Breeze Watford to the London Women's Freedom Ride

What do we want? Freedom to ride!

Join hundreds of women and allies on a fun protest ride around iconic locations in Central London.

On the Sunday before International Women's Day, London Cycling Campaign are calling on the Mayor for gender equality in cycling in London, where less than a third of bike trips are made by women, and to support women's freedom to ride safely and without harassment.

https://lcc.org.uk/campaigns/womens-freedom/

This will be a fun and friendly ride with plenty of marshals to keep everyone safe, going at a gentle pace for around 5 miles.

Fancy dress, flags, protest placards, music, cowbells, whistles, tambourines and good vibes are strongly encouraged! There will also be music bikes on the ride.

North Watford Breeze group will be meeting at Watford Junction Station at 10:50am to catch the 11:15am Overground to Euston, from there it is a short ride on quiet roads to join the protest which starts from Lincoln Inn Fields. Riders can join us from Bushey, Carpenders Park, Harrow, etc - just let the ride leader know where you plan to join us from. We will be taking the Overground as the main line trains can get very busy on Sundays and we may struggle to get lots of bikes on board. The extra journey time will allow us to have a chat and there should be no problem with space as the Overground starts from Watford Junction and we can occupy as much room as we need to :)

We will go up to the platform at 11:05 to be sure to get our prime spot at the front of the train. If you are late, please message the Ride Leader. If you miss the 11:15 service, the next one is 11:30 and you may need to make your own way from Euston to Lincoln Inn Fields. LCC will be handing over their petition to the London Mayor's representative at 12:30pm. The Women's Ride is scheduled to leave Lincoln Inn Fields at 12:45 but there will likely be some speeches and a ride briefing beforehand.

Please bring a drink, snacks, warm clothing and have lights on your bike. We would also recommend to bring a packed lunch due to the length of time we will be out. The official Women's Ride will finish around 2pm. Overground returns from Euston are every 15 minutes so we could grab a coffee at the end or just get back home on the Overground or mainline trains.

Please wear a helmet for this ride. You shouldn't need to bring a lock as there is no cafe stop, but please do remember to bring some money / card for emergencies, and a contactless / Oyster card for the Overground journey (remember to top up in advance!). Also please bring a spare inner tube or two, a pump and tyre levers if you have them - in case of puncture. There will be plenty of people around to help you but it's easy to get separated from the rest of the group. We will regroup at the end of the ride, and will ride as a group back to Euston.

Estimated arrival time back in Watford: approx 4pm. Please plan on being out most of the day, and bring enough provisions with you! Toilets are available for free at Euston.

Any questions, please contact the Ride Leader. Thanks for joining us!

P.S. Please sign the petition calling for safer cycling for women here: https://action.lcc.org.uk/safe-cycling-for-women

And also please sign up to the LCC event so they have a count of how many people are attending: https://lcc.org.uk/events/lcc-womens-freedom-ride-2/