Fuerza: Inside the Mind of the Ridden Athlete

Today, Mig is joined by Ian Lopez de San Roman to chat about growing up in Sebastapool, his high school racing, upcoming international plans, and all other things bike.

Connect with Ian on instagram:

Miguel on instagram:

First up in our "Legends of the Sport"  is Steve "Gravy" Gravenites. Born and raised in West Marin in Inverness Ca. Gravy spent is youth in the early 70's jumping BMX bikes in Tiburon and graduated to shuttling runs on Mt. Tam. His passion for wrenching led him to Sammy Haggar's shop in Sausalito and then was launched into orbit at the first MTB World Championship in Durango in 1990. Wrenching for Yeti, Schwinn, Volvo Cannondale and Marin his tools took him around the world. Like a magician his touch turned into gold, literally. Helping the likes of Jimmy Deaton, Missy Giove, Alison Sydor, Myles Rockwell, Tinker Juarez and countless others to national and world championship wins. In NorCal his legendary "De'La" rides are still the epic of epics. 

Usal Lost Coast Hopper Oct. 1 takes place in remote Mendocino County in partnership with Redwood Forest Foundation. 

Join us as we discuss with founding member Richard Gienger, interim president and CEO Kathy Moxon and head forester Linwood Gill what it means to be both a non-profit and a timber company who's founding principles are "Ecology, Economy and Equity". 

They will share stories of the history of logging in the Redwood Empire and RFFI's current efforts and their vision for the future. 

RFFI's "Vision" is to establish community based forests that provide critical habitat for increased biodiversity and improved economic vitality." With a "Mission" to acquire, protect, restore and manage RFFI forestlands and other related resources in the Redwood Region for the long term benefit of the communities located here". 

Their efforts to involve indigenous communities, incorporate traditional management practices and to reach out to the scientific community to improve their knowledge on restoring the forest to a more productive, fire resilient forest for timber resources, water quality and wildlife habitat is inspiring.  

Redwood Forest Foundation Inc.

Kristen Faulkner of Team Bike Exchange Jayco joins the show to talk moving to Girona, racing the Giro, her entrance into cycling after a career in tech, and gender equality in cycling. We'll talk about the role of resilience, tenacity, self sufficiency and the power of focusing on micro gains. From her 2019 win at SuperSweetwater Grasshopper to the time trial at Tour de Suisse and Giro Donne as well as the climbers jersey, there is nothing Kristen cannot accomplish once she has set her mind to it. 

Fuerza is supported by Team Adair Cross Country Mortgage. For a $2200 discount, use the link:

The legendary Chas Christiensen (NotChas) is in the house! With deep roots in alley cats and fixed gear racing Chaz discovered the Hoppers way back when. Join us as we talk gravel, art, adventure racing and his passionate search for the eternal stoke. The Shred Abides! 

https://www.instagram.com/notchas/

http://www.notchas.com/

https://crosscountrymortgage.com/affinity/grasshopper/

King Ridge is a classic Sonoma County Hopper. This year we've added Annapolis and Kruse Rd to mix it up with a little gravel and to highlight the beautiful NorCal Coast. Join us as we talk about what makes road riding (with some gravel) so amazing in this area. Ted and Laura King and Jess Cerra share their thoughts on the best bike/tire choices, how to pack and prepare for a Hopper, and tips for optimal hydration and nutrition. 

The man, the myth, the legend. El Jefe Geoff Kabush. 3 time olympian and winner of every possible type of racing from CX, XC, Enduro, Gravel and Hopper. With multiple national titles in Canada, a World Cup win, multiple US MTB championships and leader of  the ProFunTour. We talk Canadian Maffia, OG Hopper, the roll of social media in athletes lives, growing up in Canada, doping, wintering in NorCal, LTGP and all things bike. 

Our guests Cullen and Griffin Easter are the founders of the Opicure Foundation. OpiCure is committed to bringing awareness of opioid abuse, redefining best practices for addiction recovery and devoting resources to affect positive change in the Utah community and beyond. It is in partnership with the cycling community that we can make a difference. Join us as we discuss addiction and recovery and the power of helping one person at a time. 

https://opicure.org/about-us

@opicurefoundation

Sponsor:  CrossCountry Mortgage $2200 off next home purchase or refi. 

Our guest this week is Yuri Hauswald. He is the athlete manager for GU and ambassador for everything fun about riding gravel bikes. From the town of Petaluma in NorCal Yuri grew up playing many sports and lacrosse in college. When he fell for biking, he fell hard! (familiar story). We've been shredding on MTB, single speeds, road and gravel together since the early 90's. Tune in as Yuri and I cruise down memory lane and weave in common strands of cycling's past, present and future. @yhauswald 

CrossCountry Mortgage 

Our guest today, Kate Courtney is a professional MTB racer with the Scott/SRAM TEAM. During the World Cup season, in her first year as an Elite Racer, Kate placed in the top 10 at six World Cups and finished the season in 8th place Overall. The year ended on a high note when Kate came from behind to win the 2018 Elite XC World Championships in Lenzerheide, Switzerland. With this victory, Kate became the first American in 17 years to win an Elite MTB World Championship and only the fourth American woman to do so. 

Born and raised in Marin County in Northern California Kate is a former NICA racer and a graduate of Stanford University.  

Join us as we talk about the Olympics, training and incremental gains, mental grit, social media, growing up in NorCal and goals for 2022. 

@kateplusfate

www.katecourtney.com

CrossCounty Mortgage Grasshopper Affinity Program