Why We Ride: Simone and Alex
Inside 606 Racing’s mission to develop riders, build confidence, and grow the women’s field.
The year is 2020 and Simone Hussussian has just finished law school. She’s studying for the bar exam – preparing to start her legal career – and like most of the world at that moment, her life has suddenly become very quiet.
The start date for her first job is pushed back, offices, gyms, and tennis courts are closed. For someone who spent years competing as a collegiate tennis player, she suddenly feels like something is missing.
Like millions of other Americans, she decides to dust off the road bike that she had previously used for commuting. At first it’s simply a way to get outside for fresh air and exercise, but soon she starts meeting other people who are in the same place she is — stumbling across a new passion.
For many women buying a bike and finding friends to ride with might not be too difficult, but continuing in the sport can be uniquely challenging. Women show up to rides without many women participants. The pace and understanding of group ride etiquette can feel exclusionary, and intimidating. The biggest obstacle is rarely fitness.
“I hear it all the time,” Simone says. “Women saying things like, ‘I could never do that,’ or ‘I don’t think I’m strong enough.’”
She remembers that feeling well. Group rides with very few women, and no clear structure or place where women could push themselves without feeling like outsiders in the process.
Eventually, those hard group rides made Simone stronger and prepared to race at a higher level. She knew that there were other women who could also benefit – they just needed the support to feel confident enough to do so. So she decided to build a team that would give a platform to riders who needed guidance as well as support as they advanced up in racing categories.
In the fall of 2023, Simone began assembling a new team: the women’s branch of 606 Racing, an established cycling program known for its competitive men’s squad (a frequent and formidable presence at Chicago Grit).
What started as a group of ten riders quickly grew into what it is today: fifteen riders, with a developmental pipeline designed to bring opportunities to talented local women seeking to race at a high level.
One of the initiatives Simone believes is most important is the Women’s Performance Ride. This local bike meetup can be as calm as a Friday morning coffee ride to Tala Coffee Roasters in Winnetka, or a long weekend ride, with some spicy efforts.
“The goal is that women feel comfortable pushing themselves, so that eventually they can show up to any ride – even a fast, mixed group – and not place barriers on themselves.”
Like Simone, Alex Ritter discovered cycling during the pandemic after tennis courts closed and she started searching for another way to stay active. Her cycling community began with a single connection – a sales associate at her local bike shop who sold her her first bike and became a riding partner.
Her network quickly grew, as did her love for the sport.
Eventually, she met Simone at a Paris-Roubaix Femmes film screening. The two eventually began riding together – long training rides to Libertyville where Alex would tuck in behind Simone’s wheel, holding her pace during interval efforts. Though she loved riding, racing at a higher level felt out of reach. She never thought she’d have the confidence to transfer these skills into that context, the way Simone was.
But after several months of training with Simone, her self-perception began to change.
“There was a point where I thought, ‘Okay…if I can hang on here, maybe I can do well in a race.’” Alex says. “The process was so empowering, and I wanted to find a competitive outlet to replace what I’d lost when I stepped away from tennis.”
Soon, she found herself lining up at more races, discovering the unique mix of strategy, speed, teamwork, and – of course – confidence that defines crit racing.
“The truth is I see a lot of my own development in Alex,” Simone says. “I had my own hindrances from a lack of self confidence and I want to eliminate those for Alex – and for all the women in our program – that’s the goal.”
Confidence has a way of changing everything. When riders begin pushing themselves, the sport evolves, races get faster, training becomes more structured, and the equipment begins to really matter.
For Alex, that journey eventually led somewhere she never expected.
Today, she works for SRAM as a Content Specialist for Road Marketing, helping tell the stories of the sport she fell in love with just a few short years ago. In her role, Alex helps manage content across SRAM’s road and gravel platforms – from social media, web content, and email newsletters to product launches and race coverage.
“I really wanted to find a way to combine my love of the sport with the creative work I was doing professionally,” Alex explains.” “Cycling ended up being that bridge.”
One of the perks of the job includes the opportunity to ride the equipment she’s helping introduce to the cycling world.
Alex’ current race setup mirrors a pro-level build – a Canyon Ultimate CFR AXS equipped with SRAM RED AXS, Zipp 303 Firecrest wheels, TIME pedals, and a Hammerhead Karoo head unit to track training and race efforts.
Simone’s setup is equally race-ready: a Winspace T1550 Gen 2 built with the latest SRAM Force AXS groupset designed for the speed and handling demanded by crit racing.
She describes herself as a “SRAM convert.” Her first performance-oriented bike was what she could get her hands on (thanks to COVID), but when she was ready for an upgrade, she chose a used SRAM Force AXS groupset with a RED chainring.
“The intuitive shifting was a gamechanger.” she shares, “and once you travel with your bike a lot the wireless setup becomes a huge advantage. It’s simple and reliable.”
The Midwest is one of the strongest regional racing scenes in the country, with a dense calendar of crits, road races, and omnium races that attract riders throughout the nation and beyond. For the women of 606 Racing, that local scene is both proving ground and community.
Some of the riders Alex (Category 4) and Simone (Category 1) line up against are close friends, while others are fierce rivals. Most weekends throughout the summer, they’re all part of the same ecosystem – a rotating group of teams from Illinois, Wisconsin, Indiana, and beyond.
“It’s competitive, but it’s friendly,” says Simone. “Everyone wants to win, but everyone also respects the work that goes into showing up and racing.”
Crit racing, in particular, defines the Midwest cycling experience.
Events like Tour of America’s Dairyland, Snake Alley, Gateway Cup, and of course Chicago Grit offer week after week of racing opportunities — something that allows riders to learn quickly, develop confidence, and sharpen their race instincts in real time.
For newer riders, that density of racing can be transformative.
“Lots of women are race-curious but cautious,” Alex explains. “But if they choose to experience the camaraderie and support around these races, it allows them to integrate into the community.”
That’s truly the reason Simone built this team – not just to win races, but to create a space where women can develop, push themselves, and grow community.
Watching that transformation happen in real time – from just clinging onto a wheel in a group ride to racing in an elite field – is deeply rewarding.
Simone’s best advice for women entering the sport is this: “Go on hard group rides, and don’t be afraid to get dropped because that means you’re surrounded by people you can learn from.”
After a long Midwest winter spent logging miles indoors on trainers, both riders are eager to return to the community they first discovered during COVID — the early season group rides, the familiar faces at the start line, and the rhythm of racing that fills the summer calendar.
What they found during a time marked by isolation and fear was more than just a hobby. It was connection, purpose, and a renewed sense of competition they weren’t sure they’d ever experience again.
And now, they’re helping build that same experience for others. That community they found and the joy in competition they get to share is exactly Why They Ride.
**In March (2026) the 606 Women’s Racing Team held a team training camp in Austin, Texas. The photos included in this article (less the photo of Alex) are from that camp, and are credited to @carlieheimann.
