Hannah Moderow’s lifelong passion for the frigid Junior Iditarod was birthed when she began dog sledding at five years old. In this episode, she describes the dangers and delights of being a “musher,” as well as the loving bond she shares with her sled dogs.

Hannah is a lifelong Alaskan. She holds an MFA in writing for children from Vermont College of Fine Arts and a BA in English and art history from Cornell University

Rhonda Fields is the Executive Director of the Girls on the Run of Southeastern Michigan. In this episode, she and Deb discuss the transformational effect that participation in athletics has on a girl, how teamwork opens one’s perspective of the world, and the joy she experiences when witnesses one of her girls crossing the finish line.

Sportscaster Jen Mueller openly shares how the values she was taught as a child have shaped the professional she is today, how leadership is developed through sport, and how speaking with confidence impacts the perception of competence. Jen Mueller currently works as a member of the Seattle Mariners television broadcast on ROOT SPORTS and as the Seattle Seahawks sideline radio reporter.

Karen Blumenthal, brilliant author and historian, chronicles spirited events that took place leading up to and following the passage of Title IX. She states that, even more than laws passed during the Civil Rights Movement, Title IX is the most significant equal rights law for women. As a young girl, Karen “desperately” wanted to be a true athletic competitor. Today, she celebrates the fact that young women are freely encouraged to do so.

Cori Myka shares how her life-long passion for swimming has guided her life’s work. As a girl, Cori found a confidence, contentment, and a sense of belonging in the pool. As an instructor of adults, she’s grown to admire her students’ courageous efforts to face their fears, both in and out of the water. Cori talks about empowering her students to understand the stages of panic and to trust themselves to know what to do because, she believes, they are already perfect and whole inside.

In this episode, Lindsay Leslie candidly shares how her connection with athletics saved her life. She shares how her past athletic experiences became the source she needed to pull on in efforts to find the strength to heal from a potentially devastating illness. Lindsay’s motto is “Once an athlete, always an athlete.” Lindsay discussed how sports gave her the confidence required to take risks in her craft, and in her life.

Kaitlyn Bean is truly a girl with guts. In this episode, Kaitlyn describes a horrific car accident she experienced, one that left her with two broken legs and a crushed heal. Doctors told her that she would, most likely, recover to walk with a limp and that her running days were over. Determined to prove them wrong, Kaitlyn summoned all the mental strength she could muster. Miraculously, exactly one year after her accident, Kaitlyn crossed the finish line of the New York Marathon!

In this episode, two-time Olympic contender Felicia Zimmerman talks about her childhood experiences as a shy girl who became empowered the first time she placed a fencing mask on her face. Her sister, Iris, has had a life-time impact on Felicia’s competitive nature, developing confidence, as a joint business owner. Listen as she describes what it felt like to compete in the Olympics with her sister by her side.

Shannon Anderson is a remarkable woman, to say the very least. This woman of faith is a mother, teacher, a Regional Advisor for the SCBWI-Indiana Chapter, a blogger, multi-published author, marathoner, and has earned the prestigious honor of being the Person of the Year for the RJ Runyan Foundation. In this episode, we learn about the power of a mentor who encouraged her to always “Go for the Gold!”

Author Debbie Gonzales discusses the inspiration, creative process, and dedication for her debut picture book, GIRLS WITH GUTS!:THE ROAD TO BREAKING BARRIERS AND BASHING RECORDS. In this episode, she highlights some of the vignettes featured in the book, the passage of Title IX, and impact the tenacious female athletes of the past have had on the educational and sporting opportunities girls engage in today.