Reprinted from the Seattle Post-Intelligencer

Thursday, September 23, 2004

Women bikers pump up their confidence by taking on the Tapeworm Trail

By ERICKA CHICKOWSKI
SPECIAL TO THE POST-INTELLIGENCER

As I stand in the soft gray light of a late-summer day, I'm munching nervously on an energy bar and listening to the clicking of chains as my companions ready their bikes for the trail ahead. We're in the parking lot of Philip Arnold Park in Renton, about to attempt the daunting Tapeworm.

		MERYL SCHENKER/P-I
	Katie Jackson of Seattle rides The Tapeworm, a section of single-track trail near Phillip Arnold Park in Renton.

It is a difficult trail, known for battering mountain bikers, and I'm not getting any reassurances that I'm going to come out unscathed.

"I did my first endo on this trail," I hear one woman say, using the biker term for a buns-over-handlebars pileup.

"Oh my gosh, I did too!" says another. "I was so sore afterward."

"You went left instead of right on that one curve, didn't you?" asks a third, getting nods from both.

I'm prepared to take a beating, if only to get a chance to ride with these women. These are the pretty tomboys of the class, girls just as comfortable in heels as they are in cleated bike shoes. None lack femininity, but they aren't afraid to get dirty, either.

In other words, they're my kind of gals.

They are all members of the Backcountry Bicycle Trails Club, a local mountain biking club dedicated to organizing bikers for trail advocacy and fun rides. This trip to Tapeworm is one of BBTC's all-women rides, a movement that has helped attract female members to the club and to the sport.

"I think there's always interest in getting women involved because it is such a male-dominated sport," says Christina Gwin, a longtime BBTC member. These rides have been a good way to reassure the women in the club that they have a place on the trails, she says, and that there are others who share their interests.

"It is so cool to find girls who like to play in the dirt," says Kathy Alexion, who used to mountain bike in Colorado before moving to the Puget Sound and joining BBTC.

As they get their bikes tuned for the trail, all the women murmur in agreement that these rides are something special. There are no testosterone-fueled rivalries, no stupid stunts, and absolutely no critical remarks here. But that doesn't mean these women aren't tough.

		MERYL SCHENKER/P-I
	Longtime Backcountry Bicycle Trails Club member Christina Gwin of Kenmore checks over her bike in the Philip Arnold Park parking lot in Renton before hitting the trail on adjacent Puget Sound Energy land.

"Actually, the girls are pretty macho, too," says Peggy Prichard, 46, who started riding with BBTC after taking one of its Mad Skillz for Girls classes earlier in the summer.

The oldest of the bunch, Prichard has the air of a really cool aunt. She has the wisdom of age, without losing the humor and vigor of youth. I take one look at her face and I know that she can hang tough with the most exuberant youngsters, male or female. Her nose is scuffed, and just below her right eye is the faint glimmer of a week-old shiner, telltale signs of a relentless ride in her not-so-distant past.

She's not the only one, either. As each woman mounts her bike to head toward the trailhead, I can see that these bruises and scratches are the merit badges of their club.

Situated just outside Philip Arnold Park, the 'Worm lives up to its name. It is twisty, turny, technical and downright nasty at times. The trail is on a couple of acres of Puget Sound Energy land, generously shared with thousands of riders every year. Because its designers created it to double back on itself so many times, they managed to fit close to four miles of demanding single-track on a postage-stamp-size plot.

This makes for a really great group ride. No matter how far ahead or behind your fellow adventurers are on the route, they are always within shouting distance.

In my case, I'm on the trailing end, just in front of Susan Clementson, another BBTC vet and the organizer of the outing. She encourages me along, while shouting out occasionally to make sure we're not far behind the others.

There is no real grinding uphill, but I can tell my legs will feel it in the morning. Just when I'm gaining momentum, there is always a hairpin curve, a slippery root or a tombstonelike rock with my name on it. And they are all just waiting to slow me down before the next hump up.

As I snake through this crooked trail, I am glad I decided against attaching climbing bars on my handles. Already I've passed a few tight spots where it was difficult enough to get between tree trunks without the hassle of bar ends.

		MERYL SCHENKER/P-I
	Overcoming her initial trepidation, Amy Congdon, 27, of Seattle hits the Tapeworm Trail teeter-totter like a champ as fellow BBTC members Susan Clementson, right rear, and Peggy Prichard provide support by forming a "human cushion."

I must admit I'm a road rider at heart. I'm used to an even cadence on a smooth surface, with slick tires barely gripping the road. As my back tire skids out on the umpteenth slimy rock, I realize how good a thing traction really is.

"You're doing really well," Clementson says. "This is a killer trail, even for me."

I know she's fibbing a little. It may be a difficult route, but she has been handling it effortlessly. Like a skier on a difficult slope, she has an eye for the best lines down the trail. I turn my head to acknowledge her encouragement -- just in time to see her hop over a tricky log.

I turn back to face the trail, gain a little steam around a tight turn ... and nearly join the endo club when a branch snags my front spokes. But I do appreciate Clementson's white lies; they keep me motivated to move beyond the frustrating blunders and just enjoy the experience.

This seems to be the whole point of these all-women rides. There still is pressure to perform, but it's positive rather than negative: Riders compete to impress each other, rather than to avoid embarrassment.

As we head toward a clearing, I get a glimpse of this dynamic in action. Set between the serpentine twists of the 'Worm are a number of clearings that are home to Puget Sound Energy's towering spires. At this particular opening, there is also a teeter-totter that has seen a fair share of knobby tires on its creaky wood. The women are taking turns, with the rest of the group whooping it up each time the plank lands with a tremendous report and the victorious rider speeds off.

		MERYL SCHENKER/P-I
	Ride leader Susan Clementson, left, and Katie Jackson take an alternate track on the Towers of Power Trail, which shares the same patch of Puget Sound Energy land as the Tapeworm.

Men would goad with a double-dog-dare and a vote of no confidence until the deed was done. Instead, these riders push with assurances and encouragement until the teeter has been tottered.

I sidle up to Amy Congdon, who is watching with nervous eagerness as Gwin expertly races up and then down the rocking ramp. I can tell she wants in, she's just not sure if she can handle the obstacle.

"If I were going to do this, it would be on a girls ride," she says to me. When Clementson hears this, Congdon's fate is sealed.

"Oh, you should totally do it," Clementson says.

"You should. It is really fun," says Gwin. "And it is easier than it looks."

"I don't know," Congdon says, "do you think I can really do it?"

"C'mon, we'll spot you," Clementson says. Turning to the rest of the group, she says, "Human cushion everyone!"

Clementson posts a couple of people at either side of the teeter-totter while Congdon walks her bike into place. She perches on her saddle and starts pedaling toward the ramp. Up she goes, hesitating at the fulcrum as the wood swings down, letting gravity carry her spinning wheels back to the ground.

Congdon is grinning as we all give her a boisterous holler. She is the last one to take the obstacle. It is getting dark and we're still not finished. As we head out in the dim light of evening, I start to get the hang of the trail. I manage my way around a treacherous bend and get a shout of approval from Clementson.

In the last few minutes of twilight, we pedal our way out to the trailhead. I can feel a few welts forming on the backs of my calves. It'll take a little light for me to be sure, but I'm pretty confident that I just earned my first multicolored BBTC merit badges.

TRAIL DETAILS

The Backcountry Bicycle Trails Club Web site offers a forum for members to post and join upcoming rides: www.bbtc.org