ORO-MEDONTE, Ontario — Manda Freyman is a local woman mountain biker who rips and created a woman focused group on social media to bring together all of the lady riders right here in our area of Simcoe County, Ontario Canada. Below is a Q&A with Freyman.

Q: Where did your interest in biking come from?
A: “When I was a kid, my entire world was my dead-end street and the kids that lived on it. Most of the kids were boys and the “riding scene” back then was mostly BMX. I would pull up on my banana seat bike with streamers pouring out of the grips and feel like I was missing out. I bugged my dad for a BMX so I could bunny hop off curbs and build jumps with the boys.”

Q: Tell us your first bike related memory.
A: “Definitely buying my first legit MTB. I put a KHS Comp on layaway at my local bike store after damaging it while testing it for fit and feel. “Take it out back and ride it around to get a feel for it, ” said the bike shop owner. The bike had front suspension so I thought it would make sense to try it out on a small rock wall that the shop backed onto. Needless to say, I wasn’t used to the squish and crashed the bike off a 3-foot lip onto the pavement. Hahaha SOLD!”

Q: Are you seen equally as a rider? Or are you just a chick on a bike?
A: “There’s a new young generation of female riders that may not grow up with this idea that mountain biking is a male-dominated sport. I believe that’ll be the legacy of women that are out there riding now, as amateurs and as pros. The face of women’s mountain biking is changing. And it’s doing so at an expedited rate. I think we’re on the right track, there has been a huge increase in female riders in recent years. I think coverage like this helps encourage women to just get out there and go for it.”

Q: How would you describe the riding around here?
A: “So much variety! We’re often a product of our environment. You need to be where the best riding is or where the people are to get you to the next level. From my backdoor step, I can see so much variety of trail around here. From DH, to enduro or XC we have over 200 kms of maintained single track and that’s part of why home is such a great place to be. It’s a bike/ski community and the people that have moved here over the years are people that are passionate about our forests and the lifestyle it affords us – really in this condensed area there are so many like-minded people.”

Q: I hear you started a local women’s mountain bike club. What’s that all about?
A: “Yes, Peace and Wheelies. One holiday Monday I put a shout out on FB calling all ladies MTB’ers in our area to come out for a social ride. I was surprised when over 18 riders showed up. The consensus was, we should do this more often. Now we have almost 200 local riders that are members, it’s been really eye opening.”

Q: Please share some history or backstory on the team/club/program.
A: “From our Facebook page: “A ride club for women who are already comfortable on their mountain bikes and looking for a solid crew of girls to ride with. We are a social network of riders in the Collingwood, Horseshoe and Simcoe County and surrounding areas that are ready to say yes when you’re ready to ride! Peace & Wheelies MTB Club is for intermediate to advanced level riders who are looking to progress their skills and fitness. Riders should be comfortable riding blue/black trails (you don’t have to clean it but can ride most features), and should be comfortable riding distances of 15-20 km on trail without feeling crushed. Be ready to smash a beer and exchange some laughs after the ride.”

Q: What are the team’s goals for the current/upcoming season?
A: “Our outlook into the “hopefully” near future is to have more transparent, inclusive ride opportunities with our ladies. The reason I started Peace and Wheelies was to connect all the amazing riders that live locally to our community and give them a platform to communicate and organize rides with riders they normally would not know about or have access too.”

Q: Do you or any of your riders’ race?
A: “Yes, a lot of us do. Peace and Wheelies members have in the past teamed up to participate in group races and events such as Chico Racing 24hour Summer Solstice. A lot of the girls race either individually or in teams semi-professionally, recreationally or as amateurs. Our members include everything and in between the savage weekend warriors and a girl who’s face you’ll even recognize on the world stage. The spirit of competition is within all of us, this is what makes our rides so dynamic and fun.”

Q: And recently I read that you’re working on something new?
A: “Yes, it’s called The MTB Exchange. (The Mountain Bike Exchange) Which is born out of that same desire to attract more women riders to our local trails, the goal will be to bridge the gap between social ride groups found at different hubs across Ontario.”

The Peace and Wheelies Facebook group can be viewed here.

More from the Facebook page: “Born out of a desire to attract more women riders to our local trails, while bridging the gap between lady social ride groups found at different HUBS across Ontario. At each trail HUB you’ll meet the HOST social ride group who will take you right to the good stuff. After the ride you will exchange in some relaxation and get to know the lady shredders who rode alongside you throughout the day. You HOST us, then we’ll HOST you!”

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