Rider Stories: Kate Hunt (she/her)
We had the pleasure of first meeting Kate on one of our Intro to Bikepacking weekends. It’s fair to say since then she has taken to bikepacking like a duck to water! We’ve since ridden with Kate at our Summer Gathering, West Kernow Way Rally and even in Slovenia and she’s not stopping there.
We got in touch with Kate to find out a bit about her experience of attending an Intro weekend soon her own. We know it’s something that weighs on a lot of people’s minds when they are thinking about booking a trip and hope that Kate’s experience will turn that murmur of anxiety into tingles of excitement. Here’s how Kate found it:
I had heard about Sisters in the Wild events through a friend and I thought the introduction to bikepacking weekend would provide an ideal opportunity to try cycling with all my camping gear but with a safety net.
I definitely had a number of reservations (think fitness, sleeping in a shared room/tent, and spending a fair amount of time with a group of people I had not met before). However, all the concerns I had soon dissipated and I had the most amazing weekend. It, in fact, far exceeded my expectations.
The weekend was very well organised and relaxed. The group leaders were both welcoming and reassuring, and throughout the weekend struck a great balance between providing support whilst boosting confidence in our own abilities.
It was a joy to be with a group of women of very different backgrounds, coming together through a shared interest in cycling. Everyone was very supportive of each other and there was no pressure to ride at a certain pace or be anything other than yourself. I certainly learnt a lot about bike packing but it was also fun and inspiring to be with women with such a great attitude to life.
Following the introductory weekend I went to SITW Summer Gathering, and I have since cycled the West Kernow Way and Slovenia with Sisters in the Wild. The same ‘culture’ has prevailed and I would thoroughly recommend all their events. They are really good value for money and I’ll definitely be signing up to do more.
In fact Kate has signed up to do more and is joining us for our first WILDER trip, Bikepacking Andalusia.
If you’re curious about our Intro to Bikepacking Weekends you can read a short blog post on the format of the weekend. They’re the perfect place to start your bikepacking journey.