Let’s send Jamie Harwick to Scotland for the UCI Cycling World Championships. The 43-year-old Luther mom of three sons and owner of Glassic Designs screen printing qualified for the journey and opportunity of a lifetime earlier this month during a competition in California.
“My family started racing BMX in the spring of 2020 when all other sports were closing and the BMX track in Yukon opened. I will never forget the first time the boys asked me if I wanted to go and I said, ‘I don’t do BMX.’ Shortly after that, I was spending almost 3-4 days a week at the track because there was nothing else to do,” Jamie wrote on her gofundme page.
After watching Kaden and Asher at practice, Jamie eventually got on a bike herself. She was hooked. By January 2021, she was competing, getting to the medal podiums just like her sons, getting more experience, making new friends, and planning the next race. But the journey has also been beset with injury. “Some serious, some not so serious,” she said. The serious injuries included “crushing” her shoulder, and dislocating her hip, painful mishaps that kept her off the track for six months. The not-so-serious injuries include bloody scrapes and deep bruises. Those don’t keep her down. Nothing does.
The journey also has been marked with tragedy. Earlier this year, Jamie’s mom died suddenly, carving a deep hole in her heart. Because heartbreak doesn’t ask for a calendar invite, Jamie is working through her grief while experiencing the biggest athletic thrill of her life. Little reminders of her mom help her through like when she packed her bikes to drive solo to Bakersfield, CA for the competition that qualified her for Worlds. “I never noticed until just now that my bike numbers (7 and 25) are my mom’s birthday. It’s funny how she’s with me even when she isn’t.”
To Scotland
The to-do list for Scotland is intense. Get a passport. Increase training. Fundraise. Jamie earned her spot on Team USA to race at Worlds, but the qualifying ticket doesn’t cover the expenses to get her there. She’s raising $5,000 to cover airfare, transporting her bikes, lodging, food, and fees for the August trip.
It’s hard to ask for money for yourself. But Jamie has plenty of experience fundraising for others. No doubt many of us have a t-shirt or three that she printed for teams and good causes. She’s known for turning those jobs quickly and affordably.
She’s also known as a fierce competitor and spirited fan!
“I’m asking all my friends and family, anyone whose kids I ever did fundraisers for, if I cheered at a game or race for your kid, if I’ve been thrown out of a game defending your kids, lol, I’m asking for your help in chasing my dreams.”
For those reasons, and because it’s pretty cool to support a female Luther athlete in her 40s on Team USA, let’s send Jamie to Scotland with more than enough funding to cover the trip, take in the sites, and bring home souvenirs (maybe some kilts!).
See Jamie and other BMXers ride at the Luther Founders’ Day parade on April 8 on Main Street.
