How it all started

NFORC ride leader Nic, attended the bike packing event Brothers in the Wild, in September 2020. After riding in a group for the first time, and falling in love with the energy of collective, shared experiences on two wheels, she inquired about whether there were any women-led, off-road rides locally. After hearing it was a no, she was encouraged by Tom, co-owner of The Woods Cyclery in Lyndhurst, to start a group.

Nic spent a couple of months avoiding Tom’s gentle encouragement until eventually, Tom put 6 women he knew in whatsapp group along with a route and set a date.

The first New Forest Off-Road Club ride was held in October 2020. 

Within months, it became clear that a huge number of people were keen to participate in a group ride that looked different to the norm. After being locked out of mainstream amateur and professional cycling scenes, all kinds of people started showing up for rides.

In no time, our rides were full of people on all kinds of bikes, wearing band tshirts instead of Rapha kit and talking about how many animals they’d seen instead of how many miles they’d ridden.

To date, over 400 individuals have joined 100 rides and our community continues to grow.

The Instagram account is a celebration of women and a love letter to the New Forest. We use our platform and voice to lift up others and shine a light on underrepresented groups in the cycling industry. 

We have ambitions to set the blueprint for the most inclusive, accessible and diverse, community-led group rides and to support folks in starting their own bike communities at a hyper-local level. 

In May 2021, Vedangi Kulkharni, the youngest woman to cycle around the world, became the first official steward of The New Forest Off-Road Club. 

“The most welcoming and approachable group of people I think I’ve ever met who are smashing the barriers to cycling.”

— Amanda Shorey, Bike it Plus Officer for BCP