Adventure Audio

Clara Brown's story honestly doesn't sound believable until you check the results — and then it sounds unbelievable anyway.

She grew up in the US state of Maine — gymnast, runner, skier, the works. At age twelve, she landed on her head during gymnastics practice. Two crushed vertebrae in her neck, an incomplete spinal cord injury, and a kid suddenly paralyzed from the neck down. What followed was years of surgeries, rehab, and sheer stubbornness — spinal rehab in Atlanta, learning to walk again — and an outcome she describes matter-of-factly as being a walking quadriplegic: no touch sensation on her left side, limited motor control on her right, and something like two-thirds of her pedaling power coming from a single leg.

But the injury wasn't done with her. Just months into her recovery, her left hip began to die — avascular necrosis, bone tissue starved of blood, possible connected to the original injury. An experimental surgery to regrow the bone failed. She was back in a wheelchair, this time for two years, waiting until her body stopped growing so surgeons could replace the hip entirely. So at fifteen years old — an age when most kids are getting their learner's permit — Clara Brown got total hip replacement. And here's the kicker: she calls it the turning point of her life. The moment she got her health back, she never let go of it again. The kid with the crushed vertebrae, the dead hip, and the replaced joint at fifteen would go on to out-pedal the best.

In college at the University of Puget Sound, a friend got her onto a modified road bike — adapted shifting for her right arm — and it changed everything. After graduation, working at a bike touring company, one connection led to another, and in June 2018 she turned up at a U.S. Paralympic talent ID camp in Colorado Springs having never raced. Two months later she took bronze in her first-ever international race. Two months. That's the entire runway from "never raced" to "world cup podium."

Then it gets silly. Three golds at the 2019 Parapan Am Games. Back-to-back overall World Cup titles in 2021 and 2023. Four world championships across track and road — 500-meter time trial and omnium in 2020, road time trial in 2022, and the road race in 2025 for the rainbow jersey. In Tokyo, in her Paralympic debut, she went fourth, fifth, and sixth — agonizingly close to three podiums. And in Paris in 2024, she finally got the Paralympic medal: bronze in the C1-3 road race, in a finish that has to be seen to be believed. With 75 meters to go, while in the sprint, her neurological impairment resulted in her right arm failing — forcing her to slouch heavily over the handlebars. Barely able to handle her bike or properly pedal, Clara dropped from second place, and somehow, somehow, held off Sweden's Anna Beck by one second for bronze.

And because all of that clearly wasn't enough: weeks before the Paris Games she earned her private pilot's license, she's now has a commercial pilot licence and is chasing a professional aviation career, and she lives in Maine with her partner, fellow para-cyclist Noah Middlestaedt. Clara is a walking quadriplegic, an elite athlete and a commercial pilot.

Some people just refuse to accept limits.

Learn more here, visit Clara Brown

On this episode, we have the founder of the podcast, Pete Hockenhull. Pete and I have a bit of a catch-up interview about what’s new in his life, both professionally and personally and in-depth chat about the Crowsnest Pass 100 gravel/mountain bike race that Pete is co-director of. A bit of background for new listeners, the podcast launched on October 3, 2019, and is built around cycling, endurance sports, and outdoor adventure. It was founded and hosted by Pete Hockenhull, alongside his friend and co-host Tyler Hamilton, the retired US professional cyclist, author and former Tour de France rider.

The 2023 reboot. After 3 years and 139 episodes, Tyler stepped away from full-time hosting duties at the start of 2023. That's when I joined Pete as co-host, and now with Pete on a podcasting hiatus, I’ve taken the hosting reins.

It was great to re-connect with Pete, and we hope you enjoy this episode of the Adventure Audio Podcast.

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Today's episode comes to you by way of the venerable David McGuffin — host of Canadian Geographic's Explore Podcast. David is one of Canada's finest broadcast journalists: with two decades as a foreign correspondent for the CBC, NPR, the BBC, reporting from Moscow, Beijing, and Rome bureaus to name a just few. He's an RCGS Fellow, a contributing editor at Canadian Geographic, and his Explore Podcast is seriously worth your time. Go find it.

David sat down with Laval to talk about his recent solo winter adventure in Ukraine — a ski traverse through the Carpathians, summiting the six highest peaks in the country,

including Ukraine’s highest, Hoverla.

That trip means something different now as the scale of these attacks has rapidly escalated since Laval has returned. For instance, on March 23-24, Russia launched 948 drones in a single day, representing one of the largest massed barrages of the conflict.

Then in April, Russia launched a record near 6,600 Shahed-type drones at Ukraine, averaging 219 launches per day and the attacks continue to escalate, Ukraine’s sad reality. The landscapes Laval moved through and the people he met there, are living and sometimes tragically dying in that reality right now. Please keep that in mind as you listen.

A big thank you to David and the Canadian Geographic Explore Podcast team for letting us share this conversation with the Adventure Audio family.

Haley Daniels is a Canadian Olympian, keynote speaker, and gender equity trailblazer. She spent twelve years fighting to get women's canoe slalom added to the Olympic program — then competed in its historic debut at Tokyo 2020 as the first Canadian woman in the event. A multi-time Canadian Champion and Pan Am Games medalist, Haley now channels that same relentless drive into her work as a speaker, a co-race director of the Canmore Women’s Enduro, and a brand partnership/athlete sponsor professional helping athletes and organizations secure the funding they deserve.

📲 Follow Haley: @haleydanski

Alice Morrison is a Scottish adventurer, author, and TV presenter, often described as an “Indiana Jones for girls” for her bold, story‐driven expeditions across Africa and the Middle East. On today’s episode of Adventure Audio, Alice joins us from the High Atlas Mountains of Morocco, where she now lives after swapping a high‐pressure corporate career in the UK for a life of full‐time adventure.

Alice has cycled 12,000 kilometres from Cairo to Cape Town on the Tour d’Afrique, run the Marathon des Sables, walked the length of Morocco and the Sahara, and followed ancient caravan routes from Morocco to Timbuktu for her BBC2 series Morocco to Timbuktu: An Arabian Adventure.

Most recently, she completed a historic, world‐first 2,200‐plus‐kilometre crossing of Saudi Arabia on foot from the Jordanian border to the Yemeni frontier, walked over two winter seasons with her camels Juicy and Lulu.

Alice has written multiple books, including the award‐shortlisted Walking with Nomads, and through her films, writing, and her own podcast Alice in wAnderland, she uses slow, immersive travel to connect listeners with the people, landscapes, and cultures of Africa and Arabia.

Haley Daniels is a Canadian Olympian, keynote speaker, and gender equity trailblazer. She spent twelve years fighting to get women's canoe slalom added to the Olympic program — then competed in its historic debut at Tokyo 2020 as the first Canadian woman in the event. A multi-time Canadian Champion and Pan Am Games medalist, Haley now channels that same relentless drive into her work as a speaker, a co-race director of the Canmore Women’s Enduro, and a brand partnership/athlete sponsor professional helping athletes and organizations secure the funding they deserve.

📲 Follow Haley: @haleydanski

Ian Aman is an ultramarathoner, executive coach, and author from Airdrie, Alberta, who has turned personal struggle into a mission of inspiring others to redefine their limits.

In 2016, Ian embarked on "Ian Runs Alberta"—a historic 1,600-kilometre journey from the Alberta/Northwest Territories border that spanned 62 days and raised $25,000 for the Canadian Mental Health Association and Centre for Suicide Prevention. Running the equivalent of 38 marathons in a row, Ian chronicled this transformative experience in his book Soul Runner, a raw, day-by-day account of physical endurance intertwined with mental resilience, family connection, and the power of human spirit.

Originally from Medicine Hat, Ian has watched family members struggle with mental health issues while navigating his own battles with anxiety. His answer has always been the same: lace up and run. Inspired by Terry Fox's legacy, Ian believes that "your mind will quit long before your body, if you let it"—a philosophy that drives both his athletic pursuits and his work as a running coach and motivational figure.

After experiencing profound loss and having to rebuild his life from the ground up, Ian emerged with a deeper understanding of transformation through discipline, silence, and internal work. His latest book, Disappear for a Year: Disconnect From The Chaos And Level Up Your Life (January 2026), offers a blueprint for leaders and high-performers who feel overwhelmed, disconnected, or stuck—showing them how stepping back from the noise can be the fastest path to becoming their strongest selves.

Through his coaching, speaking, and writing, he continues to challenge others to discover what they're truly capable of when they refuse to let their minds set the limits.

Links:

Ian’s website: https://www.ianamanofficial.com/

His latest book, Disappear for a Year, Amazon link: https://a.co/d/03EDpk33

Airdrie Backyard Ultra: https://www.airdriebyu.com/

Mandy Gill is an adventurer, ultra-endurance athlete, author (Reset with Resilience) and leadership advisor who has built a career at the intersection of high performance, resilience, and human potential. A nationally known media personality and former broadcaster, she has spent nearly two decades turning hard-earned lessons from the mountains and the microphone into practical strategies for teams, leaders, and everyday athletes. As CEO and founder behind the Healthy Habits platform, Mandy has helped people and organizations around the world build sustainable routines that drive meaningful, long-term change.

On the adventure side, Mandy has tested her limits on some of the world’s toughest terrain—from ultra-trail races well over 100 km to high-altitude expeditions in the Himalaya, including an attempt on Ama Dablam. Those experiences inform her work as a sought-after keynote speaker on resilience, mental toughness, and performing under pressure in uncertain environments. She draws clear parallels between navigating risk in the mountains and leading through volatility at work, making her a go-to voice for organizations looking to strengthen culture, wellbeing, and team cohesion.

www.mandygill.com

@mandygilldotcom

Today's guest is Maxime Chaya, Lebanon’s foremost adventurer and the first person from his country to stand atop Mount Everest, which he summited in 2006. That Everest climb was actually featured on Discovery Channel's reality series "Everest: Beyond the Limit," but it was just one chapter in an extraordinary career of exploration.

Max went on to complete the Seven Summits—the highest peak on every continent—and then pushed further, adding ski expeditions to the North and South Poles to achieve what's known as the Three Poles or the Explorer’s Grand Slam .

In 2013, he took to the ocean, rowing across the Indian Ocean with two crew mates and setting a Guinness World speed record in the process—covering over 5,800 kilometers in just under 58 days.

But one of Max's most remarkable adventures came on two wheels. He and British ultra-runner Steve Holyoak completed not one, but two bikepacking expeditions across the Rub' al Khali—the Empty Quarter, the world's largest sand desert. Their first crossing in 2016 took them 1,500 kilometers from Abu Dhabi to Salalah, Oman in 21 days. They loved it so much they went back for more, this time riding 2,500 kilometers from Jeddah to Muscat over 33 days.

Back home in Lebanon, Max continues to promote adventure sports throughout the region. He's also a sought-after motivational speaker, sharing his philosophy that "There is an Everest for Everyone."

Please welcome Maxime Chaya.

A conversation with Annalise and Cailynn Klingbeil, the Calgary-based twin sisters behind Go Outside, one of Canada's most influential outdoor newsletters. From their first hike at two months old to building a community of thousands who are discovering that adventure doesn't require epic summits or extreme objectives—it just requires stepping outside.

Annalise Klingbeil is a former daily newspaper journalist, co-founder and principal of Champion Communications, and co-creator of the Go Outside newsletter. Her writing focuses on making Alberta's wilderness accessible to everyone, challenging the notion that outdoor adventure requires specialized skills or elite fitness. She's been featured in CTV Calgary, Calgary Herald, and The Guardian discussing outdoor accessibility and the future of Canada's parks.

Cailynn Klingbeil is a freelance journalist whose stories have appeared in The New York Times, The Guardian, The Globe and Mail, and co-creator of Go Outside. Her work explores the intersection of nature, community, and everyday adventure. She brings a generalist's curiosity and a storyteller's eye to the question: how do we help more people fall in love with the outdoors?

gooutside.substack.com