All Bodies on Bikes, a Shimano Originals film, follows Kailey Kornhauser and Marley Blonsky on a two-day bikepacking trip with more than just a mission to finish the ride, it’s to ultimately change the perception of who rides a bike and that this type of adventure is achievable to anyone no matter their body type. In the film the pair, who both self-identify as fat, bond over their love of bicycling adventures and a shared desire to build a more welcoming and diverse cycling community.
The trip was filmed along the Corvallis to Coast Trail, a 65-mile route through the scenic Oregon Coast Range in the summer of 2020 using COVID-19 safety precautions.
“People associate negative feelings with the word fat,” Kailey says. “People think that fat means lazy or ugly or undesirable. But really, fat is just a descriptor of our bodies. So, I try and use that word to describe myself. And to take the world back and what it means about my body but leave those negative associations behind.”
Kailey and Marley write, consult, and present workshops on body size inclusion in the cycling community, and have created an “All Bodies on Bikes Resource and Discussion Guide” to accompany the film. Both acknowledge that discussions around weight and size can be emotional, and that this subject can be challenging for many people to discuss. The “All Bodies on Bikes Resource and Discussion Guide” includes suggested reflection questions and links for additional information and further reading.