Go Your Own Way
The secret to having more fun—at any level of competition? Staying true to you.
Sarah’s best advice? You do you. Photo: Dylan Stucki @dylan_stucki
By Sarah Sturm
@sarah_sturmy
Ever since I was a little kid growing up in Albuquerque, I remember always wanting to do things differently. That same mentality has morphed into my adult life for better or worse, and when I started my journey into the world of cycling I felt real friction. I got into cycling, specifically racing road and cross when I was in college. I remember seeing and learning from my peers all of these ways to be an athlete. Eat this, do this, don’t do this. And for years I subscribed to that; I wore what I was supposed to wear, I limited what I ate, I trained, I raced and I wasn’t really having that much fun.
So I quit.
It wasn’t anything profound, I just realized I didn’t have fun doing something I was supposed to be enjoying, so I stopped doing it. I got a trail bike, and I started understanding why people liked the sport so much! I got into some bike packing and eventually back into the race scene through single speed cyclocross. I started riding in jean shorts, or “jorts,” as a little reminder to myself that I chose this path. The idea of having ownership in your life was a big shift for me, and that’s when I really started to see that if I just did things the way that made it fun and enjoyable for me, I was a different athlete and even person!
It’s just like what women are up against in the beauty industry—the world of sport is no different. We see this cookie-cutter shape that we assume is how you’re supposed to be, and we try to jam ourselves into it. I was constantly fighting that damn cookie-cutter, and it cut me plenty of times. So here I am, being my own weird shape now.
Photo: Dylan Stucki @dylan_stucki
When I ride with juniors or the college kids, I try to support the path that they’re taking. For some people, being super regimented and dialed in alleviates stress and works really well. For me, that approach truly caused stress, and I felt like I was always missing something or doing something wrong. So, I just tell people to do whatever minimizes stress. That comes in a lot of different forms and requires you to slow down and think for yourself, and that’s really the ultimate goal: to think for yourself!
Now that racing and riding is my job, I’ve had to surround myself with a super strong support team. My coach, my family, my friends, my therapist—we’re all a team! I have a network of peers and friends who are supportive both in and out of sport. I do NOT f*** with bad energy; if someone is shitty to you, don’t fight, just don’t engage. Why would you waste your precious time?! I work hard to push through the desire, the guilty pleasure if you will, to compare myself to what others are doing. Put the phone down and remember to do things your way!
Sarah is a bike rider, racer and adventurer living in the mountains of Southwest Colorado. She runs her own graphic design business, Oso Creative, and is a coach and mentor. She is well known for wearing a jean vest and shorts during her repeat singlespeed title at the 2019 USA Cycling Cyclocross National Championship. (She is also known to finish an entire package of Oreos in one sitting.)
