Bike Rides

The bicycle is a “vehicle of peace”
Cyclists use no fossil fuels that nations war over. 
You stay healthy and fit which enhances a gal's self-esteem
It's cost-free, saves you lots of transport money.
An independent way to commute boosts your self-determination. 

Click on the link to download PDF Rides. (Download Adobe Reader for free.)

Follow the Women Pedal for Peace is a bike ride that takes place in Lebanon, Syria, Jordan and Palestine (maps open in new window). We don’t actually bike the entire ride.  It would take too long and the majority of the women do not have the ability to do so.  Actual biking amounts to two or three hours a day, average 25 miles. When not biking, buses transport us to and from destinations. 

If you are a fit cyclist, the rides are an easy spin.  However, if you are not accustomed to biking regularly, the rides can be hard.  There are hills, but no mountains.  The mileage averages about 30-40 kilometers, although some days the routes do not even surpass 5 miles and it seems so much effort to haul the bikes off the trucks for such little activity.

Our bicycles are supplied by Beirut By Bike which is operated by Jawad Sbeity.  Beirut By Bike is located in a large outdoor paved space where we can test ride the bikes, raise the seats, check the gears and breaks, and Jawad's energetic team of mechanics help us make all adjustments.  Jawad offers “city bikes” (hybrids with flat handlebars and fat tires) either brand new or from last year’s fleet which is almost brand new.  When we arrive Jawad and his mechanics help us fit our bikes. Once satisfied, a tag with your name and flag of your country is attached to the bike and it remains yours for the rest of the event. It costs about $160 to rent the bike for the full ride.  

One of the most delightful aspects are mother-daughter riders.  The U.S. team had a mother-daughter pair in 2005 with Susan and Josie Shagwert from Massachusetts.  The most popular mother-daughter pair is FTW founder Detta Regan and her two daughters, Pippa and Becky. If you recall other mother-daughter pairs, contact us.   Below photos left to right (click to enlarge): Anita and Amanda Christodoulou of Cyprus 2009 Ride, Taclan Topal and her Mom from Turkey 2008 Ride, Martha Sara (living in Jordan) and her daughter Miriam of Germany, 2005 Ride.

It is hard to estimate the total number of riders in any given year.  The numbers fluctuate because locals join the ride for a day or two when the event comes to their community.  The number of countries involved averages about 25 per ride.  See participating countries.  See FAQ question pertaining to Israeli participation. Riders do not represent their home countries formally, but informally we represent our nations as advocate of peace and we engage in meaningful cultural exchanges.  

So often the locals imagine we are athletes training for an Olympian event.  Not even close. In 2009 for the first time we passed out leaflets (PDF file) saying who we are and what we do.  They were written in English on one side and Arabic on the other. We thank MTM, our Syrian sponsor, for the funds to produce the leaflets.  

Although the rides are not all consuming, our time is.  The country hosts have us scheduled for events back-to-back from immediately after breakfast often until midnight.  We are on and off the bikes most of the day. On some occasions we are not able to reach our accommodations until evening and we find ourselves at events where the hosts are beautifully dressed while we are still in lycra and jerseys! 

Often you yearn to have time for yourself just to digest all the exotic activity and new people and ideas you encounter every hour.  But an FTW ride is not a vacation.  It is a peace mission and we are ambassadors of peace with a mandate to Go See Tell Act.

Photo Banner, Syrian billboards, 2005
Photo Gallery Top Left Allenby Bridge Israeli border Top Center Syrian fields by Betsy Schwartz, California
Top Right Lebanese dancers by Selma Sevkli, Turkey Middle Left, Syrian drummer by Colleen McGuire, New York
Middle Center, rice pilaf by Colleen McGuire, New York Middle Right, sign in Syria by Colleen McGuire, New York
Bottom Left al-Husainia Palestinian Refugee Camp, Damascus by Colleen McGuire, New York
Bottom Center, Beirut By Bike with bombed bulding remnant of Civil War by Colleen McGuire, New York
Bottom Right, "Teddy," FTW 2010 Ride Mascot curtesy of Shirley Clarke of U.K. by Ilini Slavlova, Bulgaria