It felt like the 1930s. I was immediately treated like an outcast. The superior beings of the local racing association begrudgingly allowed me to join their ranks, even though I was (according to them) too old and too small. I also did not have a fair complexion or blond hair, but at least I had blue eyes.
I had absolutely no aspirations when I began in 1999. I slowly started to recognize my potential a few years later, when a riding partner screamed, “I can’t sustain this level of pain!” He fell off my wheel into oblivion. I waited for him, allowed him to revive, and then continued the torture session. This, I realized, is competitive cycling!
During my third season of racing I won the 2005 UCI (International Cycling Union) Masters World Time Trial Championship in Austria, where 2500+ masters from forty countries compete for rainbow jerseys. The next year, I won world masters championships in Austria for the road race and time trial, and I upgraded to Category II as an open racer.
I compete in both open and masters races. Masters races are organized for participants with a racing age of 30+ [Editor's note: your racing age is determined by your age on December 31st of the current year]. Divisions are separated by five-year increments: 30–34, 35–39, etc. [Editor’s note: at UCI Masters Worlds, the youngest category is 30-39.] Fields in an open race are not defined by age range. Instead, categories are used: Category 1 is elite; Category 4 (or 5, for men) is beginner. You can advance to a higher category if you collect enough points from winning or placing in open races.
There are several different race formats. My favorite is the time trial, otherwise known as “the race of truth.” It’s been given this name by the sports media for a very good reason: all racers ride the same exact course, and the winner is the racer who does it in the fastest time. Other cyclists cannot help you—and you can’t hide behind anyone. The distances and terrains of time trials are varied. The only constant is you. Other race formats include the road race and the criterium. They are both mass-start races, in which the field starts as a group, and racers use positioning and team strategy to gain advantage. The first racer over the finish line wins.
Cycling has opened up a whole new world for me, and I wasn’t ready for it until I hit my 50s. People have told me that I’m an inspiration to all ages and walks of life—and now, perhaps, even to the race club association that didn’t want me.
The Master Race(r) lives!
