One of her teammates wrote that Nancy was one of the most determined cyclists he had ever met. “Cycling is a sport that requires a tremendous amount of dedication and hard work. She displayed both in abundance, and as a result was very successful. On some of the worst days you can imagine—wet, cold, whatever—she was out there training and usually with a smile. Nancy was always looking for ways to achieve more and be a better person. She was always willing to lend a hand to help other people, whether that meant volunteering at a race or offering emotional support to other racers.”

A woman who first met Nancy during a race wrote: “I had just started racing and was not sure of what I was doing. I went out in the beginning of the race much too hard and then just exhausted myself. I was going to bail out of the race, since I was feeling so terrible. Then I met Nancy. She rode up beside me and said she would help me. First she told me to grab onto her wheel. I told her I did not think I could hold on but she said, ‘That’s ridiculous. You’ve gotten this far in the race. You can hold on to the end.’ And so I did. For the remainder of the race she kept telling me how great I was doing, and letting me know how much farther we had and that I was awesome. At the very end of the race it came to a sprint finish and Nancy just yelled, ‘Go! Go! Go!’ So I did and came in ahead of everyone! Nancy gave me her energy and drive. She made me feel like I could move mountains that day.”

And Nancy also moved mountains—or certainly knew how to maneuver around them, whether they were literal or figurative. “We ended up getting stuck in traffic coming back from a race in Pennsylvania,” a racing friend wrote. “It took us so long to get back to New York City. I think we were on the road for more than twelve hours. We were exhausted and just glad we had each other for company. When we got near the George Washington Bridge, Nancy was driving. We saw all this traffic ahead and Nancy just said, ‘No way!’ She whipped off the freeway and executed all these crazy turns and twists. At one point we drove down a dirt path going apparently nowhere. She had no idea where she was going, but somehow she got us back on the freeway right at the entrance to the bridge! It was so great and we were both laughing because it was almost impossible that it could have worked out, but somehow it did.”