As told to Jenna Marotta

Miss February

“It was a frustration shared among female cyclists in Chicago. My friends and I got to talking about how we were treated at bicycle shops and also out on the street riding: Guys assumed that we didn’t know how to work on our bikes if we looked at all girly. We got to chatting, and Kim Capriotti, this year’s photographer, and I came up with the idea to do a pinup calendar because it has a strong history of teasing sexuality but is not overtly explicit. Each woman who came in to be a pinup came up with her own fantasy idea. For instance, Miss February [pictured] wanted to be a retro football player. Each lady, when she stepped into the studio, got a chance to embrace and embody her alter ego. There’s a history of women being draped across motorcycles and cars—the female body being used to sell a product. In this calendar, there’s nothing being sold except women’s health care—the proceeds go to Chicago Women’s Health Center.”

—Alexis Finch, founder of the Chicago calendar company Thought You Knew.

Photograph: Kim Capriotti