What inspired you to pursue the sport initially, and how did you stay motivated through challenges?
As a kid, seeing and sharing in my siblings’ success in sport really motivated me to pursue athletic excellence. It wasn’t always clear which sport would become my passion, but my dad encouraged me to race NICA during my junior year of high school, and seeing improvement race-to-race was a catalyst to pursue racing with more dedication.

I try not to rely on motivation alone, because it comes and goes. In moments where motivation is lacking, I know that it is discipline that will sustain me. It’s easy to train and race when things are going perfect, but knowing that everyone has highs and lows, and that the ability to stay disciplined through the lows is what separates the truly great, is what keeps me focused!

What are your goals for 2025?
I want to podium at Leadville. I was very close 2023 with a near perfect ride, and still not too far off in 2024 despite a pretty sub-par performance. If I can continue to get a little bit stronger, and execute on race day, I think it’s possible.

I want to get a top five at the Cape Epic. I have a strong partner, and I think that if we can get the best out of each other, a big result is within our grasp.

I want to finish in the top 10 overall in this year’s Lifetime Grand Prix.

What’s your favorite race and why?
I really love Park City Point to Point because I think the course requires all the skills that make a really great marathon mountain biker.

How did your upbringing shape who you are today?
I have three older sisters who are disciplined and have always been there for me. Living in a way that makes them proud is the bumper rail for my life and has kept me on track in bike racing and otherwise.

How has your training and nutrition evolved over your career?
The biggest improvement I’ve made is in the volume of my ride-specific fueling. It’s very rare that I do less than 90 grams of carbs per hour, and very common for me to do quite a bit more. This has allowed me to punch through training ceilings of volume and intensity where fueling was previously a limiter. I am also a lot more cognizant of micro and macronutrients, and I am always trying to super compensate for the heavy simple carb consumption required of my training with more nutrient-dense whole foods when I can, in addition to supplementing with Multi-V and making sure I dial in my fat and protein intake. On the training side, I do a lot more hours and am much more specific about it. I find that I can get a lot more out of each hour by always having a training stimulus goal in mind when heading out for a ride. As I’ve evolved from an XCO racer to a marathon and gravel racer, the race-specific work has also evolved. Finally, I have a great group of training buddies around me that keep it fun and motivating year-round, and I’m grateful for that!

How do you stay motivated during long, grueling training sessions or races?
I feel lucky to be able to race multiple disciplines while chasing an overall series position in the LTGP. When I feel burnt out on the MTB, I can train for gravel, and vice versa. I also have a great community here in Utah, with great group ride options and a solid group of friends who are very fit, but slightly removed from the professional scene, which allows me to shift my focus and perspective while still putting in the necessary work. Variety and enjoying the bike are key.

What has been your biggest setback, and how did you overcome it?
I had a remarkable run of broken bones between November 2018 and November 2019. First, I broke my pinky, which required two surgeries, in November 2018. Next, I broke my wrist in March 2019 and was forced to wear a cast for 12 weeks. Finally, I refractured that wrist in November of 2019. Compartmentalizing each injury and not hyper fixating on their back-to-back nature made it easier to give myself time to rest. Additionally, I took advantage of the time off the bike by utilizing cross training, which helped me mentally cope. Ultimately, I had some of my best results that year, in a few cases while still wearing a hard cast!

What role does mental toughness play in your performance, and how do you cultivate it?
Mental toughness is crucial in the longer races of the Lifetime Grand Prix. Bad luck will happen, and you will have to overcome hard things even on the good days. Having experienced firsthand how easily you can flip a bad day on its head with perseverance, or ruin a good day with a bad mentality, has driven this home for me. I am more at peace with races where I laid it all out there for a “poor” placement than races where I raced scared or mentally checked out, even if that resulted in a “good” placement.

What has being an endurance athlete taught you about life outside of sport?
It’s taught me that what gets tracked gets improved, and that time and reps will lead to increased performance. Keeping track of my training, and seeing how consistency, above all, has led to upward trends in performance can apply to almost anything, from sticking to a training plan for an Unbound top 10, to creating a work habit that lands me a job or helps me learn a new skill.

What piece of new technology or equipment could you no longer imagine living without?
A power meter. It pains me to say it, because I’d love to be the guy who just rides off the feeling of the wind in my hair, but I love to train with power. Even when I’m relatively unfit, I find that having the information is really motivating for me on a day-to-day basis. I rode for several years without power, and while I still loved it, I always prefer to see my data now.

What advice would you give to someone who’s just getting started?
If your goal is to improve, focus on consistency, frequency, and the big three: diet, training, and sleep. There are thousands of variables to get bogged down in, but if you ride four to six days a week, create a routine that makes you excited to ride, and include some thoughtful recovery, a diet that makes you feel good, and a good group of riding buddies, the sky is the limit.

Who are your heroes or role models in sport (or outside of it)?
I feel lucky to have many: Utah hero Keegan Swenson has been instrumental in my career thus far, both through coaching me and helping me think of myself as someone who can win races; Howard Grotts was the first pro I idolized as a teenager; my older sister Avery won dozens of state titles in running and soccer and went on to have a successful collegiate career; all of my older sibling are hustlers in business and in sport while being great parents; my dad was the guy who took me into the mountains, taught me that you can conquer the hills and find peace there, and kept pushing me to become the best version of myself.

What’s the most valuable lesson you’ve learned from a loss or failure in your career?
Extreme accountability for my own performance: this wasn’t realized from one loss, but rather from hundreds of failures, large and small. Only I am responsible for my bike working, my chain being perfectly waxed, my tire choice being correct, my fitness, my sleep, my health, etc. No matter how uncontrollable it all may feel, there are things I can do to make sure I’m as well positioned for success as possible. You’ll never feel good about underperformance, no matter how good your excuse is, so try not to have any!

What’s your “kryptonite”?
Gravel races with an artificial pinch point in the first few miles. Everyone is fresh and ready, I’m usually drafting a camera car at 40mph into a sharp pinch on loose-over-hard gravel, I can’t see a thing because of the dust, and I have to trust the skills of everyone around me. Sketch!

Do you listen to music or podcasts when you train? If so, what is your go-to playlist or podcast? Does it change on intervals vs. easy endurance?
I’m a music guy, and I like a lot of variety! Regulars include Kanye West, Oasis, The Strokes, Mac Miller, Fleetwood Mac, Kid Cudi, Johnny Cash, Green Day, and Billy Joel.

Are you superstitious when it comes to race days and/or key interval sessions? What are those superstitions?
I'm not superstitious per se, but I am somewhat neurotic about my pre-race preparation because I think it gives me the best chance to succeed.

What is your go-to interval session or segment that lets you know you are ready for a big event?
I have an over-under session that I’ll do a few times in the weeks before major races that always kicks my butt: two minutes over threshold, one minute under for 12 minutes. After three sets, I cap it off with some 30-second sprints. If I can hit the numbers in that one, I know I’ll be going good for race day. North Ogden Divide and Francis Peak TTs are always good to check the climbing legs before a climbing race, too!

What training, recovery, or nutrition strategies do you want to implement this year to take your performance to the next level?
I am really trying to make sure I have the strongest stomach in the field. If you want to get away in the first four hours of Unbound, you’ll need to ride a steady 350–400 watts and pray the field lets you go. But if you can do a steady 350 in hour eight, you’ll be riding through the field like a freight train. I think a lot of people gut train a little bit, but few really push it. I’m also trying to track my sleep better this year; I’ve always hyper fixated on training, but making sure I get the most out of it with quality sleep has been a weakness of mine.