It’s always an extreme pleasure to sit down and chat with Lael Wilcox. Her positivity and honesty is infections as is her drive to push herself to extremes all in the name of bike racing. She’s an inspiration to so many of us in this community and I am no exception. She has been a huge source of inspiration for me as I dipped my toe into the bikepacking waters. There is something about her fearless approach to bikepacking that lulls you into a false sense of achievability, but make no mistake she works hard and has been at this a long time. Check out this video from REI that came out in 2016. This was the video I referenced on the episode that really did inspire me, I can’t tell you how many times I watched it. It’s interesting to revisit it, 2016 wasn’t that long ago. This sport has come a long way in a short time and Lael has been at or near the tip of the spear for the entire time.
This was the third time Lael has been on the podcast and each time I have to reign in my personal tendencies to be star struck. Luckily, Lael is a total pro and is so easy to talk to. This time we met on Mount Lemmon outside of Tucson, AZ at the Gordon Hirabayashi Campground. Interesting side note, the road up Mt. Lemmon was built by prisoners in the 1930’s and to house the criminals they built prisons as they went. The campground we recorded at was a former site of a Prison Camp.
They say you should “never meet your idols”. I’ve met one of mine three times now and have never been disappointed. Lael is Lael, what you see is what you get. The person I watched in the 2016 film from REI is the same person I met on a park bench on the side of Mt. Lemmon. Success, fame, racing results, through it all she has been able to stay humble, gracias, and kind. Maybe the saying should be, “get better idols”. Personally, I’m grateful to Lael for just being her and pursuing what she wants in a way that is authentic to herself. We talk about this a little in the episode, but sometimes knowing yourself and staying true can be easier said than done, especially with some of the controversy she has faced, but in even in success she continues to navigate it all in a way that seems authentic to herself.
On this episode we laughed….a lot! It felt good to be back on the road and doing interviews face to face. I think we were both burnt out on zoom calls and were excited to see an old friend again, sit on a park bench, and catch up. This is what I love about podcast. It strips away the highly scrutinized instagram post or well produced film and you get to just get to know the person behind it all. And in Lael’s case, getting to know your idol is a good thing.
All photos courtesy of Rugile (Rue) Kaladyte
You can find my first two interviews with Lael here:
Ep. 10 – Lael Wilcox
Ep. 31 – Lael Wilcox & Rue Kaladyte
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