Vicky Balfour: Controlling the controllable

Violette Neza is a Rwandan cyclist, with an impressive professional cycling resume but her goals are about much more than her own results. She has a women cycling team where she coaches and mentors young Rwandan women. Through this team she is focused on more than just creating faster riders, she is creating, strong independent woman who believe in themselves and know how to look after themselves. Amongst all of this she plans in and prioritises rest which we hear all about through her episode.

This week we speak to the truly delightful Steph Wetherell. Steph has a wonderful journey with the outdoors which has become intertwined with finding love for herself and solitude. Through outdoor adventure stories we hear how Steph frames solitude and seeks it out for growth, relaxation and enjoyment.

This week we talk to Lumes. This episode is somehow fun and joyful yet full of wisdom throughout. Lumes shares her journey through cycling and all the life lessons learnt along the way.

This week we talk to Katy Roberts who has combined a passion for cycling, community and advocating for mental health. She cycled round the entire coast of Britain, started a cycling community, shared stories and connected people. But how does she do all this and look out for herself?

You asked and we delivered, this week we talk to Vicky Balfour. Vicky is a wonderful wordsmith and I am sure everyone will resonate with something she says in her calming reassuring way. You never know what the future may hold the best you can do is be kind to yourself and find tools that increase your resilience. I hope you can feel the warmth she gives our through her words.

This week we speak to Lauren Munro-Bennett working as a guide and coach in the Lake District UK. Lauren opens up about her journey with running, mental health, starting a business and her work with others in the outdoors. She tells the very relatable story of going from always pushing and running away from her problems, never enjoying the moment or physical landscape she was in, to now stopping to enjoy the view and make space for the rest she needs.

If you have heard her talk before you will know Claire has endless stories to renew your faith in humanity and inspire you to seek out adventure. What we learn far more about in this episode is how Claire sustained full time travel by riding her bike vast distances, earning money and mostly staying healthy. We then explore the complex adjustment that is settling into a more conventional life in the UK after years of cycling around the world.

This week we hear from Vedangi Kulkarni. She has cycled round the world, not once but twice, with the first time being at aged 19. She has balanced this alongside arctic adventures, writing work, creating events, riding her bike for fun and enjoying her 20s. We delve into what it means to be an athlete, how our perceptions of ourselves can be so different to how others see us. We talk about where her love for adventure and drive comes from. We have a candid conversation about where the line lies between pushing ourselves and risking our health. 

This week we talk to Emma Whitaker. We look at their journey through the downhill mountain bike racing scene, how hard it can be balancing risk and reward whilst not losing the love for something that started out as pure fun.  We look at the hard work that goes into building outdoors or sporting communities, why its so worthwhile but how planning everyone else’s rest days doesn’t always leave time for your own. They share how working creatively in the cycling industry has allowed for a work pattern that can leave space for other parts of life. As someone getting into gravity mountain biking I fangirl a bit and get some advice on how to find my place in the mountain bike community, we talk about why this is particularly hard right now due to a big hole in grassroots mountain biking. There is a lot of focus on time outside on a bike being fun and that there should be space for everyone to enjoy this.

This week we have a brilliant guest, Phoebe Sneddon who many will already follow and think of as a superhuman. She is aConsultant in children’s emergency medicine which is notoriously one of the hardest jobs out there not just for lifestyle but also for emotional burden. She has spent over a decade racing bikes to varying levels but in this episode shares a whole new sporting journey that she has just discovered. She has two children and much of this episode features on what we can all do to make the next generation happier and healthier. We delve deep into how she manages to find any balance amongst this and what keeps her afloat.