Quick Brown Foxes : Megan Davis | I Love Going Fast!

I bought my bike in June 2016. My fiancé cycles and I thought it could be fun for us to ride together. It was my first bike since childhood and I was excited to see if I could remember how to ride. It arrived the day before my knee surgery and I rode it that night. Then it sat for three months until my physical therapist told me it was ok to start riding again. I did some short group rides for the next few months and I found that it helped strengthen my knee without the stress of pounding the pavement while running.

In March 2017, I attended a beginning racer program for women in Nashville. It was so fun. I realized I love going fast! I like the way the wind feels in my face and the sound my wheels make. I signed up for my first criterium in Nashville the next month. It was the hardest thing I have ever done in my life! On the uphill, I felt like I must have been going 5 mph max. I finished 19 of 21.

Two weeks later, I did my second crit at home in Memphis. The course was flat but the wind was killer and I was lapped so many times I lost count (maybe it was only 3 times). In each of these races and in the training program, I noticed I was the only African American female out there. I occasionally ride with our local Black Girls Do Bike chapter and I have decided to start discussing racing with them. Hopefully I can help grow our presence in our racing community!

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Clinics and beginner racer programs have give so many women a path into the sport, myself included. When folks reach out to me saying the want to get into cycling and racing, I point them in the direction of their nearest club/ a trusted community member who can show them the ropes in their neck of the woods. I am so stoked that Megan went to USAC's Beginning Racer Program for Women and tried something new (for clarity I did not lead her there, she found it on her own Woot!). Now we've got woman more African-American woman out in these streets, and others will see her and maybe try it too! Wish her luck as she takes on her first road race next month, and if you know of any local beginner racing programs, share the name and contact e-mail and/or a link in the comments below!!! Let's get more African-American women racing!!!! MY PLAN IS WORKING Y'ALL!!!!!!