Rest Days Community

Vedangi Kulkarni: Rest amongst epic adventures

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.

Emm Whitaker: Risk, reward, community, keeping it fun

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.

Phoebe Sneddon: Finding fun and friends when there is no space

This week we have a brilliant guest, Phoebe Sneddon who many will already follow and think of as a superhuman. She is a Consultant 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.

Hetty Kingston: New perspectives in parenthood

This was the first ever episode recorded with the person who I ran to tell as soon as I had the idea. Not only is she one of my closest friends she is also one of the biggest inspirations in my life. Hetty is a guidebook author, champion for women in the outdoors, endurance cyclist, member of the team that run Peak Gravel Gang the cycling community, and incredible friend. We discuss everything from where the drive to work hard comes from to how hard it can be to hear the body asking for rest. We explore the beautiful journey Hetty has been on since becoming a Mum and how this new phase taught her a lot about rest despite being one of the hardest times in her life to get any.

Immy Sykes: Beyond bikes, books and birds

The one and only Immy Sykes. If you don’t already know who Immy is your life is about to get a lot better. Immy works for a community benefit society where she uses her masters in environmental sustainability, she is a writer of diverse content, she volunteers for her local run club, she climbs, she reads lots of books and tells people about them and very importantly she really loves crisps. I would say ignore all of that except the crisps because through this episode we will find she is many things I didn’t expect and many things that caused her to question how she describes herself. Most importantly she is honest, genuine and has a beautiful story, enjoy