“To mark International Women’s Day Rebecca Treston, the classic car podcaster, held a female-only car meet. Here we bring you the chat she had with Charlotte Vowden about herself, her podcast and what the future might hold….
Tell me a bit about you…
I’m probably best described as a busybody. I record a podcast in my Morris Minor about my experiences of classic car ownership and issues I see within the scene and also invite others to come along for the ride as my passenger so that they can share their own. I run the Morris Minor Young Owners Register with Nathaniel Tegg and generally try to enjoy myself by getting to as many car events as I can.
You seem pretty outgoing…
I’ve been fortunate to have a very positive experience within the scene but I’m really aware that some people don’t get that lucky and that it can be nerve-wracking to attend an event for a range of reasons. When I started going to shows and club events without my family I was lucky to have my partner come along with me but not everyone will have that and not knowing anyone can be tough. I want to be that familiar face and help others overcome those scenarios.
Why is International Women’s Day important?
The automotive world has a unique history with women. In the early days of motorsport there was relative equality; women raced against men and won gold medals in the Olympics doing so. Over time though it became male-dominated so I think it’s important to mark the day, partially to remember those amazing trailblazing women, but also to keep carving out our mark on the scene. It’s been wonderful to see women getting recognition in automotive journalism, racing and content creation but also making sure they uplift others who are trying to find their place too.
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Were there any standout moments?
There are two. The first is when one woman told me that the female-only event had made her feel empowered enough to travel across the country by herself on public transport and that she was going to book her theory test so she might be able to drive herself to the next one. The second is when someone said she’d struggled to motivate herself to socialise with her cars, especially since the pandemic, but her and her girlfriend knew they’d feel welcome at my event. I’m so happy that the space I created was respected by others and didn’t get gatecrashed or spoken negatively about online or in real life. Interestingly we were also approached by two young men who were university students. They had heard about the event online and wanted to interview some of the women there for their coursework where they had chosen to focus on Women in Automotive – it was a reassuring sign of good things to come that two young journalism students were interested in our stories.”
-Vowden, C. (2023, March 8). Safety and solidarity: Why women need female-only car meets. Mike Brewer Motoring. https://mikebrewermotoring.com/features/safety-and-solidarity-why-women-need-female-only-car-meets/
I’m glad that events like these are being organized, but only as a starting point. I feel that it’s important to not simply exclude men to build spaces where women are comfortable but instead decentralize men in the world of cars so that everyone can feel welcome. I think it’s more beneficial to work toward a more inclusive car culture than to keep women separate in their own space. It’s important to bridge the gap between the sexes and build a friendship between car cultures so that we can work toward this overall comfortable atmosphere of support and solidarity. By promoting conversations between car enthusiasts of any gender, members of the community can learn from each other and learn to bond over a shared interest with people of many different backgrounds. I understand the demand for a women only car meet and the feeling of safety that this kind of event brings, but we need to look at the bigger picture and change the people and the culture itself. It may take a while, and events like these are a great start, but eventually unity can be achieved.
This article shows me some women that have a love for cars feel unwelcome at car events due to the existing car culture. How can we design a space for everyone that takes the focus off of men to include everyone?
