Sisters cyclist takes racing honors

Success in statewide competitive mountain biking has ended an identity crisis for 33-year-old Shawna Palanuk.

"I found myself again," she said.

Two sons, Max, five, and Eli, three, put her bike racing career on hold. In fact, the "hold" grew into an eight-year hiatus. But that gap has ended in a big way as the mountain biker recently won Best All-Around Rider for Category I, or expert division, of the Oregon Bike Racing Association.

She participated in five races, won first place in three and second in the other two. She scored 165 points to win first over 26 riders from around the state. Second place received 143 points.

Of course, Palanuk notes, it would not be possible without the encouragement and help of her husband, Joel, also a bike racer.

The couple gives a new definition to the term "juggling" when it comes to finding time to train and race. For example, here is how they prepared last spring: At 5 a.m., Shawna would go to their garage and ride a stationary bike for 90 minutes. Joel would head to the gym for a workout. The next day they would switch.

Both hoped the kids didn't wake up.

Once the season started, Joel would train on Tuesday and Thursday nights and Shawna on Monday and Wednesday. Joel would often ride from their Sisters home to Bend for his job with Qwest. Shawna would go by car to Bend in the evening. Joel would then watch the kids while Shawna trained.

Shawna said the objective is to maintain balance for the family while doing something for themselves. She said she is excited to know she can still compete with younger riders.

"I am now old compared to some of them. I used to be one of the youngest," she said, laughing.

"It is nice to know I still 'have it' but can still look forward to many more years of competition," she added, noting that many women compete in their late 40s or even 50s.

Palanuk ran track in college at Western Oregon University, near Salem. She raced bikes for three years before marriage, sometimes in the professional classification.

Bike racing has been good to Shawna in another important way. She met Joel at a race, and they married six months later.

She has a degree in health and has worked as a massage therapist, sometimes trading a massage for babysitting. Shawna is five-feet-six-inches tall and weighs 125. Her fitness she credits to training and Rich Hummel's Spin Class at Sisters Athletic Club.

Next year, Shawna and Joel want to host a racing event in Sisters, around Memorial Day. They started a women's racing team this year with major sponsors GreenRidge Physical Therapy and Wellness and InFocus Eye Care. She is contemplating road racing, but needs a new bike for that competition.

In the meantime she continues to be a fierce mountain competitor on her 10-year-old "Intense" brand bike. Category I races that Shawna participated in varied in length depending on the terrain from just under two to four hours and covered 15 to 30 miles.