55% of US female cyclists started or returned during pandemic, shows research

Heather Mason, President of the National Bicycle Dealers Association (NBDA), has revealed that 55.4 percent of female cyclists started or returned during the pandemic, as found by the trade-org in its Bicycling Buying 2021 Consumer Research Study.

“While 56.8 percent of adult bicycle and e-Bike riders in 2020 and 2021 were male and 42.6 percent were female, our consumer research study found that over half of all adult female cyclists started or returned in the last two years.”

• 33.4 percent of women cyclists started cycling for the first time
• 22 percent returned to cycling during the pandemic

“….the challenge bike shops face is holding on to these new and returning cyclists and keeping them on their bicycles or ebikes as the pandemic continues and the economy reacts to shifting employment, supply chain problems and price pressure,” Mason said.

Indeed, Mason’s comments echo those recently made by SRAM CEO Ken Lousberg, “… we’ve welcomed a lot of new riders … we as an industry, we as riders, need to welcome them like we’ve never welcomed them in our lives, to keep them riding. They’re the ones who’re gonna help us influence local and national government, to put in more dedicated trails, more protected bike lanes…. That opportunity for us is unbelievable. At a rider-to-rider level we must be so welcoming to anybody who’s joined us because of the pandemic.”

For discussion on breaking down the barrier to entry for female cyclists, tune in to a podcast on the issue here.

The Bicycle Buying 2021 Consumer Research Study consists of 66 PowerPoint slides and companion Excel file analysed and prepared by Keith Storey and his team at Sports Marketing Surveys. The complete Report is available in on the NBDA website for $5,000. If it is UK market data you are seeking, CyclingIndustry.News’ 2022 industry report is soon to land at a cost of £800 and can be enquired about here.

The NBDA Bicycle Retailer Member cost of $399 includes access to a four-part Educational Series presented by the NBDA, and Jay Townley, Resident Futurist at Human Powered Solutions. The first online seminar in this series, scheduled for January 19 at 1:00 p.m. Eastern, is open to all retailers and members of the industry, regardless of NBDA membership.