It’s downhill for Cycling Weekly after ‘token woman’ caption – The Guardian

Female cyclists have channelled their irritation at a magazine’s labelling of a rider as a “token attractive woman” by mass mickey-taking and inviting the editor to ride in a women-only peloton to see if he can keep up.

The editor of Cycling Weekly, Simon Richardson, was forced to issue an apology last week after the latest edition dismissed a member of the Hinckley Cycle Racing Club from Leicestershire as a “token attractive woman” in a caption.

The woman in question, Hannah Noel, said she was “absolutely gutted”.

Female cyclists around the world showed their solidarity with Noel by declaring a boycott of Cycling Weekly, suggesting readers switch to Casquette — a dedicated women’s cycling magazine — and using their Photoshop skills to troll Richardson and his publication online.

Queensbury Queens of the Mountain, a women-only club in West Yorkshire, posted a shot of three of their members pouting in their helmets, with the captions “Token attractive woman 1”, “Token attractive woman 2” and “Token attractive woman 3”. “We had a token attractive man ride with us for a bit, but he couldn’t keep up,” said Julie Graham (Taw 1).

Team Glow, a women-only club based in Manchester, invited Richardson to come on a ride and “see how the women do it”.

They have also suggested a writer join them on their annual ride and social event.

“Would be good for them to join us for the Glow ARSE weekend … the collective power of 60+ women on bikes I’d be happy to pace them up a few hills,” wrote one member.

Elsewhere, Safe Cycling Australia, a pressure group, said it would no longer share Cycling Weekly’s content on its Facebook or Twitter pages. “This is not on,” they told Richardson.

Many were unconvinced by Richardson’s apology, which blamed a rogue subeditor for the “idiotic” caption which he insisted did not reflect a sexist culture at the magazine.

Velo Vixen, an online store for women’s cycle clothing, tweeted: “It’s a suitably gushing response, but the cynic in us wonders whether there’s something cultural going on behind the original booboo.” And later: “We try not to be oversensitive, but somehow it does feel like a momentary lifting of the lid, doesn’t it?”

Another female cyclist asked to be included in the next edition of Cycling Weekly in a feature she said should be entitled “Token Mature Lady Cyclist”. She included a photo of herself wearing a long dress next to a bike with a basket and floral panniers.

Helen Pidd is a member of Team Glow