There are two crucial things every cyclist should know - how to change a flat, and when your bike is too messed up to fix yourself. In which case, it helps to know a good mechanic, and if you’re in Montreal then you’re in luck. Revolution Montreal (1757 Amherst, in the gay village) is our city’s new woman-owned bike shop, where Danielle Flowers will true your wheel and her partner jj levine will - wait for it - give you a lesbian haircut for $15. It’s kind of like “Shoes Shined While U Wait”, only queerer.
Flowers says she started the shop because she wanted a safe space for women and queer folk to get involved with their bikes, and goodness knows it will be a breath of fresh air.* And in levine’s experience, dykes and queer kids often have trouble getting the haircuts they want at conventional salons, so the two put their heads and their business sense together, and Revolution Montreal Bike Shop And Lesbian Haircuts For Everyone was born. I wonder if they’ll install my new spokey-dokes.
To read more, check out this article, and then get out there - the streets are waiting.
(photo by Meera Margaret Singh)
*a li’l sidenote: I have known many, many extremely lovely mechanics who are also menfolk. But I have also had male mechanics condescend to me, try to cheat me, and even get all sleezy-like - while signing up for the mailing list at my local drop-in bike workshop, the mechanic said “So, what’s your email? Hot-babe dot com?” At the community bike co-op, for crying out loud! Hence my perhaps poorly-thought-out kneejerk tendency to want to throw my arms around every lady mechanic I come across.
