BE GOOD FELLOWSHIPS

Amahl Abdul-Khaliq

Cycling has shaped my life in ways that go far beyond riding a bike. As a child, learning to ride gave me one of my first experiences of autonomy and freedom. Over time, cycling also taught me discipline; training and pushing through difficult workouts require patience, consistency, and resilience. Just as importantly, cycling helped my tribe, my community. Some of the most meaningful friendships and connections in my life have come from the shared experience of riding bikes. To me, "Be Good" means being helpful within that community without expecting a quid pro quo. It means supporting others, sharing knowledge, and contributing to a culture where people feel welcomed and encouraged, no elitism!

Anna Douangphachanh

Being in nature and moving my body has been deeply healing for me. I credit outdoor activities, including cycling, with helping me process and soften the impacts of intergenerational war trauma. As a child and sibling of Lao refugees, I carry both resilience and inherited pain. Cycling gives me space to feel strong in my body, and to transform that weight into forward motion. There’s something powerful about physically moving through landscapes that reminds me I’m not stuck but I’m alive and evolving. I believe we cannot remain confined to the identities of our legacies. While we honor where we come from, we also have the power to imagine and live beyond what we inherit. For me, that means choosing love, fun, joy, and vitality. Cycling is one of the ways I practice that choice.

Liz Saenz

Coming back to riding after everything I've been through is very intimidating even with connections and familiarity to the sport of cycling. I've promised myself I would keep joy and fun first going forward. RPI represents exactly that. It's built on the intention where all are coming together as a community riding for the joy found in bikes first, not just the competition. Even when I couldn't ride, cycling never left my life. I coached skills clinics, helped run women's clinics in the Rocky Mountains, and introduced friends to the sport because the bike is one of the few places where everyone belongs. I never gave up on the hope of riding side by side with friends again. Now that I have that back, I want to be a bridge for other athletes and people facing similar journeys. To those who need to see that no matter the obstacles, we can adapt, believe in ourselves, and accomplish even the boldest dreams we once thought were out of reach.

Mikyl McKinney

Cycling has probably been the largest catalyst for healing and empowerment for me, full stop. It's brought me a really rad community that not only accepts me for who I am (queer and she/they), but is constantly building me up. I currently volunteer with The Wednesday Ride, Colorado Springs' only social ride for all bodies and all bikes. My friends there (and from my RAR Front Range chapter) were my first when I moved to the Springs. When I think of "be good" I honestly think of all of them. Because of them, I've experienced very little elitism or discrimination in my cycling experience. I'm not just told I'm capable, I'm shown by example.

Shaun Fyfe

Cycling became a turning point in my life after two medical retirements from federal service. Mountain biking became that path forward. Time on the bike, especially in the woods, gave me a way to manage pain, rebuild mental resilience, and reconnect with a sense of purpose. It wasn’t just physical, it was transformational. Cycling gave me back a version of myself I thought I had lost. To me, “be good” means showing up with intention and using what you’ve been given to serve others. It means turning adversity into opportunity and creating spaces where people feel supported, capable, and connected. I strive to live that out daily—as a leader, as a veteran, and as a Specialized Bikes Ambassador by helping others find strength and healing through cycling.

Veronica Whitworth

I applies for the Be Good Fellowship because Rebecca’s Private Idaho represents exactly what I teach in the Major Taylor Houston Cycling Club & emulate in my personal life: that growth happens at the edge of your comfort zone. Whether I’m navigating high-stakes sales at my corporate job or pushing through the humidity of a Texas ride or race, I’ve learned that "Be Good" isn't just a signoff—it’s a call to action. I don't just want to ride Idaho for the miles. I want to represent the BIPOC community and the women who are redefining what an "athlete" looks like at 45 and beyond. I want to take the lessons of healing, empowerment, and grit from the RPI summits and bring them back to my club to show every rider that these spaces belong to us.