Babes On Wheels has just completed its first Styrkeprøven ride. That’s a lot thanks to Ingunn.

Ingunn Marie Baastad lives on Nordstrand in Oslo with her family, and has always been active. She has played the violin since she was five years old, and has been involved in athletics and cross-country skiing since she was ten. The 49-year-old has extensive experience as a group instructor at Sats, and is also a coach for the youngest children in Frøy Kids.

– Six years ago, my husband bought me a “proper” road bike, and then I became completely hooked on it, she says.

Cycling pleasure

Cycling has gradually become a big part of Ingunn’s life. She says that it is nature and the surroundings that give her the best experiences.

– There is so much beauty to look at! In addition, there are of course the health benefits, not only physically, but also mentally. You hardly need a psychologist if you have a bicycle, she says, and adds:

– If you share the experience with someone, you also get the social aspect of it. It’s actually a kid’s egg.

From dream to reality

– When I started riding a road bike myself, I missed an environment where I could learn and be inspired by other girls, but there was none. There were only clubs, and then the threshold was too high for me, says the 49-year-old.

Ingunn did not want to commit too much to training and plans, but rather wanted to cycle when it suited her.

She discussed the idea of ​​starting her own girls’ team for a long time with her husband.

– Finally he said “Now I think only you should do it. Go ahead!”

And thus the dream became reality.

– He helped me with the name, because we wanted a name that would be fun and inviting. A team where everyone could join, regardless of level. And it worked. I published on my own social media platforms, and suddenly I had around 100 members. Then the whole adventure started.

– Our team is a very mixed group of girls at all levels. We have girls who may have bought their first bike, girls who ride in clubs, girls who have men who ride a lot, and we have girls who are roughly at pro level, she says, adding:

– The community is that we have fun together, we inspire each other, we find new trips together, we build networks and friendships. And when there are no conditions to join, it immediately becomes much easier to be a member. It is so valuable!

The girls also have three male coaches, who contribute to learning and a good atmosphere. No one gets paid, and everyone does it of their own free will.

Lillehammer-Oslo

This year, the girls’ team participated for the first time in Lillehammer-Oslo during Styrkeprøven . The goal was to have fun, ride safely and work together to get all the girls to the finish line.

– We did it brilliantly, and we carried out as we planned. It was absolutely magical. We drank a lot, filled our bottles at each food station, ate food and took a break each time. We kept our spirits up, talked to each other, helped each other when we had a bit of a cramp in the team and several were a bit in the basement. Then we moved, chatted together, joked a bit, motivated, and then we were up and nodding again.

Ingunn tells of a sea of ​​emotions when the team rolled into Vallhall.

– We all started laughing, because we did this together. Several of the girls had never cycled this far, some haven’t trained that much, and one of them is deaf. It is so incredibly impressive. I am so sickly proud of the girls!

– It was a bit funny what happened during the race as well. We passed several teams, including a couple of men’s teams. Then compliments were shouted after us like “damn you, you look like a million”, and “makan til kvallitet”, with two L’s. The latter was a Trønder team that had cycled from Trondheim. Then we felt that the energy level went up a couple of notches. It’s fun when you cheer each other on out there. It makes a big difference.

– Did the ride add flavor?

– If it did! We will at least cycle the same distance next year, but now many of the girls have also talked about the fact that we should try Trondheim-Oslo. We will come back to that, but it is very tempting.