According to the Madsen Bicycles website, submitted by Mary S., women dote on children…
…and look lovely with flowers:
While men do sporty stuff…
…and more sporty stuff:
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Lisa Wade is a professor of sociology at Occidental College. You can follow her on Twitter and Facebook.
Comments 43
Leon — October 5, 2009
Women bike while wearing dresses?
magista — October 5, 2009
Women apparently don't actually ride their bikes either, which would clearly be shockingly unfeminine. Oh no, the bikes, like the women, are to be prettily posed accessories.
Ryan — October 5, 2009
this kind of reminds me of your post about "girls" motorcycles.
My wife is an avid cyclist and always hates when guys in the store direct her to the "girls" version of a bike. supposedly there are "geometry" differences but the top end "women's" mountain bike usually leaves something for her to be desired. Cycling is really a boys club. At least in LA.
Keeley — October 5, 2009
Yeah... Women definitely don't actually SIT on bikes.
It actually looks to me like the first photo is 'shopped to look like the woman is stradling the biek (her left leg is behind the bike, which doesn't look right in terms of perspective to me, and the skirt somehow manages to be utterly unimpeded by the crossbar, but I noticed it primarily because it's a really awkward way to interact with a bike, pushing it while straddling the cross-bars in front of the seat... wtf?)
Seems like a lame attept to make up for the fact that these women aren't portrayed riding the bike, sothey made her sort of half riding it?
Sabriel — October 5, 2009
I only see one person wearing a helmet, and it doesn't appear to be buckled on.
Patrick — October 5, 2009
It's a conservatively targeted message trying to sell a new product with familiar uses, so this seems like a sensible ad campaign but as always it's useful to examine and be aware of the gender implications so that the assumptions don't become habit.
Marcus — October 5, 2009
Related discussion elsewhere today: http://yglesias.thinkprogress.org/archives/2009/10/bicycling-and-gender.php
Brad — October 5, 2009
Well...... she's not wearing pink anyhow.
Maria — October 5, 2009
at least they're wearing sensible flat shoes and not heels. that's a plus, right?
...right?
*cricets*
oh well, i tried.
Quixotess — October 5, 2009
Wow, those kids are extra white. I mean, I don't have a problem with white kids, but those kids just seem done up to look REALLY white. Like, the blonde glossy hair, and the pale clothing,..even their hairstyles and postures seems to scream WHITENESS to me, although I can't quite put my finger on it.
Nia — October 5, 2009
And women manage to be so thin they look frail, even if they're biking and carrying two children, while men on bikes looks appropriately toned all over.
Emily — October 5, 2009
Coincidence that Madsen Cycles is based in Salt Lake City, Utah?
CurryRice — October 5, 2009
That's gotta have a crappy turn radius.
chuk — October 5, 2009
I'm surprised not to see the men biking their kids around. In my neighbourhood, where lots of people bike, I think it's more common to see the dad hauling the kids around--I assume that there are gendered reasons for this.
groggette — October 5, 2009
Everyone else covered the gendered aspects so I'll just add that it's obvious the people in charge of this ad comapaign have not ridden any bikes at all in their adulthood. Forget the dresses on the women or the no helmets, even (especially) on the kids, I see that everywhere... but the shoes!! I can't stand biking in flipflops if I'm just hauling my own ass around. I couldn't imagine actually trying to haul cargo while only in flip flops or the other flimsy shoes shown.
Tim — October 6, 2009
No outrage at the use of a person of color in advertising? I'm shocked!
Attica — October 7, 2009
Jesus. Yeah, I'm a bicycle mechanic and even local bike shop owner and I don't have a penis. At least 95% of people who walk into the store are white males. I could give you ten bicycle gender horror stories per day, but I'll just say that after three years in the bike industry, sometimes I just dread and regret it and want to close the shop and go back to working at Subway or something. It is an absolute boy's club and no white douchebag can have a macho bike hobby without trying to humiliate someone else. Males:
- are better at riding bikes
- know more about tools and mechanics
- are better consumers (aggressively "pick the best things" for women)
I think masculinity is entirely relative, so on a bad day I end up carrying pepper spray. Either I threaten their masculinity (through competence) and MUST BE DESTROYED, or I am some kind of side-show fluke (hey kids! Want to go throw peanuts at the vagina with a wrench?!).
Anyway, sorry, hard to lurk when two wheels are discussed.