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Seems Like A Good Idea


Razors Edge

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I rarely sign up for sold out events, BUT I do think it would be really great to boost female involvement in cycling events.  More and more, our club has tried to come up with ways to get women into group rides, but usually, it seems like anything not targeted at women becomes massively male dominated.

So, good on SBT GRVL.

The female inclusion is due to race management’s targeted efforts to attract women to the race. When the event opened its registration in December, mostly male riders signed up. According to race co-partner Amy Charity, the management team was initially disappointed in the low number of women who registered.

“We felt as race directors that it was our responsibility to influence change,” Charity said. “Our idea was to get female participants already registered to share their story about why they were coming. We were hopeful that these women and their stories would inspire other women to join us.”

So, the race management came up with a plan to attract more women. In February the race opened an additional 200 spots for the event—all 200 were earmarked for female riders.

They then promoted the spots under the social media banner #SBTPARITY.

The plan worked. All 200 spots sold out in four days, doubling the initial number of female entries and bringing the total women registered to around 450. Satkiewicz attributes the surge in registration to a number of factors.

“I think our values of inclusiveness and a commitment to equal racing from all angles really has resonated with our riders, especially women,” he said. “We want this to be an event that families can experience together for the weekend where there is a lot to do for both the racer and their supporters. We also offer a less intimidating courses for new riders.”

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1 hour ago, donkpow said:

Not Starbucks if that helps. 

Their facial recognition software is getting pretty good. Maybe a hoodie, baseball cap, sunglasses, and a mustache will be enough to prevent a "hit" in their database to your status as persona non grata?

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