Rebecca Rusch

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Rebecca Rusch wasn’t thinking about world championships when she joined the Downers Grove North High School cross-country team. “I just wanted the free track suit,” recalls Rusch, who, 28 years later, finds herself among the ranks of the world’s elite endurance athletes. In July of 2009, Rusch won her third straight mountain biking 24-hour Solo World Championship.

Since donning those gray cotton sweats and Lycra shorts, Rusch has outfitted herself in the kit of numerous other disciplines: racking up ascents of big walls from Yosemite to Zion, paddling on the world-famous Offshore Canoe Club’s women’s outrigger team in the brutal Molokai crossing and winning adventure races around the world.

When not training in one of the five mountain ranges surrounding her hometown of Ketchum, Idaho, the 41-year-old known as the “Queen of Pain” can be found chasing adrenaline from Tibet to New Zealand to Kyrgyzstan, constantly adding titles to her impressive and extensive resume.

In addition to those three 24-hour solo mountain bike World Champion rainbow jerseys, Rusch is a three-time national champion in 24-hour team mountain biking. She’s Idaho’s Short Track state championship (twice), and its Cyclocross state title. An accomplished Nordic skier, she’s won the Masters Cross Country Skiing World Championship, in addition to taking the top prize at Raid Gauloises Adventure Racing World Championships. And although that’s just cross-section of her palmares, it’s easy to see why Rusch has been profiled by Sports Illustrated, Outside Magazine and Adventure Sport Magazine.

Talking about age draws a laugh as she gestures at her surroundings. "People around here are all 10 years younger than they actually are. And I don’t mean they just look it; they are actually 10 years younger," she said. "Everyone’s out there constantly doing stuff, from biking to skiing to hiking. There’s a collective mentality that if you don’t use it, you’ll lose it."

This mentality, along with what she calls "perfect terrain for training," provides a home base for the typically itinerant Rusch. She is part of the community; for more than two years she has been a stalwart volunteer emergency medical technician and firefighter for the Ketchum Fire Department, and a homeowner. On breaks from her race schedule, she works on her condominium, though the domestic idea continues to bemuse her; the last home she owned was a 1975 Ford Bronco.

Spokane I Can

May 28, 2009

The race was awesome this weekend. Did a duo with Greg Martin (Single Speed 24 hr solo World Champion). We entered the police/fire/military division and raced as Ketchum Fire. It was a 10 person team division, so all the other teams had 6-10 people, so we were at a bit of a disadvantage with only two.

We won the division with 22 laps and the call up to the podium was awesome. The other police/fire teams had a lot more people , and no women. They couldn’t believe they got beat by the two of us. It was pretty funny. We did KFD proud! Our time and lap count would have also won the two person open division which was all men as well. So….overall a great training weekend with some good results and a good gauge for us for 24 hr Worlds, which is now less than two months away.

The duo experience in a 24 hr race was hard. High intensity and not much of a break because lap times were just over an hour. We did single laps to start with, and during the night we each did one double and one triple to allow more rest time. Then in the AM, we went back to singles. It worked pretty well as a race strategy and the experience was a really good 24 hr solo training effort without having to race the whole thing alone. Solo requires too much recovery time afterwards so this way, we’ll be able to get back on the training efforts sooner this week. My coach has told me we are now working on re-building my mitochondria quantity while simultaneously engaging in a racing season. Although this sounds like German to me, it makes a little sense, it’s just another part of a larger macro-cycle. With some rest today, some one leg spinning exercises, and a little max intensity short track racing on Wednesday, it’s looking to be a fun week. Not to mention it’s supposed to be 77 degrees all week! Talk to you soon.

Cheers

Reba

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