SRAM has released
I knew they were going to use me in some capacity, but I didn’t know what. Then to go onto Instagram and see me as the featured image was pretty cool. The responses have been amazing. I’ve had people I don’t know messaging to say this is great. Other people have asked how they can get into cycling. That was more meaningful to me because everyone needs a helping hand and if I can help someone get into the sport, that’s great.
When I first started cycling, I was very aware that there aren’t other people who looked like me, it put me off to be honest. I was thinking, “Should I be doing this sport because there is no one else who looks like me.” As I’ve gained confidence and progressed, it’s something I think of less. It doesn’t affect me as much, but I know there are other people thinking it so if I can show them yes, you can be in this sport, it is right for you then that would make me happy.
“I would like my story to get more people of colour and women of colour into cycling.”
My story goes back a bit. I used to row for six years. Normally at the start of the rowing season we’d have a pre-season training camp but our boat house was being refurbished so we decided to hold a cycling camp. I thought ok, I can do this, but I didn’t even own a bike. I arranged one. It was a Trek SL 1000. 9 days in the south of France. It was tough. I kind of enjoyed it but I didn’t really do anything with bikes after that.
When I stopped rowing in the summer of 2016, I knew I wanted to do something else. People suggested cycling or weightlifting, and I chose cycling. People have this perception I’ve always been good at cycling but that is definitely not the case. When I picked up cycling after rowing, I was terrible. I’ve had my fair share of crashes, getting dropped and getting lapped. I think that’s an important part of the story because sometimes people get put off seeing someone that’s really good and thinking they’ve always been good.
I’ve worked pretty hard to get to this stage. I was pretty unfit and not the best at bike handling when I started racing in April 2017 . I did a criterium in June last year and someone said to me the person who goes into the second last corner first, will win. During the race it wasn’t going very well. I got dropped and had to work my way back on. Then in the last lap I managed to position myself into the second last corner. I went into it first. Great! I can smell my first win. What came next? Crash! I crashed into a ditch so close to the finish line. It was frustrating. I lay there for a little bit, composed myself, then got up and crossed the finish line.
I always like reflecting on my races afterwards and write something down. I try to pick out the positives as well as learning from the not so good bits. My highest point on the bike so far is competing at the university track nationals. One of the events I raced in was the individual sprint. After all the rounds I qualified for the bronze race and won that. It made me really happy because the whole time I was rowing I never earned a medal at the equivalent event so to get one in cycling, on my first try, was really good.
I raced at senior nationals on the track a couple of weeks ago. This year was more for the experience but next year I want to go and be more competitive. This year I’ll be working pretty hard towards it. I like going fast. That’s what attracted me to track cycling. I struggle with the tactics because it’s something new to me as there weren’t really much in rowing On the track I find it fascinating how I can beat this person that’s actually faster than me.
Besides riding my bike, I’m doing a PhD part time on wearable technology in rowing. I’m using my rowing and material science background to see how you can measure biomechanics. I’m used to doing sport and something else. Obviously if I was riding full-time, I’d improve a lot quicker, but I like the balance of keeping busy.
My relationship with SRAM came about through Ayesha McGowan. I met her when she was doing her A Quick Brown Fox tour in 2017 in the UK. I had no idea who she was until someone said let’s go to this talk. It was great to see someone in the sport that looks like me, especially on that higher level. To know she existed was really positive. She was in the UK again last summer and we got to talk more.
I like showing that there are other people that ride bikes and can be good at riding bikes. It’s not just the stereotype that people have when it comes to cycling. Let’s hope the impact SRAM has made will continue.
Last modified: Jan 20, 2020
