Life Beyond Cyclocross: Clara Honsinger Eyes Her Next Challenge

Four-time U.S. Cyclocross Champion quietly retires from cycling

“I feel like I'm on a honeymoon with bicycling again”

In June 2023, Clara Honsinger decided to retire from professional cycling. She didn’t make a big announcement or say much on social media. Instead, she kept racing, finishing her road season with EF Education before returning stateside for cyclocross season. “I tried to compartmentalize it,” Clara recalled.

 “I wanted to make the most out of that season that I could. You know how in skiing when you're on the last run, and then it's like the run where somebody dislocates their shoulder or tears their ACL… I'm not superstitious, but I kind of felt that way if I said, ‘last season.’”

Back in Oregon, Clara returned to racing on the team where her cycling career began: Team S&M. It was a pilgrimage to where her journey with cyclocross started seven years ago. Team S&M helped jump-start her professional cycling career and supported her on her way to winning four US Cyclocross National Championship titles.

For the 2023 season, Clara could have negotiated another contract or found a new team in Europe to continue her cyclocross dominance, but she chose not to. She was ready to think about life beyond race results, and Team S&M was the perfect program for her to continue racing while keeping an eye on what comes next. “I wanted to treat [the season] as another really important race season with the big goal of enjoying it beyond race results.”

Honsinger racing in Hamme, Belgium, in January 2024. © 2024 Bill Schieken

After several years of immersion in the narrow confines of professional cycling, Clara was ready for more autonomy in her life. She wanted to control her race schedule and finish her undergraduate degree in Nutrition Health Sciences at Oregon State University, which had been postponed by living and racing in Europe.

“Being on the big team, it was always like, we need you at this place, in this race. You're kind of forced to be on the road for two months at a time,” Clara said. “I hadn't actually finished my undergraduate degree. I had this one class I needed to be in person for, and [by returning to Portland], I could commute down to Corvallis during the fall. And so, it gave me the flexibility during the week to go to class and finally get this degree.”

While Clara balanced professional racing with school for her final cyclocross season, she continued to dominate the US race scene, securing her fourth Elite National Championship title and finishing eighth at the 2024 World Championships. But in the back of her mind, she was ready for her next challenge. “Maybe I can really only keep my attention on something for seven years,” Clara joked. “And then I'm like, ‘okay, what's the next challenge?’”

Clara has never been one to limit herself. She started racing cyclocross professionally in 2017 at 20, putting school on hold to commit full-time to racing. She won her first Elite National Championship title in 2019, besting 15-time National Champion Katie Compton with a commanding performance in Tacoma, Washington. She signed her first professional road contract in 2021 with Tibco-SVB and moved to Europe to race full-time for the next three seasons with the now defunct EF Education-Tibco-SVB World Tour team. In the fall of 2024, Clara started a Master’s Degree in Food Science at Oregon State University.

 “[Road racing] was kind of like going back to graduate school,” Clara recalls. “It's like, ‘Whoa, the opportunity arises, I'm gonna jump in on that.’ I've never wanted to limit myself by saying, ‘I'm just a dirt specialist.’ It's like when the opportunity comes; I've always gone forward.” 

Despite her success in professional road and cyclocross racing, Clara was never an athlete who drew attention to herself. She passionately did her job, racing her bike and achieving significant results. She raced because she wanted to. But when her heart was no longer in it, she made the conscious decision to move on. 

Poise and introspection define Clara’s cycling career. She can tackle any challenge head-on and reflect on why she is doing it. 

“One of the things that stood out to me was having a conversation with my teammate at the time, Alison Jackson. She was talking about how she loves the chaos. [Alison] said, ‘I love the crazy, and I know when I don't love it anymore, that's when I'm done.’

I was like, ‘I don't love it.’”

In the three seasons that Clara raced on the road in Europe, the caliber of women’s racing increased significantly. “It is wild to think that in just three seasons, the level [of racing] was skyrocketing, and that came with more investment in the [women’s] road scene,” Clara said. “I carry so much respect for the really good people that can handle that and push that. And I just found myself—I met my limit, and it’s okay.”

Instead of pushing through it and fighting the feelings, Clara recognized it was time to take on a new challenge and allow new talent the opportunity to join the professional peloton. 

“There's so many talented riders with such drive vying for those contracts and that want those race starts and recognizing they want that so badly. And if I'm kind of like, I don't want it. Step aside, let the riders with all that potential and drive fill that space and get that attention. I feel like that progresses the sport.”

Back in Oregon, Clara graduated with her Bachelor’s Degree and accepted an internship opportunity at a local brewery. It presented a new challenge and a chance to learn new skills. While learning to brew beer, Clara debated returning to school for a second undergraduate degree in Fermentation Science. However, a serendipitous encounter with a former professor looking for graduate students to work in his lab convinced her to pursue a Master’s Degree in Food Science. 

“I made a connection with one of my old professors who runs this lab where they work with milk, and he was looking for a graduate student. And I think he was intrigued by my balance of science and public health, that you get with a nutritional science degree,” Clara remarked. “I felt that doing this graduate degree stretched my brain.”

At Oregon State University, Clara is studying bioactive proteins, which involve “how you process milk and make it safe to consume and whether those proteins survive processing,” she explained. For Clara, putting her energy and focus on school rather than bikes is more than transitioning away from competition.

 “It's like a new challenge to take on and keep myself engaged and active. Working in dairy, specifically, right now, sets you up pretty well to jump into that industry. I mean, the dream is to work for a little creamery somewhere and help them maximize the product they're making.”

Because Clara was living and racing in Europe during most of her undergraduate degree, she missed many opportunities to work in labs. But with her job now being a full-time student instead of a full-time athlete, Clara is embracing every opportunity to learn her new field. “It's like jumping into a bike race, and you're like, ‘I have no idea what this is,’ and people are like,  ‘Just get in there. Come on, let's go.’”

While Clara spends much more time in a lab than on a bike, returning to Oregon and deciding to attend graduate school has reinvigorated her love for riding. “I feel like I'm on a honeymoon with bicycling again,” Clara jokes. Clara is spending her free time exploring new roads, reconnecting with old friends, and helping coach her local NICA team. “I feel like bikes are still such a beautiful and fun outlet for me. Or maybe I guess they're now [just] an outlet.” Clara explains. 

For Clara, bikes will always be a part of her life. She started riding as a junior in her hometown of Ashland, Oregon, and riding became a way to express herself and conquer personal challenges. Bikes provided a competitive outlet, allowing her to travel the world and push her limits. And now, back in Corvallis, Oregon, bikes are her connection to friends and community. Although she may not be racing for a fifth straight cyclocross national championship this December, Clara will always remain excited to see how far bikes can take her.