McGarry Rochette was hoping to travel to Edmonton, Alberta, this week to compete in the Canadian Road Championships on June 25, where she will join road race champion Maggie Coles-Leister and past champion Allison Jackson in the distinctive Maple Leaf They were scheduled to compete for the jersey.

Rochette, the 2021 road race silver medalist, will miss this year's championship and will not check that box on her bucket list.

"Unfortunately, I will miss this year's All-Japan Road Race. I am still battling a back injury and have not returned to the bike yet," Rochette told Cycling News. 'I have a couple of herniated discs and facet syndrome that need to heal before I can return to training and racing.'

Back pain was also his nemesis in Emporia, Kansas, where he was originally scheduled to compete in the Unbound Gravel 200. The back pain of the past four months had not subsided, so she refocused on her 100-miler start, but when she arrived in the Flint Hills, she decided to join as a spectator.

"Since February, my back has been bothering me when I run. But I wanted to be prepared for this event. So I was hoping that doubling up on all the core exercises, yoga, stretching, massage, physio, etc., would help it heal, but it got worse," Rochette told Cycling News while in Kansas. [I ended up changing my registration and saying, "I'm going to ride at least 100," and "I'm going to participate in events." But I had an x-ray last week, and the doctor said I shouldn't ride until they know what's causing it. The pain is mainly when I'm riding."

After a trip to Kansas, the 30-year-old underwent an MRI and was ruled out of competing in the Canadian Road Nationals. But while off the bike, she had time to study and rethink her summer plans.

"Having participated in Unbound, I have to say that I enjoyed the energy of the event; 200 miles is still not for me, but I enjoyed the camaraderie among the riders and I think it is a tough challenge. Rochette looked at Unbound Gravel from the sidelines, "I've run a few gravels, but only small ones, close to home."

"I think it's too much of a strain on the body and I don't think I can afford other types of races or fun adventures. But participating in Unbound has helped me understand a little more about the atmosphere and the sense of accomplishment of completing such a monster of a race, and maybe I'm even inspired to try it."

She used the opportunity in Emporia to visit her sponsors with Canyon, a new relationship for her this year that will allow her to continue competing on the World Cup circuit in cyclocross and switch to mountain biking and gravel.

"It's the same program as before, but now I'm working with Canyon. The partners are almost the same with Rapha, SRAM, and Feedback Sports. I do the racing myself and my husband David does most everything else. It's still the two of us," Rochette said.

"Canyon approached me, and it was a pay raise for me as well. And as far as gravel, yes, they are important to unbound. But outside of this particular event, they were pretty open about what kind of gravel I could run.

"Cyclocross is really important to me. I love it. It's obvious that they [Canyon] love cyclocross too. And I'm excited that they're supporting me for it. They were very flexible with what kind of calendar I could run on. I can do a little mountain biking, I can do gravel adventures, I can do cyclocross. So it seemed like a good fit for me. "

While the 2023 cyclocross schedule is not yet set, she plans to do a big block of World Cup races in Europe.The 2019 World Cup Iowa winner, who has only one North American cyclocross World Cup race this season, Oct. 15 said she plans to compete across a big U.S.-based calendar, even though there is only one race left, in Waterloo, Wisconsin, on October 15.

"I really love the North American calendar as well. Even though it's not all World Cup, it's still great racing. So I'm going to pursue my goals with the World Cup, but it's important for me to be part of the North American scene as well.

Before the Rochester Cyclocross in September, Rochette said she will focus on getting back in shape and working on some off-road events. the 2021 Vermont Overland winner, she will be at the UCI Gravel World Championships before the cross season. She plans to return to gravel.

"This summer is about preparing for cyclocross and going to events that bring cool experiences. That's why I signed up for the BC Bike Race. I also plan to attend the E Mountain Bike Worlds in Scotland and make it a bikepacking trip. As long as I'm healthy, that's in the plans," Rochette said. [As for racing, there is the Gravel World Championships in Italy. Timing-wise, it's close to cyclocross, so it will peak anyway. The distance is the same as a four-hour race, and we're doing it for training."