women in Bicycle Sports," but I feel like the first option would probably be most helpful for building Grease Rag.

Beyond Spandex, Toward Social Justice: Women Redefining the Movement

Working with and within disadvantaged and marginalized communities, women from diverse backgrounds are erasing stereotypes about bicyclists and consciously directing efforts to incorporate social justice. 

Moderator: Caroline Samponaro
Panelists: Kristin Gavin, Allison Mannos, Ovarian Psycos, Claire Stoscheck

Family Biking and Low Car Living

In this session, we will tap into the expertise of the presenters and participants to share tips for 1) raising a car free or car light family 2) navigating the ages and stages of biking with kids, and 3) spreading the message about the benefits of a multi-modal lifestyle. Whether a family bikes by choice or by need, it's one of the most powerful acts of advocacy--not just for cycling, but for the health and well-being of our children and communities.

Moderator: Gin Kilgore 
Panelists: Manal Aboelata, Wanda Pelegrina Caldas, Emily Finch, Kit Hodge

Women in Bicycle Sports

Female athletes will address the complex role of women in sports and how competition and advocacy are connected and share parallel missions of getting more women and racing. What steps can be taken to ease fear and build confidence for women on bikes? Join in the discussion to define the role of women in bicycle sports and how we can help to progress gender equity in sports and cycling overall.

Moderators: Dorothy Wong & Liz Carlson
Panelists: Dotsie Bausch, Krista Carlson, Jill Gass, Raelynn Milley, Jennifer Tetrick

The second session also presents three choices.  I am torn between them all because they are all focused on increasing engagement.  I haven't decided which I will attend, but I am most interested in the "Media and Marketing" segment, although it may not be as helpful as "Women and the Political Process" and "Young Women" for engaging women through Grease Rag.  Oh, indecision! 

Making Our Communities Work For Us; Women and the Political Process

Women's interests are best served when women are engaged as civic leaders and lawmakers. However, women continue to be underrepresented in political office and on civic committees. We will discuss the latest research on women's involvement in bicycle and pedestrian committees and explore how to encourage more women who bicycle to become involved in civic committees and elected office.

Moderator: Alexis Lantz
Panelists: Cathy DeLuca, Meghan Sahli-Wells, Felicia Williams

Media and Marketing: Who's Selling Cycling to Women?

Through engaging presentations, panelists will explore examples from a variety of media channels, share their own best practices and invite creative thinking from the audience about how to attract more women of all backgrounds to cycling for transportation, fitness and fun.

Moderator: Susi Wunsch
Panelists: Maria Boustead, Elly Blue, Yolanda Davis-Overstreet, Mia Kohout

Young Women Who Ride

Part presentation, part interactive workshop, Young Women Who Ride will explore existing models of youth engagement and share the tools to engage youth, girls, and young women effectively.

Panelists: Pasqualina Azzarello, Nelle Pierson, Lisa Rodriguez, Katherine Westmoreland

Which session would you attend, and why?