After looking around for black female pro cyclists, 30-year-old Ayesha McGowan could not find one. So she took it upon herself to be her own role model.

The Atlanta-based music teacher always had to move around. She was initially interested in running, but knee issues sidelined her. She then began commuting to classes while attending Berklee College of Music in Boston. And McGowan took a liking to it.

"To me, pro cycling was the Tour de France," McGowan told ESPN Women. "White males, a very limiting image that keeps those who would be interested in the sport to a very small pool of humans."

A big move in 2015 to New York City gave her the first chance to bike race, on a fixed-gear bike, doing alleycats (unsanctioned races that take place in cities) and goldsprints (a social bicycle race on rollers or stationary bikes). Her first real race was three years ago and she recalled getting deeper into the racing culture and not seeing others who looked like her.

"I wanted to understand how things worked," she said. "I started training with others and riding with friends whenever possible."

Currently, she is at category 2 and competitive road cycling for women involves four categories, starting at Category 4 and moving up to "Cat 1." It takes a 12-month period in order to move up. McGowan is almost a pro.

"I set out to find a female African American pro, and there weren't any," she said. "I wanted to know why there weren't any, and also, whether I might become the first."

She has found success early on. In 2017, she finished in 10th place at the Kermisronde van Duizel in the Netherlands, ninth at the Roborode Herleen in the same country, and ninth in the women's P1/2 Criterium at the Sea Otter Classic in California.

"My biggest mission is representation," she explained. "I want to see an expansion of how we see ourselves."

To McGowan, accomplishing one brings the other along.

"If I can present the image of an African American pro bike racer," she says, "then I can open the doors for others to do it, too."

Pro-cycling

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