IN one week, women and girls will be taking over the Spring Gully mountain bike track, and instructor Jo Lythgo is hoping the event will open novice riders\u2019 eyes to what the sport can offer.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhenever I talk to people about it and they say \u2018no, I couldn\u2019t do anything like that\u2019 I say \u2018no you don\u2019t understand, this is about fun\u2019,\u201d the Bendigo Mountain Bike Club women\u2019s coordinator said.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s not about going your hardest, going fast and winning, it\u2019s about being out there, getting to experience something you may not have thought you could do and having fun.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ms Lythgo said the emphasis at the Bendigo Women\u2019s mountain bike three-hour challenge event is on fun, being social, and experiencing being in nature.<\/p>\n
While about 10 per cent of new cyclists at events might join the club officially, a larger percentage will stick around for the social rides.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have a social membership for the mountain bike club, it seems more women turn up to our social ride and become an active social member, which is really what we\u2019re going for,\u201d Ms Lythgo said.<\/p>\n
\u201cEvery social ride I do I always have a handful of brand-new riders who are every nervous, and once they get riding the smiles beam and you get the excitement of being able to do a four-inch drop of or go down a ditch gully you never thought you\u2019d be able to do.<\/p>\n
\u201cHearing people do that stuff is the best. A lot of people think about mountain biking as being extreme, and it can be, but it can be incredibly social and relaxed. That\u2019s what the event is about.\u201d<\/p>\n