Balancing motherhood, the Olympics, and then more cross country racing
Around 48 hours after Catharine Pendrel completed her fourth Olympic cross country race, she was back at home with her six-month-old daughter, Dara, and husband, Keith Wilson. “Definitely a couple tears at the airport,” Pendrel said of the emotional reunion. There was a short amount of focused family time, then back to some training as the world championships in Val di Sole, Italy, approached. Because of the forest fires in B.C. at the time, Pendrel had to head to the coast to train outside. “Resetting has been a bit harder than anticipated,” she said. “Although my highperformance push to the Olympics wasn’t as long as it was for most athletes, it definitely required a lot of logistics and dedication. I also have the ‘what’s next?’ question looming over me. But, for now, I am just trying to focus on the next two months and put in the work and recovery necessary. After that, I can look forward to less rushing around and more family hikes.” Pendrel’s squad, Clif Pro Team, is set to close at the end of this season. Her “what’s next” for 2022 won’t feature the outfit she’s been with since 2008.
In Tokyo, Pendrel finished the race in 18th place. “Even though it was not an amazing result on paper, I think being able to compete at that level six months after having a baby inspired me on a lot more levels than winning a medal,” she said. “After the fact, you always have what-ifs and wish you could have found more, but I think I did the best I could under the circumstances. I am curious what level I could get back to with another winter to prep and with Dara being a bit older, but I am content to leave that as a curiosity.”
After worlds, Pendrel planned to continue racing into October with the OZ Trails Off-road in Arkansas as her final event. Would there be any cyclocross afterwards? “I don’t think so. I’m looking forward to a break. I only took two weeks maternity leave,” she said with a chuckle. — Matthewpioro