One of our biggest fears in life is a fear of failure. Take that plunge into the unknown, and be amazed of what you will learn about yourself and the world around you…

Listen in or view the ZOOM for guest host Alenka Vrecek’s Women’s Eye Podcast with Clare Frank, a trailblazer who found her life’s calling to be a firefighter at an early age and became California’s first female Chief of Fire Protection.

Šla je skozi izčrpavajočo ločitev, se drugič poročila, zatem pa se ji je v kratkem obdobju svet postavil na glavo. Zaradi hude poškodbe kolena je bila prisiljena končati kariero učiteljice smučanja. Med okrevanjem je izvedela, da ima raka na dojki. Kmalu zatem je prestala še operacijo črevesja. Obenem pa je njen mož dobil diagnozo: Parkinsonova bolezen.

Njena gorenjska trma in privzgojen odnos do življenja sta jo gnala prek obupa. Da bi se čustveno in telesno sestavila, se je odpravila na 4000 kilometrov dolgo kolesarjenje od jezera Tahoe v Kaliforniji, kjer živi, do La Ventane na mehiški obali, kjer imajo družinsko počitniško hiško. Kolesarila je pri temperaturah pod ničlo in pri 40 stopinjah, po makadamu nacionalnih parkov in po asfaltu tik ob prehitrih priklopnikih, spotoma pa premagala blizu 50.000 metrov višine.

"Vožnja po samotni cesti, kjer mi ni bilo treba paziti na promet ali kar koli drugega, je omogočala, da so mi glavo polnile misli in spomini. Spominjala sem se. Predelovala. Odstranjevala bolečine iz preteklosti. Premikanje naprej po cesti je bilo moja odrešitev."

Zapiski:

• osebna spletna stran,

• knjiga Naj se vrti,

• Alenka Vreček na Instagramu.

Our discussion with Alenka is more than just about the bike or the book; it’s about self-discovery, finding strength within yourself and mustering the courage to persevere against all odds.

The just-released She Rides is an extraordinary account of Alenka’s 2,500-mile solo journey on a mountain bike (aptly named “The Beast”). This breast cancer survivor has written a deeply personal memoir about pursuing her lifelong dream to “ride my bike to the end of the earth.”

She did eventually do the trek and wrote a book about it called “She Rides,” which is out today. The Sierra Nevada Ally’s Noah Glick chatted with Vrecek about the book and her journey.

Glick: Tell us a little bit about the book. What is it? And what made you decide to write this?

This is a fascinating and inspirational story. Along the way, Alenka learned a great deal about herself and discovered the joy of living life to its fullest. It’s lesson she want to share with all of us.

Strong Coffee Strong Women