The Bounce Forward Podcast Be Audacious LLC.

Jesse and Chase Smith are husband and wife and also the owners of The Bicycle Station. With three locations in Indiana, these new parents and YouTube profiteers are movers and shakers in the bike world. From humble beginnings to a powerhouse couple, these two have navigated injury, illness and a pregnancy, all while purchasing a bike shop and opening the doors to two new stores. 



In this episode, Chase shares stories from her unexpectedly challenging pregnancy and how she’s bouncing forward, getting back on the bike and competing at this year’s Mid South, parenting, serving on the board for Brown County Mountain Biking and holding it down at the shop. Jesse talks about what fuels him to be a content producing machine, capable wrench and ambitious player in the bike industry, all while continuing to pursue his passion as a pointy end of the pack racer on the mountain and gravel bike. 



From the beginning, everything with this couple has been fast and furious and in this conversation with Michael, Jesse and Chase talk Leadville, training with a toddler, building a YouTube bike channel empire and the growth of their thriving business, The Bicycle Station. 

This episode was powered by The Bicycle Station

Leadville 100 Fundraiser: firstdescents.org/fundraiser/

Website: beaudacious.com

Michael’s Instagram: @michaelleachba

Show’s Instagram: @thebounceforward

Kai Luan is a 27-year-old paracyclist from Chicago, Illinois. Within a year of his osteosarcoma diagnosis in the middle of his junior year of high school, Kai underwent a below-knee amputation following multiple rounds of chemotherapy. 

Kai’s story and bounce forward is a testament to the power of the human spirit and the epitome of resiliency in action. An athlete at heart, Kai returned to competing in martial arts following his amputation, until he discovered his love for the bike. Once Kai found the bike, he audaciously began chasing dreams on two wheels. Kai placed 1st in his C4 category and 4th overall at the 2023 USA Cycling eSports Paracycling Nationals. He’s an avid road and gravel racer, pushing the limits as an athlete and now race promoter. 

When not working as an attorney, Kai can be seen chasing his two wheeled dreams while working to inspire others to embrace new challenges, shedding light on and increasing visibility for adaptive sports and athletes. 

In today’s conversation, Michael and Kai talk Unbound, LA 2028 Paralympics, Kai’s work as a race promoter and his ambitious 2024 race calendar. Kai and Michael dive deep into what it was like working through a dramatic and life altering challenge as a teenage athlete. Humble, hungry, articulate and thoughtful, Kai is sure to become a Bounce Forward fan favorite.

You can listen our episode with Dylan Johnson on Unbound 2023 here.

Leadville 100 Fundraiser: ⁠firstdescents.org/fundraiser

Website: beaudacious.com

Michael's Instagram: @michaelleachba

Show Instagram: @thebounceforward

Rose Grant is a friend of the show and one of our favorite examples of a human that knows how to bounce forward strong. Rose is a 5x Mountain Bike Marathon National Champion and two-time Leadville 100 winner. A mom, wife, cycling coach, horse-trainer and adventurer, Rose is an inspiration and force of nature.  

In today’s conversation, Michael and Rose explore her next chapter and what the first year of retirement from professional racing has looked like for one of the most dominant endurance athletes of the last decade. From her work as a Leadville ambassador, to training up athletes on how to tackle the most daunting one day mountain bike race in North America. In our second conversation with Rose, we’ll also dive into her work as a coach and horse trainer and what her current life looks like in NW Montana.  

Articulate, thoughtful and full of wisdom, Rose never disappoints. For those looking for uplift and inspiration, look no further, because Rose always delivers in abundance. 

https://support.firstdescents.org/fundraiser/5198318

https://beaudacious.com/

https://www.instagram.com/michaelleachba/

We decided to sneak in one final episode before we say goodbye to 2023. In this final episode of Season One, we explore the up and down nature of being an athlete. Regardless of our best intention or our commitment to following a plan or to stay healthy, injury, illness and setback are a natural part of the athlete journey and learning to ride the waves that come with being a life-long athlete, becomes an art and practice. 

While none of us welcome injury or illness, any athlete training for the long haul, with years of training under their belt knows that these challenges represent an inescapable reality. In this short episode we explore how we can think about these setbacks when they come, while shedding light on the importance of language, the problem with labels and how we can seek the support we need during these vulnerable times. 



Instagram: @thebounceforwardpodcast

Website: https://beaudacious.com/podcast/

In this final episode of Season One, we briefly recap our first season, explore what’s to come in season two and dive into some storytelling and coaching. When things don’t go as planned or we’re in the midst of an injury, how do we cope and manage the many emotions and feelings of letdown? Even though most setbacks are temporary,  these challenging circumstances often represent loss for the individual.

Learning to navigate injury, illness and setback is a far steeper task than preparing for the biggest, baddest, hardest endurance race around. Unlike preparing for a race, there’s no template or cookie cutter training plan to guide us. How we navigate the trials and tribulations that are inherent to working our way through injury or illness can become the foundation for developing fortitude and cultivating perseverance in the face of what may represent the most difficult endurance feat of them all. 



Instagram: @thebounceforwardpodcast

Website: https://beaudacious.com/podcast/

Sarah Kaufmann is a highly sought after cycling coach and owner of K Cycling Coaching. Sarah is a former professional mountain bike racer, with a fifteen year racing career in XC and CX. Sarah has been coaching for over a decade and in this episode we discuss her journey from athlete to coach, the evolution of her coaching, the reason she still builds in interval sessions to her weekly training and why she stuck with it as an endurance athlete after a mediocre beginning as a high schooler. 

This one’s for any of you with young athletes or for budding athletes not having the success that you feel reflects your training. Persistence, resilience and sticktoitiveness is the name of the game with this episode of the podcast. Sarah is an inspiring testament to how keeping our body in movement not only strengthens our mental and physical selves, but by staying the course and keeping faith alive—simply staying in the game and doing the work—we give ourselves a shot at hitting our stride and achieving things physically and professionally that would have seemed a pipe dream to our teenage selves. 

To learn more about the show or dive into previous episodes drop by https://beaudacious.com/podcast/

Instagram: @thebounceforward