With Spirit
Few adventure racers have let us into their world like Chelsey Magness of Bend Racing. Also known as the Endurance Mama, Chelsey is a world champion endurance mountain bike racer, world class adventure racer, and media personality who was featured in the 2022 short documentary film Mandatory Gear about the historical gender stereotypes in Adventure Racing.
Recently, Chelsey experienced a somber anniversary— that of the death of one of her twin sons during pregnancy. She had this to say in a Facebook post as a way of explanation:
7 years.
This was the day we learned Spirit B left. Hence we call this Spirit B day … "B" went somewhere else, he chose a different path, and a different way of being - but he assured us he was still going to be with us always. It was just not going to be how we had imagined it. That was a hard lesson to endure, but one that made us stronger and changed us forever.
With Spirit is a 2020 documentary by Scott Almendinger McGrath about enduring the grief of loss and the celebration of acceptance that Chelsey still lives with 7 years later:
I used to think that at some point there would be a finish line and once I crossed it, all of it would go away. But over time I learned that grief and this deep deep ache would never be linear and it would never be completely over. My only way through was to accept it, to give it space and to love it.
The film is part Adventure Race narrative, part exploration of the inner spirit that lives inside many racers but has no greater champion than Chelsey Magness.
