Episode #51
Kait Boyle
Rebuilding After the Crash
August 19, 2026
Kait Boyle is a world-champion ultra-endurance mountain biker and the co-founder of Bikepacking Roots, known for setting course records on some of the hardest self-supported races in the world, including the Arizona Trail, Kokopelli Trail, and Vapor Trail 125. Two months after Kait won 24-Hour Worlds in 2018, a car accident on black ice shattered her pelvis and left her uncertain whether she'd walk again. In this episode Rebecca and Kait trace the eight years since then: a full recovery, a season stepped away from ultra racing, and this year's third attempt at the Colorado Trail record, cut short after one day by a back injury. They talk through the mantras that carried Kait through her hardest hours, the sports psychology and physical therapy behind her comeback, and what it means to build an identity that isn't tied to finish lines.
Show Notes
Rebecca and Kait discuss:
Kait's path from graduate work in adventure education to racing ultra-endurance mountain bikes full time
Winning 24-Hour Worlds in 2018 and stepping away from a full-time job to chase racing
The car accident two months later that shattered her pelvis and ruptured her bladder
The ICU conversation with her surgeon that shaped her entire recovery
Learning to tell ordinary back tightness apart from an injury serious enough to stop for
The mantras "I get to" and "water is the softest thing" that carried her through recovery and this year's setback
Walking away mid-race at 24-Hour Worlds and stepping back from ultra racing for several years
Returning to racing and building toward three attempts at the Colorado Trail record
This year's Colorado Trail attempt, cut short after one day, and what she's carrying into the next chapter
Transformative insights:
A doctor's early belief in a patient's recovery can shape the entire trajectory of that recovery
Softness and patience can move as much as force ever could
An identity built entirely on athletic performance is fragile; a life built on community and place is not
Preparation and effort still count, even when the goal itself doesn't come together
Vulnerable moments:
Kait describes lying in the ICU on Christmas Eve, not knowing if she'd walk again
Her partner Will's fear about her return to ultra racing after living through the accident with her
The moment mid-race at 24-Hour Worlds when she and her physical therapist agreed she had to stop
Watching this year's Colorado Trail race unfold without her, after scratching her own attempt
Practical wisdom:
How to tell normal training soreness apart from an injury serious enough to stop for
Using a mantra tied to a specific goal, not a generic one, to get through low points
Working with both a sports psychologist and a physical therapist as ongoing, standard support
Deciding your own limits in advance, before race-day pressure and public commitments make it harder
Personal growth:
Kait's shift from defining herself by racing results to defining herself by community, place, and connection
How three years spent chasing the Colorado Trail record left room for a new chapter instead of another attempt
Rebecca's reflection on her own concussion recovery and what led her to start this podcast
Learning to sit with not knowing what comes next rather than rushing toward an answer
Links and Resources
Show Sponsor
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