More than one participant said they felt talked down to by male mechanics and even overcharged at bike shops. Over the past five years, New York City has added 300 miles of bike lanes and has seen the number of regular cyclists (defined as those who ride a few times a week) increase by 250,000, but the resources for female cyclists and the number of female mechanics is still unimpressive.

Madeline Abreu and Courtney Williams team up on a set of brakes. “There are classes like that: “Women’s Intro to Bikes,” “Women’s Intro to Riding,” “Women’s Intro to Flat Fix.” She said she wanted to offer something more challenging. “People were excited that it wasn’t a 101 thing,” said Stavroula, 29. Instructor Sera Stavroula said it will not be the last. The waitlist for the series, which stands for Women/Trans/Femme, was long and the feedback has been overwhelmingly positive. The hands-on classes were open to women, trans persons, and non-binary individuals. This was the third and final class of Mechanical Gardens‘ inaugural W/T/F Bicycle Repair and Maintenance Intensive. One woman carefully printed “Erika” and “she/her” before sticking it to her shirt front. “Take a sticker, and write your name and pronouns,” said Denise Shu Mei to newcomers. They descended a flight of stairs to a basement with tile floors, chairs stacked against the wall, the lingering smell of incense. The early birds entered through the red door of Williamsburg’s Lutheran Church of St. Denise Shu Mei and Cait McLaughlin team up at the W/T/F Bicycle Repair and Maintenance Intensive for women/trans/non-binary identifying individuals.

Basement bike workshop