Not actually racing yourself shouldn't stop you from developing women racers (if that's what you want to do). I actually find that the times I'm not racing myself I can dedicate more time to the club & team and other projects than when I'm racing myself.

But, I understand your hesitancies. When I became a coach in 2001, I had never raced myself. All the local coaches told me I would fail trying to start a race team. I proved them wrong, obviously. My secret was that I didn't try to market our team to experienced racers. Instead, I recruited women who may not have considered racing before.

Around the same time I started the team, I also got quite sick. I lost my health and fitness over a three year period. I gained weight and lost my climbing ability. I had many days that I couldn't even get out of bed, nevermind hop on the bike. This definitely affected my self-esteem and my feeling that I could coach others. But I stuck to it and had some good support systems (some of my racers and clints who believed in me) and was able to produce some CAT1 and CAT2 women -- women who had never even thought of racing a bike before they met me.

While I've regained much of my fitness, I've also gotten older. I may never be a kick-butt racer. But I'm an enthusiastic advocate for women's racing and I've gained the respect of the local racers and promoters (men and women) because I've been able to develop and retain so many new women racers.

With women, I've learned that we need to recruit in non-traditional ways. Look at the club rider, the triathlete, the spin class devotee, the marathoner. If someone has some fitness and a lot of desire and a competitive gene in her body, you can teach her to ride/race her bike.

One of your biggest advocates will be a local bike shop -- they see women riders all the time. Get involved with the shop -- hold clinics, lead rides, get them recruiting women for you. You'll give back to the shop by bringing women into them and keeping them on the bike. And they'll be able to recommend you to every woman who walks in the door.

And don't give up! It's tough work and it's frustrating when you don't see results right away, but if you stick with it, the rewards are HUGE. I firmly believe that by contributing to success with these women in cycling, we're improving every aspect of their lives.

And, of course, I can live vicariously through the women I develop. I may never win a national championship but I developed a racer who did. I may never upgrade to CAT1, but I've developed lots of racers who have. I may never even win a local race, but I've helped other women win plenty of races. And that makes me a winner, too!