Beryl's Night
Beryl's Night is our monthly session for women and all trans and non-binary folk to come and use the workshop on the first Thursday evening of the month. The aim of Beryl’s Night is to create a space for these folk to learn, fix, teach, socialise, get greasy hands, eat cake, hang out, laugh, use spanners, help each other, high five, ask for help, and make friends.
Book on our website or turn up—starting at 6:30 pm at Broken Spoke, wrapped up by 8:30 pm.
Introducing Team Beryl
Team Beryl is a group of volunteers who are passionate about the intersection of bikes and gender. We organise Beryl’s Night and other cycling events throughout the year.
Our mission is to make bike workshops, events, and activities inclusive and accessible to all by attempting to break down the barriers which prevent women, non-binary and trans people from engaging in cycling and mechanics
Our Next Beryl's Night
5th February - Learn to speak bike
Know that something is wrong with your bike but don't have the words to describe it? Need a new part, but have no idea what it's called? Ever wondered what a "bottom bracket" is for, or where it even is?
Come along and learn to Speak Bike! A major barrier to bike mechanics is often not feeling equipped with the most useful tool of all: the language to describe what's going on! This Beryl's Night will focus on naming and placing the parts that make up the bicycle whole.
5th March - Fix-a-flat
Have you always wanted to learn how to fix a puncture and never got around to it?
Is fear of getting a puncture keeping you from cycling further afield?
Are you wondering what trick you're missing because it seems so blimmin' hard?
This month, Team Beryl will help you learn how to easily replace and patch an inner tube, change a tyre, and find out what you can do to prevent punctures in the first place.
2nd April - Spring cleaning (and lubing)
Ever popular, for April's session we'll share some top tips on cleaning, lubing and looking after your bike post-winter so it's running smooth and ready to take you out into the (fingers-crossed) sunshine!
7th May - Wheel truing
How true are your wheels? Why do wheels become less wheel-shaped? This month we'll be doing an introduction into when and why wheels need truing, having a go at balancing tension, and how to get your wheels round and running in a straight line again.
Team Beryl-led
Mechanic Supported Workshops
Owing to Broken Spoke’s mechanics traineeship for women, trans and non binary folk, Team Beryl and the wider Broken Spoke community has had a boost in the number of qualified and skilled cycle mechanics who don’t identify as cis-men. For an industry with a gender diversity problem, this is a big win!
Team Beryl regularly leads Broken Spoke Mechanic Supported Workshop sessions. These are open to all - like our standard Mechanic Supported Workshop - but the session lead mechanic on the day and the volunteers supporting will all be members of Team Beryl.
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The story behind the name
Beryl Burton was an English racing cyclist and one of Britain's greatest athletes. She dominated women's cycle racing in the UK throughout the 1960’s/70’s and 80’s, winning more than 90 domestic championships and seven world titles, and setting numerous national records.
One of Burton's most famous idiosyncrasies was offering witticisms to riders she caught. Dave Taylor, press secretary at Cycling Time Trials, remembers: "The only experience I had with Beryl was being caught by her in a ‘25' in Essex. As she passed me she said ‘Eh lad, you're not trying' where upon she disappeared up the road." She inspires us and we'd like more people to know about her, and others.
