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Lessons In Badassery - Badass women in sport, fitness and adventure
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Interview

Markella Mildenberger: “I had to push to see how far I could go”

March 11, 2020 by badassery No Comments

Markella Mildenberger was fit and active before a routine surgery went wrong in 2011, affecting her ability to walk and leaving her with chronic pain. Life, as she knew it, changed forever and for the next five years, she watched her world unravel. The turning point came in 2016 when Markella learned that her pain was permanent, and she made the decision to start ‘living life again’.

Three years later, whilst looking for a new challenge, and with no mountain bike experience (but a huge amount of pain just sitting on the saddle), Markella, a mountain bike newbie, signed up for one of the world’s most gruelling multi-day MTB events, the BC Bike Race in British Columbia – 7 days, 300km and 10,000m of elevation along some of the sport’s most technical trails – and made a film of her experience: “It’s Just Like Riding A Bike”.

Ahead of the UK premiere on Monday 16 March, which kicks off a week of adventure, wildlife and environmental films at the annual Four Seasons Film Festival, I caught up Markella via email to hear more about her experience.

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Casey Brown: ‘It’s a tough sport. My body hurts more this year than ever’

September 4, 2019 by badassery No Comments

© Stefan Voitl / Red Bull

Freeride mountain biker Casey Brown has had her fair share of injuries – from smashed teeth to a lacerated liver – but that comes with pushing boundaries in a sport that can see you soar 50ft into the air on a bike.

The 28-year-old rider, who has also competed successfully in downhill mountain biking and the Enduro World Series, grew-up in remote New Zealand where the next town was an eight-hour hike away. Aged 11, Casey moved with her family to British Columbia where she later honed her MTB skills and would go on to be crowned Queen of Crankworx, the world-wide circuit where riders accumulate points in a variety of MTB disciplines, and Whip-off World Champion multiple times.

This weekend, Casey will take part in the qualifiers for Red Bull Rampage, an event considered the pinnacle of big mountain freeriding, where the world’s best freeride athletes launch themselves down 65-ft high cliffs in Utah following impossible lines and performing insane tricks (yep, it’s as high risk as it sounds). This year sees the first-ever qualifying event and Casey is making history as the first and only woman to be invited. Go, Casey. We’re rooting for you.

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Interview

Julia Hobson: Riding and Guiding Europe’s Best MTB Trails

January 4, 2019 by badassery 2 Comments

© Pete Scullion

Guiding riders across some of the Europe’s best mountain bike trails is all in a day’s work for Julia Hobson, who has spent the last six years working as a mountain bike guide. No stranger to racing either, Julia has completed seriously testing MTB and enduro events such as the Megavalanche, Nepal’s Yak Attack and the Andes-Pacifico, where she came third.

Julia, who recently launched her own guiding business, Endless Trails, first fell in love with mountain biking while living in Sheffield as a student and continues to support the area as an ambassador for Ride Sheffield who maintain and build local and Peak District trails.

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Tracy Moseley: 10 Downhill Mountain Bike Tips

July 24, 2018 by badassery No Comments
Tracy Moseley: 10 Downhill Mountain Bike Tips

Photo: Matt DeLorme

She dominated the downhill mountain bike scene for years before switching to riding enduro MTB and carving out an equally successful enduro career. So who better than Tracy Moseley to share tips on tackling descents on a mountain bike?

Between looking after her baby and squeezing in rides, Trek athlete Tracy very kindly took time out to relay her tips on tackling downhill rides on the mountain bike. This one’s for beginners – enjoy!

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Tahnée Seagrave: ‘I like hard sections. I thrive off difficulty’

June 12, 2018 by badassery No Comments

Photo: Dave Mackison

Downhill mountain bike racer Tahnée Seagrave grew up in Morzine watching the pro riders hang out at her parents’ chalet. Little did she know she’d end up joining the MTB scene professionally one day too. Fast-forward to last year, and the Red Bull rider took three World Cup wins, signing off 2017 as second in the overall rankings.

With the 2018 season underway, including a World Cup win at Fort William and a disappointing DQ last weekend, the almost-23-year-old (it’s her birthday on Friday) is fired up. Here, Tahnée answers my questions on everything from fear and training to her goals for this year.

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Interview

Isabeau Courdurier: Enduro, Megavalanche + Mountain Bikes

January 23, 2018 by badassery No Comments

Photo Credit: Dave Trumpore

Enduro mountain bike racer Isabeau Courdurier learned to ride when she was three and by the age of five had completed her first MTB race. Now 24, the diminutive French rider heads into 2018 with a successful year of podiums, a Megavalanche win, and second place overall ranking in the Enduro World Series to her name – all while juggling training and racing with studying for her Masters degree.

Here, she shares her thoughts on 2017, her favourite places to ride and her goals for the coming season.

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Interview

Tracey Hannah: Downhill Mountain Bike Badass

January 9, 2018 by badassery No Comments

Photo Credit: Callum Wood

Australian downhill mountain biker, Tracey Hannah, grew up riding bikes. At the age of four she competed in her first BMX competition and by 14 she was racing elite downhill MTB events. In 2017, she narrowly missed out on realising her dream to become Downhill World Champion when a spill in Cairns knocked her unconscious. Incredibly, she still took third place.

Here, the Polygon UR team rider chats about her love of speed, crashing in Cairns, and how a childhood spent on bikes kick-started her love of mountain biking.

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About My Blog

Mountain View

I'm a sports/adventure journalist and copywriter, and I LOVE reading about badass women in sport, fitness and adventure. So I’m on a mission to find them, share their stories, and quiz them about their training, their motivation, and insider tips (totally hoping some badass magic will rub off on me along the way!). Plus I’ll bring you how-tos, must-have kit and tales of epic from some of the coolest and toughest events on the planet.

Email Me: katie@lessonsinbadassery.com

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Recent Posts

Ida Mathilde Steensgaard: Meet the Short-Course OCR World Champion

Ida Mathilde Steensgaard: Meet the Short-Course OCR World Champion

May 10, 2023
Mandy Williams: Neurodiverse runner and Hyrox Worlds qualifier

Mandy Williams: Neurodiverse runner and Hyrox Worlds qualifier

April 19, 2023
Junko Kazukawa: Twenty-one 100-mile ultramarathons and counting

Junko Kazukawa: Twenty-one 100-mile ultramarathons and counting

March 29, 2023
The Unstoppable Dede Griesbauer: Ultraman World Champion

The Unstoppable Dede Griesbauer: Ultraman World Champion

March 1, 2023
Leila Dachraoui: Meet the 50-year-old swimmer still winning medals

Leila Dachraoui: Meet the 50-year-old swimmer still winning medals

February 15, 2023

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Recent Posts

  • Ida Mathilde Steensgaard: Meet the Short-Course OCR World Champion
  • Mandy Williams: Neurodiverse runner and Hyrox Worlds qualifier
  • Junko Kazukawa: Twenty-one 100-mile ultramarathons and counting
  • The Unstoppable Dede Griesbauer: Ultraman World Champion
  • Leila Dachraoui: Meet the 50-year-old swimmer still winning medals

lessonsinbadassery

I’m thrilled to quiz OCR World Champ (3K) and do I’m thrilled to quiz OCR World Champ (3K) and double European champion @idamathildee about all things training and racing on Lessons in Badassery today 💥 
In addition to having more than 100 race podiums to her name, Ida also holds the world record for the longest rope climb by a female and the longest rope climb from water 💪

⚡️Pop to the link in my bio to read the interview or visit Lessonsinbadassery.com ⚡️

📸 © Jesper Gronnemark/Red Bull Content Pool

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#ocr #ocrtraining #spartanrace #ocrwc #ocrec #hyrox #ropeclimb #obstaclerace #obstacleracer #parkour #ninjawarrior #gripstrength #gripstrengthtraining#endurancesport #obstacleracing #strongwomen #strengthtraining #lessonsinbadassery #womenwholift #spartanrace #spartanraceeurope #spartanracetraining
Today’s interview is with avid runner and Hyrox Today’s interview is with avid runner and Hyrox World champs qualifier, Mandy Williams (@n_d_athlete). Mandy, who was part of last year’s Masters team at the Mountain Running World Championships, was diagnosed with autism at the age of 45, and suddenly a lifetime of symptoms made sense.
In this interview Mandy shares how her diagnosis changed her life immeasurably, how she’s training for the upcoming Hyrox World Championship, and the challenges her autism presents when competing in races and events.

Read via the link in my bio or visit Lessonsinbadassery.com 💥

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#ultrarunning #mountainrunning #mountainrunner #neurodiversity #runningwithautism #mastersrunner #hyroxdaily #hyroxtraining #hyroxcommunity #hyroxuk #ultras #hybridtraining #hybridathlete #autismawareness
The incredible @runjunkorun has such a long list o The incredible @runjunkorun has such a long list of ultrarunning accolades, it’s difficult to know where to start! The two-time breast cancer survivor has finished more than *21* 100-mile races, and at the age of 52 was the first person to complete the Ultrarunning Grand Slam AND the full Leadville races series in one season. 🤩💥 

I’m thrilled to have Junko answer my questions on all of the above and more, over on Lessons in Badassery today. Thank you for the inspiration, Junko! 

💥Read via the link in my bio or visit Lessonsinbadassery.com 

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#ultrarunning #ultralife #ultramarathon #ultratraining #leadville100 #westernstates #ultrarunningcommunity #ultrarunningtraining #ultraraces #ultrarunner #endurancetraining #strongwomen #lessonsinbadassery #womenwhorun #marathontraining #mentalstrength #mentalstrengthtraining #ultracoach
Forever grateful to the mould-breaking, trailblazi Forever grateful to the mould-breaking, trailblazing, disruptive women doing the hard graft to change the world for the rest of us 👊🔥

T H A N K  Y O U 

#IWD #IWD2023 #strongwomen #lessonsinbadassery
Major fan-girling today over the incredible @dedeg Major fan-girling today over the incredible @dedegriesbauer, Ultraman World Champion, multi-time Ironman champ and all-round endurance sport legend. In her 50s, she’s proving unstoppable with new course records and world records galore.
Today on Lessons in Badassery, Dede shares what went into last year’s Ultraman World Championship win, her training, mental strategies, and how her approach to racing has changed compared to her time as a younger athlete.

Read via the link in my bio or visit Lessonsinbadassery.com 💥

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#ultramanworldchampionship #ultraman #ultratraining #ultrarunning #ultracycling #ultraswim #ironmanathlete #ironmatraining #ironmantri #ironmaninspo #womeninsport #womenssport #womenscycling #marathontips #endurancewomen #endurancesport #mentalstrength #mentalstrengthtraining #lessonsinbadassery #trilife
When Tunisian swimmer @leila_dachraoui was just 1 When Tunisian swimmer @leila_dachraoui was just 15 years old, she became the youngest gold medallist at the 1987 African Games. She had a promising career as a professional swimmer ahead of her, until circumstances forced her to her to quit. 
Proving it’s never too late to follow your dreams, nearly 30 years later, Leila returned to the pool and has since won countless medals as a Masters athlete. You can read more about her inspirational swimming journey via our Q&A 🤩

💥Link in bio or visit lessonsinbadassery.com 💥 

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#mastersswimming #lessonsinbadassery #womenssport #swimtraining #mastersathlete #fitat50 #mentalstrength #womeninsport
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