In 2009 I attended an event where people could test drive a car that had yet to debut on the market. I dressed up nicely (wore my favorite skirt!) and made sure I had flats on so it was easier to press the clutch because I wanted to test drive the manual version. When it came my turn to pick a car, I specifically asked for a manual transmission. “A stick?” the guy asked. “Yes,” I replied, and we signed the release and climbed in. “You’re sure?” he asked. I nodded my head. He asked one more time, “You sure you can drive a stick?” I’m a 27-year-old mixed-ethnicity (Asian/write) female and this was in a college town. I was sure it was more about my gender than my ethnicity. The guy eventually saw that I could indeed drive a stick. But it has bothered me ever since.