Ride, Cake and Chat!

Belles on Bikes Moray
CTC’s Cycling Development Officer in Scotland is a multi-tasker with a mission – to support women to ride, eat cake and chat. For the record, she’s typing this whilst drinking tea and thinking about what to cook for dinner...

I saw in the news this week that British women are the multi-tasking champions of Europe. No wonder, then, that Belles on Bikes is proving so popular with the women of Scotland. Our strapline - ‘ride, cake, chat’ - of actions isn’t meant to be done simultaneously, but clearly it could be!

Since I wrote about the Belles on Bikes launch back in January, I’ve had over 20 women contact me to express an interest in setting up a local group. The Edinburgh group will be celebrating the life and legacy of John Muir on their next ride in April, and Moray had their first ride in gorgeous sunshine last weekend.

Thanks to Cycling Scotland, we have some funds to pay for training, Fix Your Own Bike nights and social media support. We also have the support of the Glasgow Belles to help mentor new Belles leaders. Also, our freshly written 'Belles Start Up Guide' will be available soon, filled with ideas to make your women’s cycling group a success.

Dates are already in the diary for Belles rides in Dumfries and Galloway (Moffat on 12 April) and South Ayrshire (3 May), and hopefully we’ll have groups in Perthshire, Stirling, East Lothian and the Scottish Borders starting over the summer.

Ladies, ride on! (but don’t forget the cake and chat...)