A major problem with this proposal is that it doesn’t really ensure any representation for the parents of young children, especially young mothers. These are a group who are particularly poorly represented in the NZ parliament and, in fact, when you look at a lot of the key outcomes in our society (e.g., children are more likely to be living in households below the poverty line than basically any other group – especially those over 65 http://socialreport.msd.govt.nz/economic-standard-living/population-low-incomes.html ) then I think you have to question whether that under-representation is a good thing? This would just reenforce it.

Not that i'm saying Patrick was implying that :) he is awesome.

I agree Russell. It's ridiculous to make people feel like they're not pulling their weight for not wearing a specific type of clothing while cycling. At least they're on their bikes which is surely what we all want more people to do.

It's also pretty hot and humid up here in summer. You can't ride in Auckland for more than half an hour in summer without being too smelly for most work/social situations. Some men I know can't ride for more than ten minutes...

I wear lycra and bike shorts for the long rides, my normal clothes for the short rides. I wear a raincoat almost all the time in winter.

I am currently wearing my tramping coat (and have been for 10 years) which comes down to mid thigh and is a bit of a pain in the ass. However, now that I have a full-time job, I might even splash out and buy a nice waist length windbreaker thing that is not so big and cumber some.

This isn't meant as a criticism of Frocks on Bikes in any way - they do great work and I understand that they appeal to a lot of women. BUT I do get a little bit tired of people sending the message that if you're a woman and you choose not to cycle in a frock/heels/make ups or even, heaven forbid, you wear lycra then you're letting down the cause.

Really what matters more than anything is that you get out and give it a go. lycra, shorts, jeans, a dress whatever you want to wear - it doesn't matter. there's safety in numbers, and so every time you cycle you're not just doing a good thing for the environment, congestion, your neighbour's lungs and the nation's health bill. You're also making cycling a little bit safer for everybody else out there.