ADVWoman Rendezvous 2018

Dates are announced for the third annual adventure rally organized by ADVWoman for women and their families. Held July 19-22, 2018, in Granby, Colorado, the event will include dirt bike and adventure bike rider training, classroom training, a variety of local dual sport rides, camping or hotel facilities, catered meals, awards ceremony, and a DJ dance party. All instructors are women. Men and families are welcome.

“Last year’s event exceeded our expectations!" said Pat Jacques, Rendezvous director. "We had international students and students who took our BDR courses then joined us on the first ever, all-woman Colorado Backcountry Discovery Teaching Tour, a tour we are repeating this year following Rendezvous, July 22-29, 2018. The rider range classes at 2018 Rendezvous feature more advanced dirt bike training as well as more advanced adventure training."

“Our mission is to support women through off road riding and that definitely includes working with couples to so that they can fully enjoy riding together,” Jacques said. “Here is what one of our men attendees said of his experience at our 2017 event:”

Kurt McCoy attended the 2017 ADVWoman Rally with his wife, MJ. He wasn’t sure what to expect. He quickly became a fan. “Leading up to this event I was faced with my wife selling her bikes. Now I am faced with her wanting a few parts and gear upgrades and her wanting to ride more…a lot more. My wife is my best friend, and this makes me happy. Pat said at the beginning of the Rally she hopes to teach a few things and to empower the ladies. She accomplished that in spades,” said McCoy.



“Women teaching women is natural and transformative,” Jacques said.

The retired motocross racer has high praise for her highly trained ADVWoman staff. “This year, Lisa Taylor joins us. Lisa is an expert rider and trained in our style of breaking down skills into manageable steps, allowing women to go at their own pace in a loving and supportive environment. Lisa is a person who is so easy to be with, riding with her automatically instills confidence, which is exactly what we intend to achieve for all of our riders. We are excited to welcome back Canadian Trophy Candidate and BMW Off-Road Certified Instructor Caroline Stevenson. Caroline’s quiet, confident manner and considerable skill has been popular with our riders. We are also thrilled to welcome back Kandi Spangler, an MSF Certified Coach and a woman whose bright and joyful personality keeps our students’ spirits flying high on the range and off!”

Jacques said she is often asked, “Am I good enough to attend?” She advises, “If you can ride a motorcycle—release the clutch to take off, shift gears, and come to a stop, you are ready for our training.” Jacques reflected that in 2016 a new rider had only been on her motorcycle 4 times yet attended with her husband and both improved considerably.

Classroom Sessions are open to all attendees and will run Thursday & Friday 3:30pm-4:30 pm and 4:45-5:45 pm, with several classes running simultaneously in different locations. Topics include trailside maintenance, trailside first aid, intro to GPS navigation, fitness and training for off-road riding, truck & trailer motorcycle loading and unloading, flat tire repair, how to pick up a bike, moto-camping and travel photography.

Immediately following the Rendezvous, Jacques and her staff will lead a second All Woman Colorado Backcountry Teaching Tour, July 22-29, 2018. Learn more at ADVWoman.com.

About Pat Jacques, CEO ADVWoman:

Pat Jacques is a ground-breaking woman in motorcycling who raced men’s motocross professionally. Retired from racing she still enjoys spirited single-track riding and adventure touring. Jacques’ passion is empowering women and getting families out riding motorcycles together. She is director of the annual off-road training event ADVWoman Rendezvous in Granby, Colo., a Keynote speaker appearing at the Steel Horse Sisterhood Summit, Women Creating Our Futures and a personal coach.

Walking out of a conference room to see a hallway full of women teaching and learning tire changing skills was the moment I realized what the ADVWoman Rally was all about. This four-day riding event teaches self-reliance and empowerment repeatedly to women riders.

As dusk set before the rally, comments could be heard such as “we’ll see how this goes—I don’t have much experience off road” or, “it’s a pretty big bike for me.” Generally speaking, women are taught to be humble, hide our skills, and doubt ourselves. Pat Jacques has worked with hundreds of women learning to ride motorcycles, and envisioned a space where these women could come together and comprehend their own strength and resiliency.



By the end of the first day, when Pat walked to the front of the room and asked who had gotten their “badass on” that day, the entire room erupted in cheering. Women had transformed their riding abilities through confidence-boosting step by step exercises, each one building on the last. After riding classes, they attended classes about gear, touring, and maintenance. Each was taught through engagement, assessing needs, and incremental instruction.

“There are so many barriers for women riders,” Pat Jacques reflects. “I want to offer this experience to show them how amazing they really are. Women riders today are pioneers and innovators. They are on the front lines of social change.” Pat offers this rally as a way for women to build their confidence, and to connect with other women riders. She understands that women build confidence by seeing other women lead by example. Seeing women changing tires takes away one more barrier, one more subconscious self-doubt as to their own abilities.

From the meals designed to let women share their stories, to the classes that empower them with knowledge and skills, this experience is so much more than a rally. It is a process of rewriting our stories about ourselves, allowing us to imbue them with self-confidence and worthiness.

On the last day I heard new confidence. “I learned more about my bike in three days than I have in two years,” one said. Another added, “I feel like I can ride off road by myself now.”

Lessons were learned, lifelong friends were made. Some women were planning international trips to meet up. Others were planning rides next weekend. All were talking about next year. ADVWoman.com

ADVWoman would like to thank Husqvarna Motorcycles, Power World Sports in Granby, Colorado, REV’IT, ADVMoto Magazine, Butler Maps, Dustriders Hoist Motorcycle Accessories and Vee Rubber for their sponsorship and generous support of ADVWoman training events.

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