Discussion: Awesome

Great explanation. Now I understand it a lot better!

This line resonated with me for my own reasons: "But if you don’t give me a race start from the beginning that’s all my own, how do I know you want me to have a place?"

That's because there have been many races where I've had to choose between racing Female or racing Masters - as if men and women become interchangeable over the age of 40. There's one adventure race I decided to do simply because they offered a Masters Female Solo category. As you said so well, I knew they wanted me to have a place.

Good points, well said. I hope this gets read by the right people, and makes a difference.

Glad and yet not glad that something resonated with you.
I certainly know it's not a struggle unique to cycling. Which I find confusing because, don't we all want to see our sport grow? Isn't the goal of putting on a race every year to make it better than the previous year? I know maNy race directors have asked, how do we bring more people to this race? Start by not alienating 50% of the population.

I've noticed that many race directors are - or were - at the top level in their sport and genuinely can't put themselves in the shoes of most of their event participants. A top male may not understand the issues facing top females. They usually aren't doing this deliberately; they need help from people who can describe particular scenarios well, as you have.