In terms of her cycling career vs academia, she’s made her choice as to which takes priority: “Knowing myself, personally I know I can only do one thing well at a time. The minute I start stretching myself [in too many directions] I get stressed out and I don’t perform well at anything. I know cycling is what I want to do so I’m going to focus on this, accomplish the things I want to accomplish and then move on and [think about going back] to school full time.”

Ryan doesn’t want to make any statements that she might go back on and her plans for the future aren’t set in stone  – only time will tell. She says: “I don’t have a time limit – I might be in cycling all my life – but I’m giving myself until the 2020 Olympics then I’ll reassess my life and see what I want to do after that.”

Ryan stepped up to the senior ranks fairly recently – but few of her junior racing buddies made the leap with her. She explains: “From my junior days I’m one of the only girls still racing. I think the reason few have continued is because there wasn’t really much beyond. The jump was too great between being a junior and being an elite.”

“There wasn’t a foundation to look towards. There is no minimum wage – I have a friend who used to call herself a volunteer professional cyclist. Because she didn’t get paid anything.”

Joining her first pro team in 2013, Ryan had the chance to race in Europe, where start lists are bigger and more competitive, before becoming a senior – she says: “I was fortunate enough to have these opportunities… so I knew what I was getting into. Some of the girls didn’t have that chance. There isn’t really an under 23 level in women’s cycling – you go from the junior ranks directly to professional. And, rightly or wrongly, there is no minimum wage – I have a friend who used to call herself a ‘volunteer professional cyclist’. Because she didn’t get paid anything.

“It’s kind of sad when a girl is faced with a decision ‘do I go professional and live with my parents for a while’ or ‘do I go and get an education and start a career’. I think that’s why most of the girls I raced with go to school now, because they can have a life after that. They can make a living for themselves and be independent. The men’s side is still hard, but you can reach that ‘famous level’ where you can make a lot of money – there aren’t many women at that level.”

“Whatever you want to do in life, if you want to be successful it’s going to be hard.”

Part of the reason that some of Ryan’s youth racing friends didn’t make it to the professional ranks of course is that it’s really hard – but rather modestly she counters my point by arguing that perseverance is something that applies to more than just cycling: “Whatever you want to do in life, if you want to be successful it’s going to be hard. If you want to go to school and get an education and win a Nobel prize in chemistry, that’s going to be hard! Whatever you choose to do, if you want to get to the top level it’s going to be difficult.”

Communication is important in other areas – too. The Canyon//SRAM team are working closely with sponsors to help develop better products for female cyclists – all brands involved hope to use rider feedback to better their offering.

Discussing availability of kit for female cyclists, Ryan says: “I think the major products that need to be improved are saddles and chamois. They’re very important aspects of the bike. It’s a part of the bike that can become uncomfortable and it’s basically your foundation. I feel like most of the research in the cycling industry has been done with male models, creating a male template. I know Canyon will be working a lot with us on the bikes and they really want to develop the best women’s bike out there.”

Fitting A Female Body to a Unisex Bike

She adds: “No one person is the same. So whatever product brands develop, it needs to come in a wide range. The industry is moving in the right direction, but these things take time. When you get people demanding something happens ‘now’, most people just shut down. The term ‘now’ needs to be looked at in a matter of months or years, not this second.”