Bicycling finds a softer side

MANCHESTER-BY-THE-SEA -- The roads of the North Shore have had extra traffic on Tuesday and Thursday evenings this summer. It isn't because of construction on Route 128, and the extra traffic isn't even of the four-wheel variety. It's cyclists, most of them women, and they're part of a recent surge of interest by athletes, bike shops, and manufacturers.

Seaside Cycle in Manchester-by-the-Sea and Bay Road Bikes in south Hamilton both offer women's rides from their shops on a weekly basis, starting at 6 p.m.

Seaside Cycle's ride, on Thursday evenings, welcomes riders of all ages and levels of experience. "We don't drop anyone," said Suzy Johnson, who leads the rides. "If someone's riding slower, we all slow down and try to keep the same pace."

Their only concern is that all riders have a road bike. Otherwise, they won't be able to keep up, regardless of age or skill level.

The Bay Road Bikes ride is geared for intermediate cyclists, ready for a faster pace. Led by Emily Thorne, the group averages about 18 miles per hour and covers between 36 and 40 miles on its Tuesday evening rides. Thorne's group doesn't drop anyone along the way either, she said. Riders might regroup at an intersection to ensure everyone stays together.

Thorne varies the route from week to week so no one gets bored, but the group generally passes through Hamilton, Topsfield, Boxford, Middleton, sometimes North Andover, then back through Ipswich.

The Seaside Cycle group covers about 20 miles during its summer rides, regularly traveling through Manchester, Essex, Hamilton, and Beverly.

"It's pretty low-key," Johnson said. "We go along at our own pace."

Sherri Curcuru of Gloucester joined the Bay Road rides this year to fine-tune her cycling. A typical ride starts with "10-15 minutes of warmup. That's when everyone will talk and help or welcome new riders to give them insight as to what level the ride will be," she said.

"These are not be supposed to be competitive rides. They are rides to encourage more women to join us."

Thorne and Johnson are both experienced cyclists and have relationships with the shops where the rides begin.

Seaside Cycle, for example, stays open late on Thursdays to accommodate the women's ride. "We fix up their bikes, pump their tires, whatever else they need," said Barclay Sylvester, who works at Seaside.

Thorne started the women's ride from Bay Road Bikes about five years ago. Stuart Thorne, owner of Bay Road Bikes and Emily's husband, said the shop has always drawn good business from female cyclists. "Now it's just that much better because there are more offerings in that category," he said, referring to the bicycles and other products that manufacturers have recently started designing specifically for women.

Manufacturers such as Trek and Specialized now produce WSD bikes, short for Women Specific Design. The idea is to create a more natural riding position for women by balancing their weight more evenly between the hips and hands. Women have wider pelvises, so WSD bikes have wider saddles. Women have shorter torsos, so WSD bikes have a shorter top tube. The brake levels have a shorter reach, and narrower handlebars and grips accommodate smaller shoulders and hands.

WSD bikes are in such demand, Seaside Cycle can't get more right now. "We just have what's in stock," Sylvester said. Bay Road Bikes also supplies cycling accessories that are designed for women, such as helmets, gloves, and pumps that are easier to use for someone who is, say, 5 foot 3 inches tall.

These adjustments in riding equipment particularly make a difference to women who are new to the sport and eager to feel comfortable in the saddle. Women-only group rides also make a difference.

"It's intimidating to ride together in a group," Johnson said. Some of the women who join her on Thursday nights have ridden in groups before, others haven't. "We don't criticize," she said, "so it isn't threatening to come out and ride."

Emily Thorne said the Bay Road Bikes women's ride will continue its weekly schedule into next month, and she's looking forward to another season next year.

To get in on a ride, call Bay Road Bikes at 978-468-1301 or Seaside Cycle at 978-526-1200.