Talk:Hot Pants/@comment-146.199.41.7-20150125222951/@comment-190.162.123.102-20150323040743

I think that the sexism of the society of the time is no doubt the reason why she did it, but I think that more than to be taken seriously as a contestant she also did it to disguise herself even more and not raise any suspicion whatsoever. Even if women were allowed to compete there were no other (known) female riders and if she had entered using her real gender she'd definitely have attracted lots of unwanted attention, as she'd have been considered an oddity both by the other contestants and the press, moreso since she's actually among the best. By posing as male she doesn't stand out as much and has a way better chance of succeeding without everybody and their mom watching her every step from the beginning.