In my grade-school auditorium hung four velvet banners, each emblazoned with some quality our educators had decided we should try to embody: Respect. Responsibility. Cooperation. Sportsmanship.
It was the latter I didn’t really understand until much later in life. Last year, my friends and I decided to run 250 miles across a small corner of the Utah desert to raise awareness about public lands policy. We invited runners of all levels, from elite runners who make a living by wearing holes in their sneakers to friends who were proud of making it through a mile without walking. It was a lesson in environmental advocacy, sure, but more so in sportsmanship — the pro runners volunteered for extra legs of the relay without complaining, and the newbies ran faster than they’d ever run before.
Turns out sportsmanship has a lot less to do with post-game high fives when you’re an adult, and a lot more to do with setting aside dreams of setting a PR to help your teammates achieve theirs.
A few weeks ago, Machines for Freedom — a brand of high-performance cycling apparel made by and for women — did a similar experiment in teamwork, inviting seven female riders on a 300-mile adventure through those same Utah deserts. It was a way to take the brand’s collaborative and inclusive design approach (check out their Bibs for Every Body campaign) from URL to IRL.
The ride ran from Tropic to Green River, through milky white desert stone, crumbling purple cliffs, Navajo sandstone, and snow-dusted tourist stops. They women rode across pavement, gravel, sand and rock, a multi-day trip that transformed the strangers into life-long friends.
“It was amazing to watch a crew of women come together from different cities, not knowing each other before, and start to work as a unit,” says Brand Manager Ginger Boyd. “For some, that meant leaning on the stronger riders to ride faster and harder than they thought they could. For others, it meant easing up their pace a bit to help another. It was such a cool mix of dedication, sacrifice, and putting egos aside for the good of the team.”
To celebrate the adventure and inspire ourselves to get on two wheels for Bike to Work month, we asked each rider to share her version of what “teamwork” means to her.
“As one of the stronger riders in the group, I rein myself in a bit and use my extra energy to help support the group with extra pulls on the front, communicating ride statistics, and being an entertainer during our breaks to help keep the mood high and light.” — Sarah Swallow
“A team is only as strong as the rider who’s having a bad day, struggling up a climb or suffering from bike mechanicals. This group of strong, powerful women not only inspired me to push myself but they also supported me on my toughest day on the bike.” — Gritchelle Fallesgon
“I know for a fact I wouldn’t have been able to finish this ride if I wasn’t surrounded by everyone’s strength and positivity.” — Jessica Baum
“Teamwork is more than sharing the effort required to get the job done, it’s helping with the emotional side of the work because keeping spirits up is equally important to the task at hand.” — Mason Griffin
“When you get used to riding alone, going at your own pace, and racing to win for yourself, it [can be] liberating to learn how to ride in a unit and appreciate everyone’s strengths. Teamwork allows everyone to function as one; we pushed together, we rotated together and we suffered together.” — Steph Ortega
“I often find myself on solo rides and the Utah adventure, with a group of six other women from across the U.S., was a pleasant surprise. Although many of us had just met, we immediately acted as a team, encouraging and supporting each other, sharing stories and humor, and celebrating together at the end of each day. I can’t think of a better group of women to share the Utah backroads with.” — Aimee Gilchrist
“Teamwork is so much about ego. Usually putting yours aside, whether that means going slower than you planned or allowing yourself to take a helping hand. But, at the same time, there’s nothing better than sitting on a steady wheel when the wind kicks up and you’re so grateful you’re not doing this alone.” — Ginger Boyd
Read more about the Utah adventure at MachinesforFreedom.com and find other female-led brands in our guide to Women-Led Wednesday.
Photos by John Watson.
XX Johnie Gall