I felt incredibly strong coming into the spring block of races and was excited about the potential for earning some solid results at both Whiskey 50 and the Transylvania Mountain Bike Epic Stage Race. And then I crashed. My return to the Whiskey 50 was one marked with a burning desire to redeem myself. The…
Sweet Simplicity
Early on in my evolution of becoming a mountain biker, I remember meeting someone who had a singlespeed mountain bike. I was curious, even to the point of asking if I might someday borrow the bike and experience singlespeeding for myself, but never did. (Ironically, while living in the Midwest, where a singlespeed mountain bike…
To Thine Own Self Be True
Though I’m no longer teaching English, Shakespeare’s words still resonate. When I look back at my high school years, I have only gratitude for my parents and their willingness to support me in the pursuit of my many interests and passions. From riding and training horses, to studying Constitutional Law, to joining the debate team…
Try New Things
There’s a wide range of skillsets within the world of mountain biking, and while I feel like I am learning quickly, I often have to remind myself that until I moved to Virginia in 2021 (just a year ago?!), I had never seen rocks…not #eastcoastrocks, anyway. All of that to say, I have a LONG…
Just one of those days…
What do you do when you show up to your A race of the season, the gun goes off, and you just don’t have any legs? This year’s USAC Marathon MTB National Championship returned to the rocky trails of Gambrill State Park and the Watershed in Frederick, Maryland. After racing there in 2021, I made…
Shenandoah 100k…or not?
The 2021 Shenandoah 100k was the highlight of last year’s race season for me. It was not my best result (though it was perhaps my best performance–ironic how those two things are not always directly correlated), but something about those national forest trails and Stokesville vibes just make the race a really great event. Despite…
Virginia State Marathon MTB Championship
What a day! This weekend, the 2022 Virginia State Marathon MTB Championship took place in Palmyra, Virginia–an incredible event hosted by the team at RVA Racing. I went into the event cautiously optimistic. I was nervous because I know that Virginia is home to an incredibly strong group of women Mountain bikers, and because I…
World Cup Debut: Snowshoe XCO 2022
Since 2019, I have turned my focus towards marathon mountain bike races, generally competing in events ranging from three to eight hours in length. As such, my training centers around developing a strong “diesel” engine: a steady sweet-spot pace that I can maintain for hours at a time, putting in hard efforts for the occasional…
Now Offering Coaching!
Since “retiring” from the classroom this June, I have been pursuing education and certification as a cycling coach and am excited to start working with athletes to help them meet their goals. I’ve been personally working with a coach since 2018, when I first started racing, and I’m thrilled to be able to share the…
Race Report: Mohican 100k
What a study in contrasts! On Wednesday, I participated in the Play Roanoke’s second Disco series race on Mill Mountain, but with strict guidelines to not go too hard (and thereby “ruin” my race on Saturday). The Disco course is rocky, mostly climbing, and the field thins out quickly, allowing for plenty of space to…
Ride Fierce Racing 