Cycling in a skirt? Try a little 'Poupoupidou'

Cycling stylishly in a skirt involves a certain skill - a knack the French-designed Poupoupidou aims to make a little easier.

Little more than a clothes peg with magnets, the Poupoupidou secures your skirt hem to the underside of the saddle.

Now that summer's here, we'd love to hear how well it works. We've got three to give away.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=19_iFrEzDHg

Win a Poupoupidou

We've got three to give away. To be in with a chance of wining one, simply leave us a comment below and we'll pick three names next week

The campaign for 'rational dress'

In the early days of cycling, women here in the UK weren't free to wear the clothes they needed.

The campaign for rational dress, which aimed to promote practical and comfortable clothing for women, started in the late 19th century as a reaction to restrictive and cumbersome Victorian fashion like tight corsets, voluminous skirts, and multiple layers of undergarments - all of which hindered physical activities such as cycling.

As women's cycling increased in popularity, so did shorter skirts, bloomers (loose trousers gathered at the ankle), or divided skirts.

As you can perhaps imagine, the campaign for rational dress faced resistance and criticism from conservative elements of society who objected to the challenging of established gender norms - something we see echoes of today in discussions around women's clothing choices and body autonomy.

The ethical choice - Your bike in safe hands

The ETA was established in 1990 as an ethical provider of green, reliable travel services. Over 30 years on, we continue to offer cycle insurance , breakdown cover and mobility scooter insurance while putting concern for the environment at the heart of all we do.

The Good Shopping Guide judges us to be the UK's most ethical provider.

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