CX Down Under - International Women’s Day Survey 2024: Your Feedback
Orbea Women’s Racing teammates Alanna van de Hoef (L) and Katherine Hosking (R) embrace after the latter’s victory in the Elite Women’s race at the AusCycling CX National Championships in 2023.
Photo: @cassidycaptured
One of the many great things about the sport of cyclocross is its gender diversity - as the State of Australian Cyclocross series showed that in 2019 women made up around 25% of participants in cyclocross around Australia.
While this is a higher rate of female participation than other cycling disciplines such as mountain biking or road cycling, there’s still work to be done to strive for gender equality in the sport of cyclocross, especially as it pertains to racing in Australia and New Zealand.
With that in mind, we created a survey to gain feedback on the current state of gender equality in the state of cyclocross, just in time for International Women’s Day 2024. Thanks to all those who responded. Please note that there are different levels of privacy for different respondents, each according to their wishes.
The answers are below - we hope you find them insightful.
What obstacles (if any) have you encountered that prevented/delayed your entry into the sport of cyclocross?
Expense of equipment- especially as I was not sure if I would like the sport, but needed to purchase to compete. Nowhere to practice or train. I literally have 0 skills and so rely on fitness only…but it’s not really the concept of the discipline!
Anonymous
Fear about skills and not knowing what to do.
Sam Bolton
I don't have someone to help. CX is not a one person event. You need a team or a partner.
Anonymous
Fitness, lack of confidence in what I'm doing.
A.B.
Juggling family commitments, travel to events.
Ailie Payne
Not knowing anything about it/how to dismount.
Anonymous
The ridiculously high cost of [an AusCycling] race license. It seems absurd that a low income single parent is expected to cough out nearly $300 for a racing license to compete in the local amateurs I click cross series. Honestly suck lacrosse and cycling in general is a wonderful sport if that's a great example for all the children of the women racing. However, the extreme cost of the racing license excludes all but those with a high income.
A means tested license must be provided to allow more low income single mums to actually afford the cost of participation!
Anonymous
Nervousness to race, not understanding race format or race licences.
Anonymous
Motherhood - I couldn't ride while pregnant, and now struggle with managing kiddios and sleep deprivation
K.B.
More races in regional towns more than an hour away have been difficult to get to.
Anonymous
A sandy runup created a bit of a traffic jam in Round 1 of the 2023 AusCycling CX National Series in Perth.
Photo: CX Down Under
What's the best thing you've seen an organiser or fellow racer do to promote gender equality in cyclocross Down Under? How did that make you feel?
Stu [Carson, of WA Cyclocross] is a HUGE advocate of women riding. Scheduling training sessions, promoting the women's race and having it run just before the elite mens race.
K.B.
A race last year separated WC & WB grades from WA which was excellent, because 1) it lowered the fear of getting in the way/disrupting the race, and 2) allowed us to actually watch the WA graders, to not only cheer but to learn from how they rode the course.
Anonymous
Definitely women's only skills sessions!
Anonymous
The one and only race I have done, all the people, mostly men, on the side lines encouraging me and the other female riders, particularly in the challenging sand section, or the mud pit where I got stuck, people came to help. I didn't feel silly or judged, I just felt supported.
A.B.
Racing all women’s grades together (with start waves) to have more women racing at once and create more of a race atmosphere and make it feel less like a TT, even though we weren’t all racing the same category.
Anonymous
Female racer using a commuter bike. Made me realise anyone can participate. Also, women-only/women-led training sessions.
Anonymous
Starting women with women. Was good to start with the juniors on a few occasions, show them us oldies are still having a crack and there is ways to continue us in the sport
Ailie Payne
Brunswick CC held a cyclocross skills session - open to all prior to a race. This was wonderful.
Anonymous
[Having] all women racing at same time, grading based on how long you want to race for, not necessarily ability, absolutely no pressure when you're going around, just have fun, keep out of the way of the faster riders, and do my own thing.
Sam Bolton
An all-woman CX race in Bend, Oregon, USA. It was great! I felt super comfortable just showing up with a cowbell.
Anonymous
It was definitely cyclocross weather during the women’s races at the 2023 New Zealand National CX Championships in Christchurch.
Photo: @blissfieldphoto
What's the biggest setback or worst piece of behaviour (related to gender) you've encountered in your time riding or racing cyclocross? How did that make you feel?
People practicing on the course while women are racing. It makes women feel like their race isn't important.
K.B.
I just don't like riding when the men are on the course. They are very respectful, but their skills and speed far outweigh mine, and the sense of competitiveness as they come up behind you makes me feel like I'm in the way.
Sam Bolton
Race promoters putting the women's race at the non-favourited time. Like an add on.
Anonymous
I’ve found CX to be one of the best disciplines for gender related behaviour and haven’t experienced or witnessed anything significant at CX races.
Anonymous
This has not applied to me much. I would like to see options for women to race with men when women’s numbers are low.
Anonymous
Racing mixed genders a few years ago and being shouted at by a male rider to basically get out of the way, in a completely aggressive and unnecessary way. If he had been the hotshot he made out to be, he should have just let me know he was passing and used his skills to pass me. Thankfully this is an example from a few years ago and I have not experienced anything like this since. It was demeaning.
Anonymous
No bathrooms available.
Anonymous
Nothing thankfully.
Ailie Payne
Some men [weren’t] particularly welcoming...but tbh, most are great. Another huge setback for me has been the big problem of what do I do with my child whilst I race?
Anonymous
I haven't experienced any setbacks/bad behaviour.
A.B.
Miranda Griffiths negotiates a merciless runup in the Elite Women’s race at the 2023 AusCycling CX National Championships while the crowd watches on.
Photo: @cassidycaptured
What changes (if any) would you like to see event organisers make to improve gender equality in cyclocross Down Under?
A Welcome Tent for new people? Or maybe a promotion event to get women to come down and watch a race? With good seating? Maybe an MC there to explain what's going on, and a mechanic to answer bike questions as the racers ride by. Also maybe a raffle to boot. We used to race in an old dairy plant, it had a great cement seating area.
Anonymous
More urban events, one day events. Having a family now means I really only can drag them to one regional event per winter, per year!
Anonymous
Come and try races like Dirty Deeds hold help to break down some of the barriers to getting started in CX, which can be a barrier for women participating in terms of confidence to get started. More skills sessions like Melburn Durt [are] also hugely beneficial.
Anonymous
I'm not sure if there is different allocated riding times for the two genders, but if there is have them be the same, So a grade mens and women ride for the same amount of time potentially.
A.B.
Would like to see more separation of women's grades in the future- i.e. separate races for WC, WB, & WA or Elite. So often elite riders are forced to contend with/dodge lower grade riders, and as one of the lower grade riders, it's another source of anxiety for me. I don't want to be the thing that turns someone's race- that fear is in the back of my mind every time it's a combined grade.
Anonymous
Encourage other families to help each other out by publicly offering to supervise someone's child whilst they race. Could watch the big greatest kids while they race etc and then swap...
Anonymous
Race licence prices reduced to remove financial barriers.
K.B.
Continue to promote come and try and skills sessions, have women's only racing
Anonymous
Feature women in the marketing materials for events.
Anonymous
Some rider profiles would be cool.
Ailie Payne
Always have women's grades. Visibility (imagery)/promote accessibility - anyone can do it - you don't need to be a "racer" and have a CX bike.
Anonymous
Aussie champion Bec Locke leads Miranda Griffiths over the barriers at round 2 of the 2023 AusCycling CX National Series in Adelaide.
Photo: CX Down Under
What changes (if any) would you like to see men (male riders and racers specifically) make to improve gender equality in cyclocross Down Under?
I’ve found men at CX races really supportive. A behaviour that should continue which supports gender equality in CX is men taking women seriously as competitors (not just participants). I’ve experienced this in other disciplines where men don’t take women seriously as competitors (e.g. warming up during women’s races, not being respectful on course)
Anonymous
Support & elevate other voices. If someone expresses a concern or frustration, listen. Don't try to justify why things are the way they are. Just because "that's how it's always been" doesn't mean that's how it should be.
Anonymous
Watching and cheering the women’s events.
Anonymous
As much spectator cheering as the blokes get.
K.B.
I've had no issues with the male riders. They race differently to me, and that's fine, I just don't want to be on the course at the same time as them, so they can concentrate on what they need to do, and I can do my thing.
Sam Bolton
Would be nice if they watched the women’s race.
Ailie Payne
Pair with a woman who's interested in CX, not just always their male buddies.
Anonymous
I haven't seen anything that has made me feel there wasn't equality, so I can't comment.
A.B.
Tamaryn Stevens is all smiles as she tackles the course at the 2023 AusCycling CX National Championships.
Photo: @shotbyleealexand3r
What's something small we can all do to improve gender equality in cyclocross Down Under?
Lots of women I speak to are put off by the cost of licence memberships now they are managed by AusCycling - especially when it's a sport they are unsure about, sometime the trial licence doesn't cut it.
Anonymous
We have beer at the finish line… where’s the wine!
Anonymous
More female toilets at events!
Anonymous
Keep explaining what CX is - at least expand to cyclocross so people can google the word - assume people reading the post don't know what it is - CX is still not well known.
Anonymous
Family friendly spaces so family want to come.
Ailie Payne
As above, offer same riding time allocations across genders. Offer ladies beginners crash course on event days from an elite or A grade female rider.
A.B.
Kids area with someone to watch the kids so the mothers can race?
Anonymous
The combined women’s A, B and C grade fields gather for a post-race photo opportunity at a 2018 round of the Victorian cyclocross series at Mt Beauty.
Photo: CX Down Under
In your mind, what will be the biggest sign that cyclocross Down Under has achieved gender equality?
At the elite level, same prize money.
A.B.
Increased women’s participation.
Ailie Payne
Participation rates equalise!
Anonymous
Equal numbers of participants.
Anonymous
Having 50:50 representation in the teenage races.
K.B.
Having Muslim women with headscarves or trans riders participating.
Anonymous
Equal numbers.
Anonymous
More women's participation, regular separate races for different women's grades.
Anonymous
Women’s events with as much [of an] active crowd as the men’s events.
Anonymous
Tilly Field lays down the power during the opening race weekend of the 2023 AusCycling National CX Series in Adelaide.
Photo: CX Down Under
Any additional comments?
I love cyclocross, and I do find it extremely welcoming for women. After getting over the initial concerns about what to actually do when I first started, I have loved it ever since. The complete lack of pressure and expectations, and the sense of fun as I go around at my own pace with no stress and hassle from other riders is brilliant. I think it's a fantastic discipline for women (and anybody) and I encourage more to take it up!
Sam Bolton
The fact you are putting out a survey and seeking some suggestions and thinking about gender is fantastic. I am very new to CX, but I love the vibe of it and I think CX is way ahead of many sports in creating an inclusive environment for all.
Anonymous
Have older races for women! I don't want to race with 20 year olds.
Anonymous
Seems hard for industry to get rid of the[gender] binary in racing. It may prevent some from participating.
Anonymous