A Member of a Portland Cyclocross Team Snapped Another Cyclist’s 15-Year Winning Streak at the 2019 National Championships

When she crossed the finish line, Clara Honsinger became cyclocross’s first new national champion in a decade and a half

As Clara Honsinger neared the end of the USA Cycling Cyclocross National Championships course in Lakewood, Wash., last December, she knew she was on the verge of a huge upset.

Racing as a member of Sellwood Cycle's Team S&M CX, she'd already traversed miles of winding turns and drops, running up steep, muddy hills with her bike lifted on her shoulder. With one-and-a-half laps to go, she had a substantial lead, but one slippery turn could cause Honsinger to crash.

"I was like, I have no idea if I'm going to win or not," says the 22-year-old Oregon native, "but I'm definitely in it to get the win."

When she crossed the finish line, Honsinger became cyclocross's first new national champion in a decade and a half—ending the 15-year reign of Colorado's Katie Compton.

Raised in Ashland and now living in Corvallis, Honsinger started racing full time while living in Portland and working as a mechanic at Sellwood Cycle, whose owner, Erik Tonik, encouraged her to join the team. She'd train by biking to work from her home in St. Johns, detouring through Forest Park's steep Firelane trails.

After winning the national championship, Honsinger's name made headlines in cycling publications around the country. But while she was bursting through the final sprint, Honsinger says she was mostly just thinking about her team.

"I'm there as the athlete, the person riding the bike, but a lot of work goes into logistics and planning," she says. "When I crossed the line, I was like, 'We did this.' My bike functioned perfectly, I had everything I needed. I just went out and rode my bike."

32 Reasons to love Portland (wesley Lapointe)

1. Because we're creating new neighborhoods…

2. Because we made voting even easier… 

3. Because a doomed building is now a temporary work of art… 

4. Because we're still No. 1 in semi-factual superlatives… 

5. Because you can finally get a beer for less than $10 at Moda Center… 

6. Because our news anchors don't take crap from internet trolls… 

7. Because University of Portland continues to turn out some of the best women's soccer players in the world… 

8. Because we are the champions of cyclocross…

9. … and roller derby… 

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11. Because we're turning wastewater into beer…

12. … and beer into exercise…

13. Because a local punk legend is holding a permanent rummage sale in the basement of a record shop…

14. Because we let you stop and smell the weed…

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22. …and so does Movie Madness…

23. Because we're making Halloweens more inclusive…

24. Because the city's most daring developer is growing strawberry fields in the sky…

25. Because we're bringing the pay phone back, minus the "pay" part…

26. Because you can turn on the TV and see your neighbor compete in an eating contest against a bear…

27. Because hardcore foosball players finally have a home…

28. Because we're home to the largest astrology school in the United States… 

29. Because this is the best place in the country to be a witch… 

30. Because we believe no kitty should be left behind…

31. Because the barred owls are taking over…

32. Because the best Trail Blazer in history is playing in front of us… 

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