Organized by RAR New Haven
Story
Simply put, there are not enough FTWN-B cyclists who feel empowered to ride off-road, especially those who identify as BIPOC or LGBTQ+. Last year, 3 out of 4 outdoor participants were white, and the outdoor gender gap has not changed in eight years.
We want to change that.
This summer we are launching our new project, "Gravel Camp": a weekend-long skills camp for FTWN-B folks to introduce and expand their knowledge of adventure-riding and bikepacking!
Gravel Camp is about empowering all riders, removing barriers to the outdoors and biking, and building a strong and inclusive community that will last beyond the weekend.
Your support will help us:
We started RAR New Haven in 2020, as a chapter of the Radical Adventure Riders, because we wanted to build a thriving community of Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) and femme, trans, women, and nonbinary (FTWN-B) folks that helps people ride more, connect with the outdoors, and find empowerment and belonging through bike riding, bikecamping, and culture of DIY.
We want to inspire and enable others like us -- FTWN-B BIPOC and LGBTQ+ folks, neurodivergent -- as well as other marginalized groups -- to explore nature, connect with others and themselves and then feel empowered to take their knowledge back to build their own nourishing and supportive adventure-riding communities.
Over the last two years, we have led dozens of workshops and classes for Femme, Trans,
Women, and Nonbinary cyclists including Intro to Bike Mechanics, Intro to Bikepacking,
Route-planning, and Navigation, and How to Commute Year-round. We also hosted a 6-week
intensive bike mechanic course for 8 women. In addition, we have led monthly road, gravel, and
mountain bike rides for all skill levels, and helped prepare, outfit, and guide 22 FTWN-B cyclists
on annual self-supported bikepacking trips (50% of them for their first bikepacking trip ever)!
With Gravel Camp, we aim to expand our network and impact so that even more Femme, Trans, Women, and Nonbinary cyclists can feel empowered, skilled, and ready to take on new adventures and types of riding, as well as grow their own supportive riding communities back home.
For Gravel Camp, we have put together an amazing team of BIPOC FTWN-B facilitators/counselors who will nurture the skills needed for all participants to confidently take on a new type of bike-adventuring in the outdoors and to share that knowledge with their communities.
Our team of BIPOC FTWN-B counselors will lead workshops, skill-building rides and community-building activities so that gravel-campers can leave ready to take on a new type of bike-adventuring!
We are hosting Gravel Camp at the amazing Camp Cedarcrest, a nonprofit campground located in the Greater New Haven area -- being close to home allows us to share and highlight the trails and roads we ride day-to-day!
Programming will teach campers to manage terrain with comfort, build and navigate their own routes, feed their bodies and minds on their adventures, and build a nourishing and supportive community of fellow riders.
Through Gravel Camp, participants will:
● Make lasting connections with other campers from around the region, building community, mentorship, and inspiration among their future friends
● Learn more about their bike mechanics – from fixing flats to loosening brakes
● Feel more confident riding off-road after learning technical skills like body positioning, shifting strategy, and ascending and descending
● Be excited to plan their own gravel or adventure ride in the future after learning navigation, camping skills, and the gravel spirit, embody a growth mindset, and know that with community and perseverance they can do anything!
