To my New England cycling community:

My name is Lydia and I am asking for your vote to join the NEBRA Board of Directors. The job of the NEBRA Board is to guide NEBRA’s actions to make cycling in New England great. With a trend of decreasing racer days, increasing race costs, and plenty of competition from running, triathlon, and other activities, keeping bike racing alive and healthy has never been more challenging, or more important.

As your Board member, I will strive to direct NEBRA’s limited resources to initiatives that have the most impact on creating a racing scene that is exciting, accessible, and equitable. For our sport to thrive (or perhaps, just survive), racing in New England must be as fun as it is fast. It must be as enjoyable for the veteran racer at his 500th ‘cross race as it is for the racer lining up at her first ever criterium. As a Board member, my priority will be to enact practices that help make bike racing sustainable for promoters and appealing to a wide cross section of people.

No single role I’ve held within cycling makes me a good candidate for your vote. Rather, the wide range of my experiences within cycling makes me uniquely suited to bring a diverse set of values and experiences to the table. In the 8 years since I started riding and racing, I have held a variety of relevant roles, including:

• Collegiate racer (2 years)
• Collegiate team president (1 year)
• USAC racer (6 years)
• USAC club president and organizer (B2C2, 5 years)
• UCI racer (3 years)
• Team co-founder (Team Averica, 3 years)
• Race promoter (Greenfield Criterium, 3 years)
• Series co-organizer (New England Crit Week, 2 years)
• Race announcer (1 year)

Through these experiences, I’ve come to appreciate a wide array of perspectives that many New England cyclists share, and it is through these years of work and organizing that I feel equipped to make informed, rational, and forward thinking decisions.

Thank you for your time and consideration,

Lydia