WINDER Ruth

Type of rider
Sprinter (ProCycling, 05 Nov 2019)

General
STARTING OUT
She began competing in Europe in 2010 and immediately noticed the step up in the level of the riders she was racing against. "I came over for the spring, from 2010 to 2013 or 2014 coming with the national team to races in Europe, just consistently getting my teeth kicked in. Fleche Wallonne [in Belgium] was one of the first races I did. I think I finished; I think I might have been close to last place. But USA Cycling must have seen my potential because they kept bringing me back, year after year. When you're that young, you don't know any different. I don't remember feeling demoralised. I remember feeling like I wanted to get better." (ProCycling, 05 Nov 2019)

NOT RIDING AT RIO
She was selected to represent the US team in track cycling as the alternate in women's team pursuit at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro. "The team pursuit is hard. Four people ride, but you take five, so one is an alternate. I went to the Olympics and didn't ride. It's still hard to think about to this day. It's easy if you look at the numbers and can say that you are not good enough, and I don't necessarily believe that happened. I still have a hard time talking about it. You train every day for three or more years, and it feels a little bit back-stabby. The Olympic Games come and go and it's a day, and then the day happens and it's gone. It's a really cool experience and one I'm glad I had, but I think it taught me that the process is a lot more important than the day." (ProCycling, 05 Nov 2019)

MEDICAL ISSUES
In 2019 she began working with Stacy Sims, an exercise physiologist and nutritionist, after experiencing low energy levels and menstrual dysfunction while trying to lose weight. "Stacy [Sims] is very much of the mindset that if you train hard and eat the right things, then your body will find the weight it wants to be at, so we focused on when, how, and what I was eating, rather than on how much I was eating and what my weight was. I've learned that it's okay to let yourself feel something. That it doesn't mean you're weak. It doesn't mean you're not tough. I've been feeling super strong. I'm less irritable, I have fewer meltdowns, I have less stress, and I think those things add up to make me faster. Things are happening. Happy things are happening in my body." (bicycling.com, 06 Nov 2019)