RIFLE RANGE BOY: Cycling and Empowerment!

Audax Kiara Bay Pink Ride 9.0 (2026)
Audax Randonneur Malaysia 100km.

As I turned at a traffic light, I was waved down by a group of fellow cyclists. From their accent, I could tell they were from East Malaysia.

"Is this the 100-km route?" one of them asked as I stopped.

"Yes, this is," I replied. "No worries. I've downloaded the GPS on my Garmin.

Follow me."

They seemed relieved.

"Thank you. The organisers have not put up any markers to follow!"

We carried on with our journey. As I kept pedalling, my mind went into overdrive. I told myself, "These people do not know the essence of the Audax races..."

Cycling came into the mainstream in continental Europe in the late 19th century. Before the bicycle became widespread, people had to either walk or travel by horse, either in carriages or on horseback. As riding cycles became easier, more people, including women, took up cycling. Women found it easier to move around, eliminating the need for a man to prepare the horses for the ride. Women discovered newfound freedom to socialise among themselves, work, exchange knowledge, and discuss politics. The machines proved invaluable during the suffragette movement that secured women the right to vote. Women on bicycles famously went from house to house to spread political messages and distribute pamphlets.

Soon, men started cycling after realising it was an easy way to impress their sweetheart. Ladies' fashion also evolved, aligning with modern trends and abandoning restrictive styles. Corsets with petticoats were replaced by knee-length knickers and divided skirts. This is similar to how Indian girls today opt for salwar-kameez as their everyday outfit instead of sarees, as their grandmothers did, for better comfort and versatility.

Bicycles have been described as the one thing that contributed more to the emancipation of women than anything else in the world. Society did not take women's cycling lightly. The medical fraternity described cycling as potentially damaging to female reproductive organs. Cycling was viewed as unfeminine and a moral corruptor. The female cyclist was considered a troublemaker. Women were not allowed to participate in cycling races because it was believed they lacked the endurance, strength, and resilience to finish. In 1931, women were allowed in the time-limited category for the first time at the Paris-Brest-Paris Audax Randonneuring.

From the outset, randonneuring was never about competing or reaching the podium. It was about endurance and teamwork. In earlier days, teams were given the route. Riders were expected to use a map or their navigational skills to reach point B intact as a team. Therefore, the organisers intentionally left out directions for this very reason. Now, with GPS, one can simply download the route to their bike navigation device and ride solo.

Women and cycling in the late 20th century shifted from empowerment to urbanisation and activism, driven by safer infrastructure and ecological awareness. Women's cycling also became an Olympic sport in 1984. Women have proven their endurance capabilities. Any exclusion clauses are cultural, not physiological.

https://britishonlinearchives.com/posts/category/articles/
509/from-the-archive-cycling-to-equality

For almost a decade, the Audax franchise in Malaysia has been organising long-distance cycling events for amateur cyclists. This time, one of the newest members of our weekend warriors' group wanted to get his hands dirty in one such an event, especially after hearing that the rest of us had completed a 200 km event two years earlier.

As with their previous events, ladies could attend for free, whereas male participants had to pay. In other words, the men were sponsoring the ladies. It must be a paradoxical business strategy to encourage greater male participation, since more men would be attracted by the free entry for female cyclists.

The race began promptly at 5am, cloaked in darkness. Cycling along the narrow roads from Kepong, we made our way to the Ulu Yam area, renowned for its notorious climb, which was the steepest part of the 100km ride. By the time we reached the top, we were already a fifth of the way up, and it was still dark. As we coasted down into Ulu Yam town, famous for its popular kopi tiams, it was too early to stop for a cuppa. Passing through Batang Kali, a town long in the news for the indiscriminate gunning down of Malayan citizens by the British Armed Forces in 1948, daylight was gradually breaking, and gliding through the misty country roads was an experience money cannot buy.

Pedalling along the monotonously straight roads towards Bukit Beruntung made me realise the excellent network of highways that Malaysia has, or rather, the ones the British initiated before Merdeka, and we have the wisdom to upgrade every now and then. It also dawned upon me that Selangor is actually a large state. We were to do a 100km route, and that only covered half the state!

After Bukit Beruntung and Rawang, it was down past the old North-South Highway, which I had not used for ages. I was surprised by how wide it was and how it had been expanded. The road passed the park named after the High Commissioner of Malaya, who legalised the placement of ordinary citizens in concentration camps (in today's terms) and 'winning their hearts and minds' in the name of psychological warfare against the Communists in 1948, Gerald Templer.

By around 10am, five hours after starting, we reached the starting point, where we were treated to ice cream and a cold Milo drink. The finisher's medal made it all worthwhile.

P.S. Audax Randonneuring is a popular, non-competitive, long-distance cycling sport in which participants ride fixed routes (usually 200km or more) within specific time limits.