We’re all over bicycles as the best green alternative to getting you where you want to go. News about bike-messenger schemes in Beirut, dedicated bike lanes in Jericho, and affordable bikes made of cardboard get our wheels spinning every time. So we’ve loving this simple way to eliminate one of the biggest obstacles to bike riding for women in conservative cultures such as….um, the Middle East.
Green Prophet recently reported on a jacket designed to get women on bicycles (link here), but ask any female cyclist what garment most precludes pedaling, and they’ll pin it on a skirt. Or a dress. Or possibly a kilt. But you get the point – any clothing with flappy fabric around the legs is a surefire way to attract unwelcome audiences with impromptu flashes of upper thigh and panties – embarrassing, and a distraction from safe cycling.
Scottish cycling enthusiast Johanna Holtan came up with a stunning solution, achievable with the contents of your pocket!
Grab a small coin and a hair elastic. Pinch an inch of lap-area fabric and enfold the coin. Secure it with the elastic (or rubber band). Get on your bike, laugh at the wind and never inadvertently expose people again!
It will keep you modest when pedaling, and when hopping on and off your bike too. It totally works.
Holtan founded award-winning Edinburgh University Student Association Global and is co-curator of Trade School Edinburgh. By night, she’s the heart and soul of Bikeable Jo, an online space which shares bikeable stories from all over the world.
Oh, and pants don’t feature in this story – but they do make for a better title!
Image of a woman on a bike from Shutterstock
