In Pursuit of Mastery
Racing CX Nationals
By Joshua Strong
Photos by Sydney Lewis
It’s 6:00 am, Thursday December 12th, in Louisville, Kentucky. The temperature outside is probably sub 20°F. The sun has yet to rise, but like a tide, I am enveloped in pre-race emotions. Why am I doing this? Why am I here? Why does it matter?
My answer is complex as any. I lay in my bed on the morning of USA Cyclocross Nationals reflecting:
I am doing this because it is my passion. I love this sport. This craft. I want to master it. I have spent many days training and honing my skills and my body to perform faster, smarter, and better than last year. I want to prove to myself that I can compete. That I can win. I want to be the best non-binary cyclocross racer in America. I want to rewrite the story last year, my second place finish in 2023.
I am here because I love this cyclocross community. Yet I yearn for more lovely humans to be here among us. People of diverse backgrounds and stories. People who face barriers or obstacles to get here. I want to build my own nationals resume so that I may one day build resources and influence change in order to harbor a more diverse and inclusive sport.
This is my mission.
It matters because sport can bridge community. Sport has always been a conduit to social rhetoric and change. There is a power to the way sport is influenced by the people who perform it and vice versa. It matters because equity matters.
There should be a place here for everyone.
I did not win Nationals.
My inner perfectionist wants to name it a failure. Falling short, again, from my tangible goal. Then, it’s easy to feel failure about my mission when I can’t tangibly see the results.
Yet this is another step towards mastering my craft. I am learning to enjoy that process and let go of the results.
This is another leap towards my mission, and I am learning to give myself grace — this is an ongoing collective mission.
I leave Louisville with a burning flame inside me for 2025. For now, I rest.
