Over the past few races, I have experienced significant adversity, to which I am no stranger. Bike racing is very complex and difficult. It takes a hundred different scenarios to go perfectly right, to have one successful race. Countless hours of training, preparation, recovery, and nutrition. All while I am finishing my senior year of college, fulfilling the position as Team Director for ProTerra, and dealing with a recent diagnosis of Post-Covid Syndrome, which has been plaguing my lungs for the last two months.

Let me be clear that I do not have a single regret and that I only use these difficult times as motivation toward my broader goals. Regarding these adversities, I claim to have, my fitness has been on a rapid downward spiral since I raced in every event, at my last collegiate mountain bike nationals. Meaning, I raced Dual Slalom, Cross Country, Short Track, Downhill, and competed in the Team Relay. After this incredibly challenging week of racing and finishing 5th in the individual omnium, I felt mentally strong and confident, but lacking in physical strength. However, my desire for more UCI points kept me from recovering and pushed me to keep racing.

Hindsight being 20/20, I needed more of a break than I was willing to give myself and before I knew it, I had raced 10 consecutive weekends, and I was under-trained, over-raced, and severely ill. It’s hard to face this reality when I have such big goals for nationals and a block of racing in Europe. However, after deep conversations with my mentors, coaches, and parents. I have decided to put my head down, grind, and trust the process. I will be returning to Belgium to crush my previous results. I know I can accomplish the goals that I wrote down back in January of 2022. But I just needed to re-evaluate my training and set up a plan that will get me back on track.

I feel lucky to have such a strong support system behind me, in which everyone I hold dear seems to always have my back, at my lowest lows and my greatest highs. Their support is what enables me to push through. After getting beat down race after race, these past couple of weeks, it was hard for me to focus on the big picture, and I almost started to lose focus.

But through reflection I realized that nothing in this life comes easy, sometimes we try so hard to succeed and still fail but remember anything worth having is worth fighting for. What you put into your dreams, is what you will get out of them, and I have poured my heart and soul into this life. Bike racing gives me purpose and I am not willing to throw it all away because of these recent inconveniences. As, I will never relive today, or underestimate tomorrow…up and onward. Stay tuned for more two-wheeled action!

Over these past few weeks, I have locked in and believed in myself. In my previous blog, I had been struggling to stay positive and trusting in the process. Things had not been going my way and I was feeling defeated and stressed out. Especially, when I am graduating college soon and there is a massive world that I am waiting to explore, but with these explorations, comes responsibility and uncertainties that sometimes I feel I am not ready to face. These uncertainties cause me a lot of stress, but there is not much I or anybody can do about it. I need to focus on the moment and take it one day at a time. There is no reason to stress over factors I cannot control. It's not like I have come to some life-changing realization, but I have been forced to reevaluate my goals and commit to a plan that is going to put me on a successful trajectory.

This is an important transition for me, as graduating college will provide me with many possible opportunities, and I need to decide which path, I will choose to proceed. I am trying not to put too much pressure on myself, and I want to let the natural flow of things, guide me in the right direction. Which is easier said than done. I am realizing that life is not always peaches and roses, hardship and adversity are common occurrences in everyday life. However, through a couple of hard weeks of training and many positive conversations with my family, peers, and mentors. I have been able to find my groove again and dial in my routine. This constructive process has helped me concentrate on my broader goals of excelling in the European Cyclocross scene and creating a race team full of athletes, that are successful on and off the bike. I plan on pursuing my role as team director, and I look forward to watching the team, further develop into a dominant program.

Overall, this season has helped me realize how incredibly difficult it is to run a successful race team. I believe I have done a great job executing the goals I set out to complete with ProTerra. Many factors go into a great team, but through my experience with the Marian cycling program and helping my dad create ASU DEVO, I had clear expectations of how ProTerra should perform on and off the race course. As I have said many times before, we could have not had the season ProTerra has had, without the incredible group of individuals and sponsors, that have contributed to our success. A few specific supporters that have had a significant impact on not only ProTerra’s success, but my own success include Brian Matter, ESI Grips, Industry Nine, Flow Formulas, Englewood Grassfarm, Ratsch Engineering, EnjoyWinters, Pactimo Apparel, Aether Racing, PSIMET, Challenge Tires, Bike Fettish, and the families of our athletes! Next up, is the National Championship in Hartford Connecticut. I am so stoked to watch everyone’s hard work pay off! Good luck to everyone competing!

Happy to check back in with everyone after a summer spent expanding my own horizons. This summer for myself has been a busy one. Starting off my return home to Bend Oregon I dove into my first internship, working for Old Man Mountain located in Bend Oregon. For those unaware Old Man Mountain produces cargo racks and bags for bikepacking. Having previously worked at the sister company, the Robert Axle Project, as a teen I was excited to be doing a whole new type of experience with this crew. 

I have been very busy but enjoying every second of it. Working in the cycling industry and a growing business especially has allowed me to grow as both a person and a student. From preparing focus groups to market research and even product testing I have been busy but not too busy that I would miss out on some racing. 

Oregon spoils you for racing. While there are no USAC events there are a plethora of other races put on by Oregon's governing body for cycling (OBRA). Within two weeks of my initial return home, I was lined up for a race that I had competed in since I was able to race, yet had missed out on for the last 4 years. Competing in the 26th edition of the Sisters Stampede reinforced why I love racing. The tactics, the trails, the atmosphere, and the competitors made for a great race resulting in 8th place, followed by a night of incredible camping. 

In the following weeks, I will be preparing to make my way back to the Midwest to finish my last year at Marian University. This summer has been one of growth for me both as a person and a racer which I am excited to carry forth and show results this coming season.

This summer has been a great, yet busy one for me. Riding and racing have been going great for Road Season. I’ve been all over the place like Iowa, Kansas, Virginia, and Michigan riding, racing, and hanging out with friends. I’m stoked to get some awesome results under my belt as well. Some highlights include; 24th overall at Unbound 100, 8th in U23 Road Nats, and winning the Cat 1 State Championships for Criterium! Outside of riding, I am also living full-time in Indianapolis at the Marian University dorms.

I’ve had an amazing opportunity to intern at a company that does Engineering Automation Consulting for Eli Lilly. I’ve been learning a lot through that and am excited to see how Engineering processes are applied to the field. The balance was a bit of a struggle at first but I’m glad to also learn how to have a successful work/life balance. Overall, my summer has been full of fun and growth but I’m excited to see what the fall has in store for me for this upcoming CX season.

Some of you all maybe wondering why I haven’t been at any of the UCI CX races or Colligate MTB races with Marian the past few weeks. The week classes started I crashed during an interval session rebreaking my wrist. This was in mid-August but this time I had to get two plates installed. I broke both my radius all the way through along with breaking my ulna off. My wrist also became offset from the break which you can see in one of the X-Rays. I fortunately was able to get surgery the day after the crash. I had my wrist immobilized for 3.5 weeks and was very limited in what I could do outside of schoolwork, so I had to sit patient for that time. I did have the opportunity to go home and announce at the OVCX opener, Carter Park which was a blast!

After the 3.5 weeks I got my wrap off and was introduced to a removable splint and started physical therapy. I had very little movement in my wrist as my tendons were tight from not moving along with atrophy from being immobilized. It was now time for me to get back my range of motion and teach my tendons how to operate in conjunction with my new plates. I had an appointment after 2 weeks around September 5th. At this point I was making good progress and increased my range of motion. I was working hard and sticking strong with the PT exercises so I could ride outside sooner. At this stage I was green lighted to run outside and ride the trainer with aero bars. It was great to be able to burn off my energy again and to feel the burn. The weeks following, I would continue to work on my mobility, run, and get another opportunity to announce at the 3rd OVCX race, Harbin Park.

It is now the first week of October by the time I’m writing this. After 7 weeks from my crash, I have been finally cleared to ride outside. My range of motion is about 95% and my bone has healed perfectly, so it is now time for me to strengthen my wrist again. My eyes were set on racing my home race, Kings CX as my first race back but after meeting with my surgeon, I was advised against racing with the state of my soft tissues. I did everything in my power to try and prepare for Kings, but it is unfortunately not in the cards for this year. On the bright side I am glad to still participate within the community here for OVCX along within the Marian team for MTB and CX. My next race on the schedule is OVCX Treason Cross the first week of November. Since it is a few weeks out, I am excited to get some good training in beforehand. Despite missing out on the first half of the CX season and my debuting Collegiate MTB season I’m still looking forward and ahead on the rest of the CX season! #Crossishere

Major Taylor CX:

Opening the season up with the Major Taylor race was a fun and challenging endeavor. In contrast to previous years the course had undergone some major changes which offered to keep it interesting between the two days. A strong start on day one was offset by a rather unique moment in the race. On lap four out of six I came into the downhill section with too much speed and far too little control and sent myself flying off the bike. While I would be feeling the true effects of the impact a week later, I pulled myself together to finish on the lead lap after losing over a minute on the ground. 

Collegiate MTB Nationals:

Collegiate Mountainbike nationals, for the first time in my collegiate career, was not hosted in Durango Colorado but rather rural North Carolina offering a much more unique race than previous years. With a course coming in at less than two miles for the cross country race the event was more of a race against getting pulled than anyone in particular. With a large split of over a minute opened up on the first climb, on a course totaling 11 minutes, the racing ended up being some of the most fun in the season as everyone was desperate for positions. This feeling was emulated once again in the short track. 

The short track was definitely the most eventful and chaotic collegiate race I have attended. After a cataclysmic start crash bottled up almost the whole field another desperate and all out charge began. With short track already being a rather short event everyone was competing for positions they knew they may not be able to fight for in another lap. I walked away from the weekend with a renewed sense for the combative nature of racing and how this will only grow going into cyclocross season. 

Kings CX:

Kings Cross is one of the standout races in the American Cyclocross calendar. The Sunday race was an action packed C2 with a high pace from the start. After having the last call up I was not expecting much opportunity in the start of the race but was pleasantly surprised when I weaseled up to the top 30 after the first couple of straights. Throughout the first lap it was a battle to stay near the leading groups and I found myself latching onto one as someone would cause a mishap leading to a shockwave behind. Being caught on enough of these I opted to move up from my current group yet rolled a tubular in the process. After coming through the pits it was a drag back towards the wheels I had left behind however it wasn’t meant to be. Rolling in on the lead lap after another mishap leaves me feeling close but not there in the cross races yet. 

Another successful race weekend is done and dusted. I always appreciate coming back home for Kings CX to my old training grounds. It was awesome being on the mic again announcing my biggest event to date with Julie Hermann. It was extremely rewarding seeing both my Marian University and Proterra teammates having solid rides against a very talented field. Even though I felt bittersweet on Saturday when the Elite Men’s UCI field went off, I was happy to have other ways of participating throughout the weekend. I was fortunate to have so many people come up to me to ask how I was recovering from my wrist injury and say thanks for helping with the event. The OVCX and cycling community at King’s was full of positive energy. I wanted to give a shoutout to the main group responsible for the success of this weekend as they have spent months planning and prepping. Without them and their passion, Kings CX wouldn’t have happened. Special thanks to Katie Farmer, Jerry Hayes, Chris & Lisa Taylor, Scot & Julie Hermann, and my parents Matt and Annette Stierwalt along with all the volunteers who came out to help! It was a pleasure working with them on the other side of the tape this weekend. These past few months have been very eye-opening seeing how much time and effort goes into these amazing events and it is a very humbling experience. I’m excited to be on the up and up with training as I am now cleared to race. Catch me at the next OVCX race, Treason Cross. Hope to see you out there!

After taking a few weeks away from UCI races, spending time at home resetting, and staying local for some OVCX races, I’ve had plenty of time to reflect on the season so far. Our squad kicked off the season with Major Taylor Cross Cup, which for many of us also being a part of the Marian Cycling team, was a home race.

With this race being so early in the season, and right before Collegiate Mountain Bike Nationals, I hadn’t spent very much time on the crossbike. Nonetheless, racing in front of a home crowd, teammates, and family made the atmosphere of Major Taylor electric and was a great way to start the season. A crash on day one took me out of the running for any UCI points, but I was happy to finish on the lead lap considering the caliber of the competition. Day 2 I thankfully kept it upright and was able to roll in again just after the UCI points. After Major Taylor, we headed to Ohio for Kings CX, which was another great weekend of racing with many fast and international competitors.

The theme of crashing while fighting for points was, unfortunately, a reoccurring theme at King’s, but I was satisfied to, again, finish on the lead lap both days. Overall, I’ve been very happy with how this season has started. Coming into this season, I didn’t have any expectations. Last season, I was struggling to stay healthy and keep a positive mindset. Thankfully I can say the stoke and motivation is very high for the rest of the season and I’m very happy with where my fitness is. I’m very thankful for this team, my teammates, and our sponsors, none of this would be possible. Next up we have NCGP in Hendersonville before making the final preparations for nationals in just 4 short weeks.

Coming into this cyclocross season I was very nervous, this being because I was no longer a junior and now had to race against some of the biggest names from the US cyclocross scene. I started my season off at home to shake all the cobwebs off before my first UCI race. That first race I did was a WICX series race at Englewood Grass Fed Beef Farm. I took home the win in the Cat 1/2/3 race after riding to the race and riding home. I then took this momentum into the Major Taylor cyclocross race. Major Taylor was my 4th weekend of racing in a row of my 6 weekends in a row block. These weekends included my cyclocross season along with the collegiate mountain biking season. Major Taylor marked my first UCI race with the Elite men. Although it was only a C2 there were many European pro riders I would be lining up with. On day 1, I had a rough start with a few crashes on the first lap. Throughout the race, I made my way through the field of racers and finished 15th. Although I wasn’t very happy with where I finished, my fitness was there and I knew I had to capitalize on day 2 and grab some UCI points. After fighting my way through the field again on day 2 I found myself in 9th with a small gap to a group of 4 riders behind me. Unfortunately with 1 lap to go I flatted right after the pit so I was then distanced from the group and suffered a gap I could not close.

After Major Taylor Cross I went to race Collegiate mountain bike nationals. I picked up a pretty bad cold right after Major Taylor so my MTB nationals didn’t go as well as I would have wanted. After learning a lot those past two weekends I was very excited to go race Kings CX. Unfortunately, my Kings CX weekend ended up a total mess and something I will learn a lot from in the future. After my bad luck at both the UCI cyclocross races I had done, I decided to pull the plug for the CX season. With all my focus on the 2024 road season, I needed some rest and time off the bike. I now had one more race left on the calendar, and that was Iceman.

Coming off a 19th at my first Iceman last season I was super excited to see what I could do this year, in the pro field. After nearly getting dropped from the lead group about 40 minutes into the race I made my way back to the 14 rider lead group. I was stoked to have made this selection but bummed when my legs and body couldn’t get up one of the last climbs on the course. I was distanced from the lead group and ended up coming to the line in 12th place. Super stoked about the 12th place finish but next year I want to finish with the lead group and hear that crowd roar when I'm climbing icebreaker hill. This fall had lots of ups and downs for me but I learned many lessons and gained some great experience. I will be doing loads of road racing next season. After my road season, I plan to take a break and then start cyclocross racing in late October/early November. I then hope I can finally race cyclocross in Belgium during the Christmas block.

I have to be honest with myself. If I’m going to recap the 2023 season, I need to talk about the struggle behind the stoke. This year brought its share of stressors, contributing to the pervasive feeling often accompanying athletes at this level. Racing multiple disciplines throughout the year demands not only physical endurance but also mental resilience. The continuous cycle of preparation, competition, and recovery places considerable strain on athletes, accumulating fatigue and mental stress. Most athletes call it “burnout”.  

 My nickname “The Wild Card” and the unpredictable nature associated with it added a layer of pressure to my racing preparation. I had to navigate the fine line between success and disappointment at every turn. I wanted to prove that nickname wrong. Because who wants to be unpredictable as an athlete? For me, this season has been riddled with less-than-desirable results.  I also had some really good results. It’s easy to look at a bad race result and immediately talk down about it. To see it as a failure. In doing so it’s easy to think negatively, to get discouraged. Failure is common in racing. Without failure, there would be no success. After every race, good or bad, I reflected. I learned a lot about myself in the face of failure. I struggle a lot to find motivation after having a bad race. Most athletes do, I think. We often find ourselves reevaluating our training routines and seeking a balance that allows for both optimal performance and necessary recovery. The balance between mental and physical stressors is crucial. Getting it right, breaking records, and writing history. Getting it wrong, only adds to the pressure. This balance isn’t an exact science either. It takes trial and error to find the right recipe for a “perfect race” 

As I look back on the wild ride that was the 2023 season, I'm at a crossroads. The challenges, the unpredictability, and the threat of burnout in full swing. The triumphs, the stoke, the memories good and bad.  I feel a sense of excitement and anticipation for the last event of the year. Navigating the highs and lows, battling mental stress, and seeking that delicate balance has shaped me as an athlete. I am incredibly grateful to be a part of something bigger than myself in this community. Closing out this season in Louisville, KY, it's all-hands-on-deck. Final preparation is here. Cyclocross might be grueling, but that’s the part I like.