When I was growing up, one of the most derogatory things anybody could have said to me was, "You throw like a girl." Or "you run like a girl."
In my heart of hearts, I wanted to say, "Of course! What did you expect?" But, because I was being raised as a boy, I couldn't respond that way.
Any more than I could have smiled and thanked someone for telling me I rode a bike "like a girl."
Now, if the people around me knew anything about cycling, I could have retorted, "Like Nancy Burghart?" Or "Like Rebecca Twigg?"
Or Viola Brand:
Forget about the latest Tour or Giro or Vuelta winner. This young woman from Stuttgart, Germany is my new cycling hero! I mean, if you can pirouette on a bike, you are a real athlete--and artist.
She said that while doing her pirouettes, "I was afraid of breaking the chandelier."
I don't think it would be very difficult to replace.
