Amy Drombroski Remembered in Issue 23
The late Amy Dombroski continues to have a strong presence in the sport of cyclocross, as the Amy D. Foundation started in her memory has given a big hand-up to two female rising stars in our sport in Erica Zaveta and Rebecca Fahringer through one-year sponsorships.
The Amy D. Foundation racing program is going through some changes this year, parting ways with partner cyclocross team Raleigh-Clement, joining Stan’s NoTubes, and opting to extend its previous one-year contract with Rebecca Fahringer for another year. See the full press release below.
The Amy D. Foundation and Stan’s NoTubes Elite Cyclocross announces an exciting new collaboration which will provide continued support for rising star Rebecca (Becca) Fahringer in the 2016-2017 cyclocross season.
The Amy D. Foundation has previously collaborated tightly with the Raleigh-Clement Professional Cyclocross Team, providing comprehensive travel, equipment, mechanical, and mentoring support through the course of the domestic UCI season to a single up-and-coming rider.
Discussing the collaboration, Donn Kellogg, manager of the team, said:
“The Raleigh Clement Professional Cycling team and myself, personally, have been incredibly proud to help build up the wonderful Amy D. Racing Cyclocross program in association with the Amy D. Foundation. We have had the unique privilege to assist and mentor two wonderful and highly talented young women, Erica and Rebecca, so they could achieve greater success that a fully-funded and backed national racing program can help with. As a team and for me personally, we wrestled hard to let this wonderful program move from our camp, so to say. But in the end, we believe that with the spirit and love that so many have for Amy, it is best that it is shared throughout the cycling community. As a team and as individuals who were very involved with Amy’s career and friendship, we stand ready at each race to lend a helping hand to the ongoing Amy D. Racing program. We would be remised if we did not give a huge shout out to Caroline Mani, who for the last two years provided a wealth of World Cup level racing and training advice, pre-rode courses mentoring Erica and Rebecca through the most difficult sections so they had the lines dialed and enthusiastically provided the wisdom of her international racing experience.”
The developmental nature of the program reflects the Amy D. Foundation mission to build opportunities for women in the sport of cycling and to promote positive personal development. The objective of the Amy D. Foundation cyclocross program is to provide a much needed bridge of support to the elite level for talented and driven athletes.
“If we can help a deserving young woman with the focus to succeed by bringing them from being a relative unknown to a career-level professional, then we’ve done our job,” explained Dan Dombroski, Founder and President of the Amy D. Foundation. “I love to see the athletes we support move on to big things in their career. It brings new energy into the sport, which is so important for improving the state of women’s cycling and the sport as a whole.”
With a refocus of the Raleigh-Clement team to a World-Cup schedule for the upcoming 2016 season, repetition of the prior collaboration with the Amy D. Foundation was no longer practical. “Strong ties to the Raleigh-Clement team and management remain,” said Dombroski. “The riders and staff have done a lot to enable the Amy D. Foundation programming and establish the credibility of the model. In looking for a new partner to continue the program, we had a strong basis for what to look for based on the successes of the last couple years.” The Amy D. Foundation believes they have found a strong partner in the Stan’s NoTubes Cyclocross program, managed by long-time cyclocross talent Jake Wells. ‘We are excited and honored to be working with the Amy D. Foundation. The developmental element has been a long time goal for the program and this is a big stride toward fulfilling that vision.”
Another departure from past precedence is that the program will be providing continued support for the 2015 selected rider Rebecca Fahringer. Until now, the program had been advertised as a single-season commitment, providing opportunity for an athlete to prove themselves in the ranks of the sport and move on to a professional team. Dombroski again: “The decision to support Rebecca for another season reflected several factors. Despite her stellar performances last season, she is still a relatively new, developing talent within the sport. The trajectory is tremendous, and we feel that there is further development potential that we can help facilitate. Also a significant consideration is the unfortunate lack of opportunities within the sport at the professional level. Lots of very talented women are scraping to put a season together. I wish we had the resources to support a larger team, but it’s challenging even to generate the necessary support for a single rider. The last thing we want to do is leave someone like Becca stranded. There’s a lot to be said for the stability of multi-year support in the development process.”
Amy D. Foundation’s rider from 2015: Rebecca Fahringer
Becca says she is excited to ride for the Amy D. Foundation for another season, stating:
“Last year I learned so much and made a lot of really important breakthroughs. I worked hard in the offseason on off-road handling skills and I am really excited to keep momentum going into this season. I made friends with the NoTubes CX riders throughout last season, so the support transition will be easy for me, and I am really looking forward to not just furthering my career, but helping the Amy D Foundation develop another strong relationship with a great team in Stan’s NoTubes.”
The Amy D Foundation program will continue relationships with Lazer Helmets and BikeFlights.com and will now be receiving additional support from the Stan’s NoTubes’ team sponsorship affiliations Scott Bikes, Shimano, IRC Tires, Pearl Izumi, KASK helmets and eyewear, and Action Wipes.
Learn more with this must read piece on Amy: Remembering Amy Dombroski, Cyclocross Magazine, October, 2013, featuring Issue 21’s feature on Dombroski and her life in Europe.
Amy D. Foundation’s rider from 2015: Rebecca Fahringer
The Amy D. Foundation is a 501(c)(3) non-profit based out of Boulder, CO. The organization was created in 2013 following the tragic death of world-class cyclocross racer Amy Dombroski. The Amy D. Foundation programing aims to build participation, opportunity, and equality for women in the sport of cycling, promoting healthy personal development that transcends the sport. Donations to the Amy D. Foundation are tax deductible to the extent allowed by law. For more information or to contribute, go to amydfoundation.org or contact us via email at [email protected]
