Jenn Kowalik, who works at Campus Wheelworks (bike shop – 744 Elmwood Ave), is setting out to establish “women friendly” bike/health programming. “Everything that I do is women only,” said Kowalik. “And I encourage all FTW (femme/trans/women) identifying folks to come through!”
Cycling is getting to be a pretty big deal in Buffalo. The more cyclists on the road, the better chance that The City will continue to roll out Complete Streets infrastructure, featuring bike lanes, paths, sharrows, etc. That means that everyone should be out cycling, no matter what age, gender, etc.
Moving forward, Kowalik will be rolling out a number of women-centric cycling programs. “This month on January 21st I have my FTW basic maintenance at 5pm,” she said. “We will go over the basics to keep your bike cleaned and lubed all year round. Space is limited, so RSVP is required by emailing me at jkowalik@campuswheelworks.com.”
The programming continues into February, with a different sort of activity, which Kowalik feels will help to get everyone geared up for spring riding. “For February I’m kicking off the month with my first Liv Cycling Signature event! Winter Warm Up – Yoga for Cyclists & Friends,” commented Kowalik. “I recently became a brand ambassador for Liv Cycling, a women’s specific bike brand that has similar goals that I do – get more women on bikes. Since February will be too cold for an outdoor activity, I decided to reach out to the wonderful women at Love in Motion.
“One of their teachers will teach an hour long yoga class, and I will follow it up with a meet and greet. Light refreshments will be provided, and I will be sharing all of the cool events I have planned for my FTW community for the upcoming season. Love in Motion will also provide a 20% discount code for a class pass to all participants! This class is free and no sign up is required. Please check out the official event page.
“A couple other things to look forward to in February are a sale and brunch, as well as a shifting 101 clinic! Dates tbd for both. To keep up to date on all of my events, I have a closed group for FTW only, which can be found here www.facebook.com/groups/ftwcyclistswny. Otherwise I cross post to Campus Cycling Collective, which is open to all at www.facebook.com/groups/CampusCC. For all of the non-FB’ers, I do keep the calendar on campuswheelworks.com accurate as well.”