Bikes are for Bitches (and Ladies)

Our logo is MIA, so here is siobhan roshi learning to ride a bike. Thanks Dad!

WTF (Women/Trans/Friends): This workshop basically exists to address the fact that, hey, mechanics is dominated by men. And that being whatever it is, sometimes, the less macho among us need a little fresh air. We need to feel comfy being feminine, gender-neutral or otherwise not-quite-so dudely, and STILL be wrenching. It's no jab to guys—it's just that sometimes, you need to band together when you're the minority. It's just relieving.

This used to be a women-only space, but with some time, thought and dialogue it became apparent that this thing is about the interface: it's got to be a two-sided plan in order to benefit us. So this quarter we're going to focus on the interface: how can we make the spankin' new bike collective as conducive to equal-opportunity wrenching as possible? It's about getting all of us to respect different styles, approaches and sensitivities to create an environment where we're all still psyched to rock the bike at the end of the day.

The Goal: to make wrenching more accessible to the female, trans, and genderqueer people of Davis and surrounding areas, and to create a time and space within The Davis Bike Collective that is a righteous, gender-conscious zone.

The Hope: That non-dudes will feel more encouraged to join the congregation (and the ministry!!!), get greasy, and get their hands on their own bikes/lives!

The Lowdown: This time it's going to be a course that will assist in your efforts to strip down your bike, piece by piece, stare at its bloody guts, reassemble that sucker and get it rolling like you never knew it could. You can come to any and all sessions you want to, and if you've been to one before it will be highly recommendable that you come back and help teach yet more people how to do this: you'll soon be an expert in bike-mechanics as well as gender relations and the creation of a safe space. Boo-yah. There will likely also be copious amounts of hanging out, punk rock, literature-producing and patriarchy-crushing. Watch out.

The Name: So maybe "Bikes Are For Bitches" fails to draw a certain crowd— or fails to draw anything but a certain crowd? So we've changed the name to WTF, a name which came from the San Francisco Bike Kitchen. It addresses both the idea of drawing Women, Transgender and Friends (used to be "femme" but this seems more inclusive) as well as the confusing and complex role of gender in progressive grassroots organizations like this one. But, the wiki page still deserves tribute to "Bikes are for Bitches" with the following exerpt from the old wiki page:
Women Trans Friends (WTF) bicycle repair workshops have moved to Sunday 4-6 p.m. at Bike Forth, located at the corner of 4th and L Street in Davis. WTF is a gender-positive space where you can share your experiences in the bicycling world and learn how to fix your bike. Every week, we begin by explaining how to repair a different part of the bike. Then, you can either work on your own bike project, or practice applying what you just learned on one of our donated bikes.

Schedule of 2011 workshops:

January 9: Wheels
January 16: Brakes
January 23: Bottom bracket, cranks, and pedals
January 30: Derailleur, chains, and shifters
February 6: Headset, handlebars, and fork
(And then we begin with Wheels again!)

Though we’ll do something different each week, come any week to learn about whatever you’d like to know about bikes. WTF is a project of the Davis Bike Collective, a do-it-yourself bike repair collective that runs Bike Forth. We hope to see you soon! Questions, contact Spokemistress Sarah.

Jordan, Cat and Dorrie, Oct 2007 Shea kicking a Peugot into shape, Oct 2007 A boy from out of town, Shea and Emily, Oct 2007 WTF's historic first session, 28 April 2009 Kim and Quenby adjust a freshly repacked hub Janaki is a dainty little greaseball Heather adjusts the bottom bracket on Tijuana Brass

Comments:

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2007-09-22 13:12:27   This sounds brilliant. I'll be your student! :D —NumiaCairaguas

2007-09-26 19:36:54   wish I could go... —PxlAted

2007-10-03 22:42:04   UPDATE: Check out this Thursday's Aggie for a feature on BR4B!!! Check out the bad ass bitches on bikes (and pixies and trikes!) —SiobhanBraybrook

2008-07-27 15:18:41   Sounds like a lot of fun—I'll have to drop by soon! —DanaSullivan

2010-07-14 16:11:00   This is genius, I went for the first time this week and it was awesome!! Will definitely be there again while I'm working on my new bike. =] —TrishAng