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When the universe knocks you down.
When the universe knocks you down.

While I've learned plenty from Rose Grant about overcoming setbacks with grace and sense of purpose, I'm now doing my best to take a page from Erin Huck's latest comeback book on just accepting whatever the universe has in store. (It worked well for her since she just defended her Short Track national championship title)! 

I feel good about putting together a solid race yesterday. I didn't quite race the first lap how I wanted, but the middle and finishing bits went well. It was great to see @haley.batten mixing it up in the top-3 early on, and to have @leaeatsalot bridge up on lap five (of six) to make yesterday's finish a close fight for third. I won that battle in the end, but having Lea up there at the end was as motivating as anything. 🇺🇸 It's been great to have the team back together this weekend. And it's pretty special to have USA go 1-2-3-4. (Congrats @kateplusfate and @eehuck!) 🇺🇸 Huge thanks to @stanspivot, @jer_alix, @notubesmaster and @leejonathan_ for the support out there! 📷: @notubesmaster 🇺🇸 #stanspivot #pivotcycles #onlystans #maxxistires #rideshimano #ridefox #assoswomen #guforit
Last time I lined up for Bonelli Pro XCT was 2016. I'm excited to be back with the full @stanspivot team. #stanspivot #onlystans #pivotcycles #maxxistires #bonelliproxct 📷: @notubesmaster
@singletracks reached out to a few women and asked us what's our vision for the future of mountain biking. I wrote a short story about it, but here's the gist. . "There’s no freedom quite like adventuring alone, outdoors. Too many girls grow up believing they aren’t safe, and have limitations imposed on activities because they’re girls. This needs to change, and mountain biking as an activity teaches so many skills to navigate an unpredictable, sometimes dangerous, and yet beautiful and exciting world." . . The full story, and contributions from other women in the sport, can be found in a link from my IG story. Ride on, ladies. . #internationalwomensday #womenoutdoors
Run-off thoughts. 💦 While landing at PHX the other day, I snapped some pictures of the Salt River, which I had never before seen flowing from the air (posted in my story). As I drove towards Prescott, I started getting excited about Prescott's creeks and waterways. In the west, and Southwest in particular, we don't often get to see our rivers flowing. 💦 So I started thinking, "where does our water go?" I thought our Granite Creek flowed into the Agua Fria River, and eventually to Lake Pleasant. But since I had a chance to ask our local bike-packing Geologist, @kurt.refsnider, about it on a ride, I learned I was mistaken. It flows north, into the Verde River and onwards towards Horseshoe Reservoir. 💦 So we pedaled out the Peavine Trail to the very end to catch a glimpse of Granite Creek, flowing. It's beautiful, and worth the pedal. And the bench is fitting, because a run-off event like this should be looked at in wonder. 💦 #prescottsnowpocalypse #granitecreek #prescottaz #peavinetrail
Finished second behind @dcampuz in the Puerto Rico MTB Cup. I yo-yo'd a few seconds behind her through the second half of the race, and couldn't quite make contact when it counted most. Lea broke her chain early on and ended up getting in a run workout mid-race--but she still rallied for third! Feel pretty good about the race, and like I worked out a few kinks ahead of the Bonelli HC in California. Huge thanks to @miguel.oriol and @wyll_oz for their feed zone help. And huge thanks to the whole Prescott crew for letting me tag along. #stanspivot #purmtbcup #pivotcycles #onlystans #rinconpuertorico🇵🇷
I've always wanted to visit Puerto Rico, so when some friends from Prescott decided to make the trip for a UCI XC race in Rincón, I decided to tag along! Tomorrow is race day. I'm not sure what to expect, but I'm fully embracing the optimisim of the local street art. So with that I'm "Good to go!" 🐢🇵🇷 #purmtbcup #rinconpuertorico #stanspivot 📷: @theo_fabian
Life is beautiful and unpredictable. This past week, 28" of snow fell at my house in 24 hours. Prescott usually gets 12" of snow and 19" of rain annually, so this may very well have broken some records. -- ❄️ The drive is now shoveled enough to park the van. Luckily it's a light snow and my neighbor helped. Now I'm just worried about our neighborhood Javelinas. -- ❄️ #wayoutwest #prescottsnowpocalypse #prescottaz #winterishere #rockymounts
It feels good to live like a vagabond. For a week. 😉 I wouldn't call it van life, but it's a life in near constant motion. Over the past few days I've pedaled (and driven) all over Arizona. Shared meals with many friends, old and new. I've dodged the Prescott snowpacalypse, but still spent a very soggy week in the saddle. And today I caught a brilliant rainbow. #endlessadventure #stanspivot #letitrain 🙏🌈🌦️
Did you see that @usacycling announced the Tokyo 2020 individual qualification recently? Link ☝️. I'm thrilled that the process heavily emphasizes races on my two favorite courses: Nove Mesto and MSA. (Although these are arguably everyone's favorites!) . So here's a snapshot from the Rock N Roll section of Nove Mesto World Cup last year. Even now I can picture this rock garden, and all the line options, and I'm working on believing (and seeing how) I can ride it faster, better. These sections motivate me. 📷: @polphe . #teamusa #seeitbelieveit #iloverocks #ucimtbworldcup #isitraceseasonyet
What do you love? These hearts at the Prescott YMCA, well, melted my heart. (And made me laugh). 🥰 #ilovepie #happyvalentinesday
Selfie time with @kait.boyle at yesterday's Women's Off-Road Cycling Congress. Her keynote speech was an incredibly inspiring and uplifting story, and funny too. I have to say I've had the privilege of meeting some incredibly badass, gritty, and beautiful souls in the sport of mountain biking--and so many are women. Huge thanks to @pivot_cyclesusa for getting behind #worcc2019, and for taking women who ride seriously. It was a pleasure to participate last night. And here's a little galentines day shout out to all the ladies who attended last night. ♥️ #wcw #galentinesday #womensoffroad #pivotcycles
I'm not sure there's another creature on this planet who lives more in the moment than this girl. Maja had TPLO surgery last spring to fix her knee, and suffered through a scary auto-immune disease called masticatory muscle myositis this fall. Her body has changed a lot this year, but her spirit remains exuberant, joyful, and curious. So we kicked off the week by laying down some fresh tracks together. And she sends. ♥️ #motivationmonday #majadog #masticatorymusclemyositis #mondaymeditation