*Black, Indigenous, People of Color and Femme, Trans, Women. In other words, people who do not benefit from white/cis male privilege

CAMPING SIGN UP HERE

VOLUNTEER SIGN UP HERE

Accessible bike camping trips

We aim to have our trips be low barrier, fun, skill building, safer spaces

Low barriers!

A vehicle option to get you and your gear to the camp site. Sliding scale $0-$20 camping fee. Hooking you up with the gear you need. Clear expectations and established a safer space. Lots of encouragement!

Fun!

Biking, talking, eating, and being with each other is fun!

Skill building!

We will have a planning meeting to talk about cooking, packing, and gear. We will share skills about building fires and setting up tents. We can provide additional skill shares if you have other topics in mind, too!

Safer spaces!

We will establish a safer space policy up front, provide a quiet area of camp, designate people to help deescalate conflict, and provide name tags with pronouns.

About the Grease Rag Group Camp Trip

Want to give bike camping a try in a safer and supportive environment? WE GOT YOU.

• Don’t want to/can’t bike? We are arranging a vehicle to get you to the camp site.
• Don’t want to/can’t pay $20? It is a sliding scale of $0-$20 fee.
• Don’t have all the gear you need? We will hook you up with borrowed gear! Our community is mighty, and will provide us with everything we need.
• Don’t feel confident about your ability? You can do this! Our route is mostly flat, mostly on trails, at a casual pace, and we will have mechanical support on the ride. Come to a BIPOC FTW Ride Together group ride to get your legs ready.

Art by Cori Nakamura Lin

Don’t let the whiteness and the cis maleness of the outdoor industry deter you from enjoying the outdoors with us. For inspiration, follow these Instagram accounts dedicated to us outside.

@IndigenousWomenHike on Instagram

@TheBlackOutdoors on Instagram

@BrownFolksFishing on Instagram

@FORUSftwofcolor on Instagram (That’s us!)

Read this wholesome account of the last BIPOC FTW camping trip, or this account of a recent beginner bike camping trip.

BIPOC Bike Camping Trip

Recap of Grease Rag Group Camp 2017

Schedule

Sunday 8/18

• 6:00 – 8:00 PM – Mandatory Planning Meeting at Midtown Global Market
• One week before the trip!
• At this meeting we’ll do a trip overview, answer questions y’all have, and sort out any final gear shares. It will be a great opportunity to chat with each other before the big trip too! The Grease Rag community has a lot of communal knowledge, and we are here to make sure the trip is a success for everyone.

Saturday 8/24

• 11:00 PM – Meetup in Powderhorn Park
• We will have a few ice breakers and casual get to know you activities before and after the ride.
• 11:45 PM – Roll out
• 3:00 PM – Arrive at Carver Park

Sunday 8/25

• 10:00 AM – Roll out
• 2:00 PM – Return to Midtown Global Market

What You Are Responsible For

• Having a bike in decent working condition
• Getting your labeled gear to the meet up (masking tape and a permanent marker works great)
• Adhering to our Safer Spaces policy (Read it here)
• Your own snacks, lunch, and beverages
• Having your tent, sleeping bag, sleeping pad arrangement worked out- Gear Email will be sent on August 10th)
• Bringing eating utensils (see list under Food)
• Contributing to our salad bar and breakfast bar (see Food)
• Yourself!

The Ride

This is the Route (bookmark me)

The ride is 26 miles, almost all on trails with some on-road riding, and mostly flat. There will be multiple ride leaders, mechanical support, and up to 35 of us riding together. This will be a great experience! We will be rolling at 10-12mph, and no one will be left behind.

To get us to our campsite we will bike out on the Greenway, to the North Cedar Regional Trail, where will will take our first break at Texa Tonka Park. We will continue on Minnetonka Blvd for a short distance to Minnetonka LRT trail, where we will continue to Excelsior Library, where we will stop. There is a brewery and a grocery store. We will continue on the trail until we reach our campsite.

Campsite

The campsite is the group camp site at Three Rivers Park District Carver Park: Zumbra 2. It can accommodate 35 people, 5 vehicles, and has a large stone shelter in case it rains, fire ring, and picnic tables.

Food

We will provide

• Supper basics (vegan/halal rice & lentils/beans)
• Spinach greens for the supper salad bar
• Granola and plant milk for the breakfast bar

You need to provide

• Snacks for the ride out and back- enough to sustain yourself from noon to 4pm
• Beverages, although there will be plenty of water
• Your own plate, bowl, napkin, fork, knife, spoon, mug, cup, water bottle
• A “salad bar item” that we will put out buffet style, so you can build the salad of your dreams- Think proteins, dressings, and whatever is fresh fresh from your garden. Whatever you like!
• A breakfast bar item that we will put out buffet style so you can build the granola bowl of dreams. Think nuts and fruit and whatever else!
• Bring your own snacks.

What to Pack

In addition to what is listed above, in the food instructions, you may also want to refer to these packing lists.

GR Bicycle Camping Packing List – a handy spreadsheet

Bike Camping Packing Pack List – a big list with tips and recipes!

Volunteers

Sign up to volunteer! (Some roles are paid)

If you have any questions or concerns, please ask: greaseragmpls@gmail.com

CAMPING TRIP SIGN UP HERE

FTW are proficient at creating spaces for ourselves. Online spaces, the space between two friends over tea, events and art that celebrate our voices. We are adept at creating these spaces because in a cis hetero patriarchal world that does not see us as normal, powerful, or natural, making space is a survival mechanism. We make our own spaces or we die, alone, in fractured corners of isolated shame and dysphoria. We are always at the vanguard of language and social and racial justice, because we are affected the most by violent gendered and racialized language. We reclaim and make spaces and languages to describe our reality, and eventually (hopefully) the rest of the world catches on.

I sit by this creek, with my toes in the burbling water, tree leaves dappling the large round rock I am sitting on. I am healing myself by giving myself this time outside. My bike is quiet, waiting patiently. Traffic and responsibilities are distant. My phone is off and I’m scribbling on a pad of hot pink paper. I’m breathing and thinking about how making space for ourselves outside conflicts and intersects with our existence on stolen and occupied land.

When I think about making space for myself, as a POC FTW who is not indigenous to the occupied Dakota and Anishinaabe territory of Minneapolis where I live, I sometimes think about the “outside is free” campaign, and themes of “liberation” and “exploring” the outdoors. I think these messages resonate because nature is a place that holds me and all of my identities without judgement, but they also dangerously promote a false narrative that nature is empty, untouched, and there for discovery or to be conquered. This narrative assures us that it is our right to be outside, our right to name things, our right to claim all we see. Assures us that it is our right to colonize/Columbus what has been stolen and is occupied.

I think the outdoor industry is so guilty of creating this narrative, while creating more barriers for POC and Original People to connect with nature in sacred and recreational ways. The industry does not represent us beyond tokenizing us as marketing material, the industry has created an expectation that expensive gear is a necessity, the industry has promoted climbing and otherwise desecrating sacred places. 

I claim space from the outdoor industry when I bike down trails, dip myself in water, and listen to trees in the wind. I resist the siren song of “outdoor liberation without responsibility” by swapping and buying gear second hand, picking up trash, naming the land I am on, and learning how to respect sacred sites. I am calling my community in to have more conversation about the tensions around what it means to obtain our liberation on stolen and occupied land. Please listen to Indigenous voices on this topic.

As we engage in processes of reconciliation it is critical that land acknowledgements don’t become a token gesture. They are not meant to be static, scripted statements that every person must recite in exactly the same way. They are expressions of relationship, acknowledging not just the territory someone is on, but that person’s connection to that land based on knowledge that has been shared with them.

— Lindsay DuPré- Metis Nation
whose.land/en/whyacknowledge  

Learn about the land you are on, and learn from Indigenous people.
native-land.ca/territory-acknowledgement/

A version of this was published by bikepacking.com 10/1/2018. I wrote this as a reflection after returning from the WTF Explorers Bike Summit.

Nothing is more fun than heart like taking a casual roll out of the city together with some of my most favorite people. This trip was for BIPOC (Black/Indigenous/People of Color and people with an “it’s complicated relationship to their race”) FTW (femme/trans/women) only. Two people were bike camping for the first time! It was magic.

Everyone took a part in organizing this trip! Ali booked the space and got us hooked up with a route, firewood, and water. We got some SAG (support and gear vehicle) support from our partners. Dinner Crew rocked those burritos and quesadillas! Everyone brought games and love and hilarious stories about our “worst camping experience ever.”

The ride was great, the spot was beautiful. Just when I though my heart could not be anymore full, the sky misted us with a light rain and a double rainbow shined over us. We were camping over Pride Weekend, and all agreed we felt seen by colorful sky.

One of my favorite conversations that we had over the campfire was about access to the “outdoors.” Some of us grew up with families that encouraged and supported outdoor activities. Families that supported us in backpacking alone in other countries, or took us on trips when we were kids. Other families didn’t value “camping” because they came from places where sleeping on the ground wasn’t considered a fun activity. Some of us were self-taught and learned how to camp without a family culture around that, and we were so proud that we were able to claim outdoor activities. We were able to claim our bike camping trip from an industry that promotes the image of either a white family in a lot of fancy gear, or the white man on a hunting or fishing trip. We out here. And we’re proud of ourselves!

That’s just my perspective. Here are some other faces and voices from our trip!

Holly (she/her)

We all just rolled up and made camp like a bunch of pros… fortress secured, we ate a camper’s feast (chicharones and avocado, my god!) and held high court like royals. Pro. Royals.

Then, just to make sure that we were of the earthly world and, we shared our worst camping experiences for a go around. They were bad! SO BAD! AND SO GOOD! Almost everyone shared a life full of experience, problem solving, determination, perseverance, and just plain ol “I won’t do that again” stories. I was smothered in the wisdom and comradery of some RAD BIWTFPOCs who knew their shit and knew how to get stuff done. Our camp was organized, prepared, and I can’t wait to do it again!

Juana (she/her)

BAGGAGE
I feel like this has been a journey for me, not that I am finished. A while ago I joined a bike ride to Carver state park, but declined to spend the night camping there. Low and Ali were there, setting up their tents and happily answering my questions about their gear. I didn’t grow up camping, and so all of it seemed very weird to me, albeit interesting. I didn’t own a tent or a sleeping bag, but I did have a bike! Fast forward a few months, I had met more people who liked camping and talked about how great it was, so I figured I should really give it a try. I bought some stuff used, borrowed some other stuff…. Last summer I finally did it- I went on one of the beginner Grease Rag bike camping trips. I shared a tent with a friend, so I didn’t have to bring everything. And then this trip! I was sleeping solo and contributing more to the food. (I feel like I only brought snacks to the first bike camp trip.) So I had to pack everything! Well not all the food, it was still communal, but this trip definitely felt more self-sufficient. And I did it! The packing part is harder for me than the biking part, but it felt really great.

Ali was going on the trip, and they sent out helpful weather updates and reminders leading up to our departure. My friend Holly went, she and I chatted while we leisurely biked to the campsite. Low was there and they helped me setup my tent. I really like the feel of these communal trips, where people respect your abilities but are willing to help out if you need it.

For this trip I’ve gotten some new items, including a camp chair. But it’s really not about the gear, especially for a Grease Rag trip, since you can borrow items from others if you need to. It’s about spending time together and creating spaces for ourselves. As we shared stories about past camping trips by the campfire, I felt some of my residual camping stress melt away. Grease Rag told me “you can do it, you got this!” Success!

Ali (they/them)

It was a perfect fall like summer night for camping. We had a really nice ride out to the site. Along the way we had an AMAZING garlicky snack at a lakeside break point. ~~mmm garlic~~ I had some encounters with animals as well. I had a deer saunter across my path and got to see the smallest baby ducks I’ve ever seen waddling through the grass.

From this trip I learned that I have come a long way with my biking. The paths we took I’ve biked before and on this trip I realized that I was no longer afraid of the windy hill I use to dismount and walk.

We were at a campground which we ended up having all to ourselves. I felt this made for some great wilderness time with my fellow bike/camper buddies. Later as we finished setting up camp we had a little bit of rain which left a double rainbow over our awesome riverfront campsite.

We had a seriously yummy camp dinner of fire roasted fajitas. Which was later followed up by the creation of whiskey soaked marshmallows for s’mores. =^.^=

It was a perfect evening. There was just enough of a breeze that the mosquitos were kept from biting and we were able to sit out around the campfire with ease. We played tabletop games and wowed each other with tales of adventure or misadventure. The cherry on top for the night was the sound of the waves on the river as I drifted off to sleep in my tent.

I enjoyed the leisurely pace we took in the morning while breaking camp and eating our breakfast of granola and berries. We also had some warm beverages, which is a must for me while camping. The ride back was nice and leisurely as well. The Frosties and fries we stopped for were a stupendous treat!! I felt like we all came together and accomplished creating a great experience.

Bri (she/her)

The BIPOC WTF bike camping trip was wonderful. To be able to bike with such lovely humans to a beautiful riverside campsite was perfection. The double rainbow which greeted us once we had our tents up was amazing. I enjoyed hearing the stories about our worst camping experiences. I think it said a lot about the people around the table that we all seemed to be able to laugh at them after the fact! I’m so grateful that these humans are in my life and every time I hang out with them, I learn that they are even more badass than I thought before. Nothing can beat a bike camping trip with these #babefriends!

Also, Ali is a genius. Whiskey soaked marshmallows toasted over a campfire is tasty.

Liz (she/her)

Julia (she/her)

A familiar face!  Maryann Aguirre, from Ovarian Psyco-Cycles, sat on the “Advocacy Through a Gender Lens” panel at the National Bike Summit, and is the subject of this beautiful music video for “Mujer Soy” by Las Cafeteras, remixed by Yukicito.

If you have five minutes… no, you need to make five minutes to watch this video.

I’ve been talking about March being All Women’s Herstory month, and about the National Forum on Women and Biking, and about International Women’s Day.  Is March the only time we celebrate women?  Of course not.  But it is a great opportunity to highlight our stories, show our pride, and start conversations about trans* inclusion and all of the intersections of our identities that make being a woman DIFFICULT and AWESOME.

This video… is perfect.

Maryann is a human.  She wakes up, and gets beatuiful for herself.  She wakes her (cutie) sleeping daughter, and makes breakfast for the two of them.  Maryann drives her daughter to school, and after seeing her off takes her bike down and rides to work at Multicultural Communities for Mobility, where she is an organizer for safer streets for low income people of color in East LA.  At the end of the day, there’s a costume change, and she’s rolling on the streets again, hustling to meet up with a group of rad Ovarian Psyco Cycles womyn to get their bikes ready to ride together, armed with beautiful smiles.  Maryann arrives at La Concha Community Space where a group of Latinxs burn sage and make protest signs against the cis-tem, organizing together.  She listens as much as she leads the organizing effort, and the shot where she holds the poster marker and the smart phone at the same time hits home for me.  Finally she arrives home, kicks off her shoes, and she makes dinner for her and her daughter.  She looks up at the ceiling and smiles.  Hope.

The video continues with statements about the value of womyn’s power and voice, but what really stood out to me is the balancing act that we all do, the multiple faces we put on in a day, the work we put into our communities, and the friends and food and family that nourish and sustain us.

Maryann might have responsibilities and pressures, but I see the freedom in how she moves around her city, the softness of a spiritual energy when smudging the space, the strength in how she takes care of her daughter, and how her power is manifested when she is organizing, and working for change.  Sometimes you wear the suit pants, the pants of a mother, of an activist, a Chicana, caretaker, cook… and all of these things intersect and amplify and coexist together.

From Maribel Falcón of Remezcla:

The video made by Elefante Collective features the dance remix collaboration with Yukicito, member of Los Angeles DJ Crew La Junta Sound System. The song carries consistent melodic hymns combined with the traditional folk sounds of flute and jarana. We asked the female members of the group, Leah Rose Gallegos, Annette Torres, and Denise Carlos about how the song came about. Denise said, “I introduced the words and stories to Leah and Annette during a “mujeres music” session we had at my home a few years back. They loved the idea of singing for and about womyn and the three of us created the melodies of the song, which we then presented to the other members of Las Cafeteras.” The end result of “Mujer Soy” is an homage to their fellow sisters and each other.

If you are interested in hearing more Las Cafeteras, check out this performance: