Blog of the week: Bangable Dudes in Pro Cycling

Thanks Dave for posting. In no way should women’s cycling sites and blogs sink to the objectification of men if the only excuse they have is that “men’s sites do it” and it’s pretty lame that no one here can really defend BDIPC with any other excuse. I think the insults here towards you are shameful. They are all similar comments to when I have posted in the past lambasting blogs containing sexy chicks on bikes. However the difference here is that SexyChicksOnBikes rarely contains photos of actual women cyclists doing actual cycling and this blog is men cyclists cycling.

I want men and women cyclists to be viewed as attractive, this trumps anorexic and steroid-shooting models any day. I think that viewing cyclists, footballers, scientists, road-workers, professors, etc as sexy for doing what they are good at naturally is a positive example to set. Showing these folks in their environment working hard and pushing themselves should be attractive.

We need to get past thinking half-plastic models (men or women) draped across a bicycle, wrench, Bunsen burner (ouch!) or some other contraption that they know nothing about is sexy. It ain’t and the websites perpetuating those images (whether of men or women) are really lame.

With this in mind I disagree that the photos on BDIPC and the purpose they are posted is offensive. That said the title is ridiculous and not at all ironic, tongue-in-cheek or funny but actually just an honest representation of what the site is. It is a website that contains lame writing and photos of men doing something they are really good at aimed at women who find that trait in men attractive.

If BDIPC lost the text, if they didn’t explain what these men are skilled at and what makes them sexy, I’d be in total agreement with Dave. However explaining that these men are attractive because they are striving to do something not many people can do is great. (That said the text could be written in a less Loaded-type style and written towards people with brains rather than those with only hormones.) In addition, if BDIPC only showed men posing in the sunset post-race, in some accidental “sexy” pose it would again be exploitive and not ok. But they are showing, more often than not, men racing, sweating, succeeding. So often when you do get a glimpse of an actual cyclist on the “SexyChicks” blogs it’s in a photo that was taken on the sly that has caught the cyclist in an accidental ‘sexy’ pose, bent over, top undone, etc.. Again, this isn’t something that BDIPC is doing.

My point is that sexuality is a natural part of being human and I’d much rather my daughter think that men who are achieving great things and are pushing themselves towards becoming more are way more “sexy” than some reality tv contestant. In addition I’d teach my son that women like Victoria Pendelton, Shanaze Reade and Juliet Elliott are the “sexy” ones. They are the ones that don’t spend their time drizzling themselves over the boys in clubs but are instead to be found outside pushing themselves further, training, falling down and getting back up. That is really sexy and I’d like more people to think that.

But oh man, what a grey area this is! Victoria Pendelton trading on her looks for brands like Pantene is so boring and unattractive, just like Beckham doing a shaving cream commercial. I don’t want to see women having to trade on their looks to get sponsorship money and unfortunately this is much more the case in womens sports than in mens. Sportswomen doing nude calendars to raise funds make me want to puke. Not because of what they are doing, but because unfortunately it’s the best thing to do to raise the money needed to be able to train. How many lower-level female cyclists would receive the sponsorship money they receive if they weren’t attractive? How many ugly but talented sportswomen do you see sponsored? This is simply not an issue in mens sports.

Then you have the issue of female models dressed like prostitutes draping themselves over men’s cycling equipment in order to sell the gear. This of course has nothing to do with the skills of cycling but is no different than any other garage-bought lads mag. And again I’m not sure that I’ve ever seen a half-naked male model lounging sexily over some female sporting gear in order to sell it. Images like this are exploitive, have nothing to do with the sport or skill, and are degrading whether it’s men or women in the pictures.

However BDIPC is doing none of these things to the men in the pictures and honestly I think a BangableChicksInProCycling that contained actual race photos would be refreshing. Photos of cycleX chicks neck and neck racing and covered in mud, a female track racer crossing the finish line with her hands in a Victory ‘V’, a woman road cyclist cringing in the drops whilst pushing herself uphill…..hot!!

These issues are all in the grey areas and I applaud Dave for speaking up. I think his opinion is very valuable and on topic. Whilst we all strive to balance out the gender equality in sports this is definitely an issue that needs to be looked at. Women need to make sure that they aren’t falling into the same clichés that men have and I think those women on here who have insulted Dave should take a second look at what he’s saying. I think those women on here who have simply pointed their fingers and said “they do it so we can too” need to think about the longevity of this stance, the damage it can do, and the lesson that they are teaching our future sports stars.