I came back for redemption. For revenge. For solace and solitude. To embrace whatever those Flint Hills wanted to give. I came back to Unbound XL in search of me. To find my smile, buried deep in the mud…
Swimmer in Transition Posts
Every year when I make the trek to Unbound Gravel, it feels like I’m coming home. I know it may sound weird, but I love Emporia, KS. I’m mildly passionate about the Flint Hills. I’ve raced ~1475 miles all…
Nervous anticipation, cinching up the bags at the shared Airbnb before the start on day one. By day eight, it’s old hat. Everything is a bit more worn and weathered. My skin included. The Andalusian mountains and desert feel…
Saturday, 4:00pm. Mile 272. The rain had started again. The sandy mud began building up. I could not get my heart rate to increase. My body temp was plummeting. I pushed onward, in almost a panic / manic state.…
🎶 Gravel roads. Take me home. To the place. I call home. Emporia, Kansas. Prairie mamma. Take me home. Gravel roads. 🎶 I’m fascinated by our interaction with the surface of this planet. Where the rubber meets the road.…
I stopped riding. I stopped writing. The Depression brought me to a halt. 2021 Unbound XL. What a high. This is about the fall and the next 18 months of spiraling. Spinning out. Burning the clutch, lurching forward, and killing the…
My Leadville Trail 100 MTB journey started in the fall of 2019. There was some rumblings of a Leadville / SBTGRVL match up. We had just moved to the PNW and knew a mountain bike needed to be added…
I’m often reminded of how lucky I am. There’s something about flying that leaves time for introspection {and the oddity of craving ginger ale, anyone else?} I get to ride and race my bike all over the country. I…
In case you missed it: {Part 1 Here} We are dead people. We FaceTime Cynthia’s husband to ground ourselves. I mean, we are already on the ground, surrounded by a heaping trash pile of snacks. But we giggle cry…