Evelyn Stevens burst into professional cycling with an irresistible backstory, an ideal engine for endurance and -- as she was always quick to mention -- the very rawest of bike-handling skills.?Shell end her career seven years later at the world championships tucked into the precise formation of one of the sports top teams in its most technical event.?Stevens, 33, never could have imagined the topography of the path from her former desk on Wall Street to Sundays team time trial in Doha, Qatar.?Hooked after entering a cyclocross race on a whim, Stevens signed up for a road cycling clinic in New Yorks Central Park in 2008. The following year, she quit her job in investment banking, sold or gave away most of her possessions and began pedaling toward parts unknown.?She signed her first pro contract before the 2010 season and learned racing from the ground up, sometimes literally. Along the way, she carved out an identity as one of the most versatile riders in the peloton: a time trialist and climber as well as an intrepid super-domestique who helped other riders close out victories.I rode for the best teams, with the best women and the best equipment, Stevens said from Nice, France, where she was training for worlds last week. Theres no event that I didnt do that I wanted to do. I didnt accomplish all of my goals, but I got the chance to go after them.?A two-time U.S. individual time trial champion and double world championship time trial medalist (silver in 2012, bronze in 2014), Stevens also won the prestigious La Fleche Wallonne one-day classic and several stage races around the world. But her distinction was as a rider who drew her own finish lines.?In 2014, frustrated by the arbitrary length restrictions on womens stage races, she devised her own Grand Tour, stringing together 17 consecutive race days in Europe starting with the womens Giro Rosa and continuing with Germanys Thüringen Rundfahrt, which she won.?Last February, Stevens set a new womens hour record -- covering 47.980 kilometers in the allotted time -- in Colorado Springs, an accomplishment that drew 50,000 viewers on a livestream. She still cant believe that many people wanted to watch her ride around in circles.?Looking back on it, it was insane I even thought to do that, she said. Im gonna go out and ride for an hour, close to 48k, have everybody watching me -- pretty much all you can do is fail. Now Im so proud of it, as I get farther away from it. Proud of the result, taking that risk, the experience, the people around me who helped me with it. Its a lovely process to get to these goals.?It was a process Stevens knew nothing about as a wide-eyed newbie whose only prior team experience was as a tenacious baseliner on the Dartmouth College tennis team. She was initially stunned that teams employed someone to fill her water bottles and do her laundry, but she got used to it.?Other adaptations came a lot harder. It took years for Stevens to feel comfortable in the tight quarters of the peloton. She forced herself to fight crosswinds and navigate wet roads, but bad-weather riding was never her strong suit. She refined her descending skills by following young superstar Taylor Phinney on the roads around Boulder, Colorado -- part of the Phinney familys larger embrace that included mentorship and a second home.?Stevens carved careful tracks down the ski slopes of her youth rather than schussing down at full speed. Much about road cycling remained a mental stretch for her naturally risk-averse personality. Every day I got on the bike, I was facing fears, she said.?Those fears came partially to fruition in March 2013, when Stevens crashed heavily on a traffic circle in a race in Italy. She suffered a concussion and required 40 stitches and some dental work to reconstruct one of the most contagious smiles in cycling.?Stevens had a quiet Olympics in Rio. She rode valiantly in support of Mara Abbotts heart-cracking fourth-place effort in the road race, but blustery conditions on the day of the time trial thwarted her quest for a medal in her second Summer Games.?She is leaving the sport with no regrets, including her late introduction to it. Stevens was comfortable in her own skin, if not always in the saddle, when she dedicated herself to cycling in her mid-20s. She knew she always had the safety net of a college education and work experience if things didnt work out.?Stevens success obviated the need for that exit strategy until now. Shes contemplating picking back up in the financial field, although she frets at the thought of a more sedentary lifestyle and already envisions fidgeting at a standing desk. Mostly, shes looking forward to more time in San Francisco with her husband of one year, Brett Baker, a program manager at Twitter.?I think what made me a successful bike racer and made me who I am on the bike is the fact that I started late, Stevens said. I had to really play catch-up. It made for some big struggles on the bike. Maybe if Id started when I was 15 years old I would have been more comfortable in the corners. But would I actually have gotten myself in that position??She automatically qualified for the road race in Doha, but declined the spot. Her farewell will come with the Netherlands-based Boels-Dolmans team in the team time trial, which is contested by trade teams rather than national squads. Stevens was a member of Specialized-lululemons three straight gold-medal lineups in the event from 2012 to 14 and would love to go out on another winning note with Boels-Dolmans, the 2015 TTT silver medalist.?Im prepping for the team time trial, but Ive stepped back and realized how intense that lifestyle can be, she said. I started to itch for something else, to try another challenge.?I know I could physically continue to compete at the top level for a lot more time. But I almost feel like Im getting comfortable and kinda have figured out how to do it, and thats when you need to go. I love riding my bicycle. Not one ounce of me is sick of riding my bike. Now, do I want to go with 200 women and [speed] down a small street in Holland? No. Im done. Adidas NMD R2 Sale . -- Eastern Kentucky thrives off creating havoc for others. Adidas NMD R1 Wholesale . Pirlo limped out of Sundays 1-0 win over Udinese after just 13 minutes. Juventus says Pirlo underwent tests on Monday which revealed he has "a second-degree lesion to the collateral medial ligament in his right knee. http://www.cheapnmdonline.com/ .com) - Yankee Stadium is the home of the Bronx Bombers, but on Sunday afternoon it will open its gates to host the latest addition of the Hudson River Rivalry. Cheap Mens Adidas NMD Shoes . If ever they start actually putting pictures beside words in the dictionary, the Blue Jays left-handers mug will appear beside “Consistency. Adidas NMD Human Race Cheap . -- Gus Malzahn finally had his day in Fayetteville. Chris Berman has taken his Swami Sez NFL picks segment, seen on SportsCenter, to ESPN Chalk. Each week during the NFL regular season, hell give his favorite picks against the spread here with a little further analysis.Season record: 34-17 ATS (last week: 3-2)?Jacksonville Jaguars at Detroit LionsComing off of a bye, I think Detroit has its eye on the big task, not just on Jacksonville this week. If the Lions want to be a team going somewhere this season, this is a game they should win by 10 points or more. Jacksonvilles defense is better than you think but doesnt quite have all the pieces yet. Im trusting the maturity of Matthew Stafford and Jim Caldwell to not let this team look ahead to a huge matchup against Minnesota on Thanksgiving.Score: Detroit 26, Jacksonville 16Tennessee Titans at Indianapolis ColtsTennessee has lost only one game by more than eight points this season (Week 1, hurt by two defensive TDs from Minnesota). This is a pretty good team. And while the Titans have struggled against Andrew Luck, there is a first time for everything. I dont think the Colts defense will be able to keep Tennessee off the scoreboard. The Titans take a close one on the road.Score: Tennessee 27, Indianapolis 24Arizona Cardinals at Minnesota VikingsBoth teams have been sputtering recently but are still dangerous. Minnesotas defense remains one of the leagues best and is getting healthier this week. That unit scores a deffensive touchdown against the Cardinals, a division winner from last year that hasnt quite looked the part this season.dddddddddddd. The Vikings defense makes life tough for Carson Palmer and Minnesota enters its Thanksgiving date with Detroit off a win.Score: Minnesota 21, Arizona 17Philadelphia Eagles at Seattle SeahawksI picked Seattle to win outright last week, so Im a believer in this team. That win might be a sign that the Seahawks are ready to roll now. Philadelphia is 4-0 at home but only 1-4 on the road. This will be a tough learning experience for Carson Wentz. The Eagles will be in this game, but with Seattles offense coming on (and Thomas Rawls coming back soon) and Kam Chancellor back on defense, this is a different team. This should be the lowest number Seattle has at home the rest of the season. I like the Seahawks here.Score: Seattle 27, Philadelphia 16Buffalo Bills at Cincinnati BengalsCincinnati looked pretty sluggish on Monday Night Football, especially coming off a bye. The Bengals just didnt play with the urgency I thought they would. Buffalo showed me something in that close 31-25 loss in Seattle in Week 9. I think theyll play hard coming off a bye, as they still have a chance to do something and grab that last AFC wild-card berth.Score: Buffalo 24, Cincinnati 21 ' ' '