Girls on Wheels

So, what is “Girls on Wheels”? It is a Teen version of PORCA Women’s Bike Club. It is a free weekly social ride for Teen aged 13-18. For 2024, we are inviting high intermediate level pre-teens girls aged 11 & 12 to join on a case by case basis - please contact bree@porcabikes.com to see if this is the right fit for your daughter.

Girls on Wheels is a non-competitive, non-apologetic, non-coached ride for girls to get together, share knowledge, gain confidence, and support each other. It’s a place to connect with a community, a place to make new friends, a place to challenge your skills or to just get out for a ride. It’s a welcoming, inclusive and supportive space. It’s a ride for all female-identifying people and we try to accomodate all ability-levels throughout the season. Each ride will have a first aid trained, female, adult mentor to foster a safe, fun, and positive experience.

We will be meeting on Fridays to ride from 4:15-6:15pm at different locations each week. Once a month, instead of taking to the trails for our regular ride, we will meet at the Pemberton Bike Skills Park to work on our skills and gain some confidence with the support of one of our talented female mentors. Be sure to check the schedule link below and follow @porcabikes and @beccabeats_ on instagram to get up to date info.

The schedule is subject to change based on mentor availability so be sure to check back weekly

How does it work?

  1. Make sure you have your required 2024 PORCA membership (only $15 for youth under 19)

  2. Register for the entire Girls on Wheels season by “purchasing” it as a session, its FREE with a PORCA membership. (This doesn’t mean you have to show up every time. It just lets us know you are a PORCA member, we can sign you in when you do come and we have the necessary information if there was an emergency.)

  3. Be sure to follow @porcabikes and @beccabeats on Instagram for weekly ride info on Wednesdays and check out the schedule button below.

  4. We want to know about you and your riding! Please fill out this form here.

  5. Show up on Fridays ready to ride at the meeting location.

Joining us for the first time?

PORCA “Girls on Wheels” is all about female empowerment. If you're not sure about where you're going, it’s always a good idea to be prepared, even if it just means downloading the Trailforks app and familiarizing yourself with how to use it. This also means you have a tube, pump, and tire levers, and know how to change your own tire. There are some great how to videos online like this one here.  

Beginners
It can be intimidating learning to bike, especially in a community of talented athletes. We don't want you to feel like you must be a certain level of rider to ride in “Girls on Wheels”. Believe me, most girls feel the same way when they are starting out; they don't want to hold up other riders, they are nervous, etc. The scariest step is coming for the first time! But you will find other girls just like you and finding that buddy to ride with is key to learning. That said, the “Girls on Wheels” social rides are not coached and each ride is geared towards a minimum skill level. Please check out the schedule and the recommended skill level needed for each ride. Unfortunately, Pemberton doesn’t have much beginner terrain so it can be a steep leaning curve here. I would encourage you to pre-ride the Girls on Wheels route for that week if you have not ridden it before. The Skills Park sessions are a good option for Beginners to get involved. You should have a basic understanding of how your bike works to stay safe on the trails. If you need to learn the basics, sweetskills.ca offers clinics that are great confidence boosters.

Mentors

Each ride will have a first aid trained, female, adult mentor to foster a safe, fun, and positive experience. Is that you? Or do you know a rad woman looking to foster the next generation of riders in Pemberton? Please reach out to bree@porcabikes.com. All mentors are required to submit a Police Information Check and be Standard First Aid and PMBIA Level 1 Coach certified. PORCA has first aid kits available to lend out.

How did Girls on Wheels start?

Hi, my name is Rebecca Beaton and I am a Pemby local who has been riding and racing from a young age. I grew up in a family who was super into bikes and started racing BMX when I was 7. When I started racing, I was one of about three girls on the track. I raced with the boys and hung out with the boys, all the time. After a few years, more and more girls started coming out, which was amazing. After a few years, I lost interest in BMX and became busy with other things. It wasn’t until quarantine hit in 2020 that I seriously got into mountain biking.

Since then, I’ve become more and more obsessed with downhill and enduro riding and racing. In 2021, I was accepted into a mentorship program Ride Like a Girl,( https://www.ridelikeagirl.ca ) and was paired with Emily Slaco. This was an incredible opportunity for me to meet like minded girls around the province who were just stoked to be out riding bikes. It was a huge confidence booster and encouraged me to start racing downhill. Last year I was paired with Andréane Lanthier Nadeau, and learned lots about enduro racing and the mental/social side of racing. This year, I have applied as an ambassador of Ride Like a Girl, in hopes of creating more opportunities for females in the bike industry like this one. I'm currently preparing for my second season of racing which will include the BC Cup Downhill Circuit and a few enduros.

The community I discovered through riding and racing is amazing. When I’m away at races, I am always surrounded by other encouraging and stoked girls like myself. However, I have always felt that this feeling of community is unfortunately lacking in my age group in Pemberton. When I go riding, almost daily, I’m either riding by myself or with a group of boys. It's been a dream of mine to create a safe place for girls to come out and gain confidence riding bikes. I’m so unbelievably stoked to say that that dream has now become Girls on Wheels. Going into our second season of the program, I might even be more excited than I was last year. The community we are building is so welcoming and supportive. This year, we have some new opportunities for dirt jump sessions and brand support which is very exciting. Thanks to all the amazing riders and our committed mentors, it's looking like we will have a very strong group of girls to ride with this season!

Supported by

We embrace an inclusive definition of “women” and “girls” that includes people who identify as women, girls, trans, gender queer, gender non-binary, Two-Spirit, and gender questioning. An inclusive environment means all participants feel safe and supported, however they may identify