You'd never guess that Lauren Gregg wasn't a cyclist growing up. She identified as an artistic musician type. It wasn't until she decided to grab her dad's dusty bike out of the garage and start mountain biking on a whim that she turned into an athlete. The simple yet life-changing decision to start mountain biking has enabled Lauren to carve her own path. Starting as an XC racer, she moved up through the ranks and eventually found a love for Enduro. Enduro is an interesting sport. You ride a bigger travel mountain bike and there's a huge course you have to complete. You have to endure the fatigue of riding all the climbs, but only certain descents are timed. With a passion for travel and a fortuitous relationship with Ford, Lauren decided to move into a sprinter van. That sprinter van was her year round home for 2.5 years.
In the show, we talk about Lauren's path to becoming a professional cyclist. One day, some old racer guy told Lauren Gregg, "You'll never be able to make a living as a female mountain biker. It's not possible. It's just not something that will ever happen." And that was game on for Lauren. We talk about all the important lessons she learned about life from living alone in her van, the logistics of actually living in a van, the concept of what home means, the importance of community, and the interesting and positive life changes she is going through right now.
Topics Discussed in the Podcast
- Lauren's path to becoming a professional cyclist
- her transition to enduro
- how and why she decided to move into a van
- the things she has learned about life living in a van
- what it's like to be unplugged and by yourself
- what defines "home"
- importance of community
- her new role at Fuji
- how she is transitioning back to living in a house
Links & Lauren's Favorite Reads
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The Grow the Good Podcast is produced by Palm Tree Pod Co.
