Where do you live and what’s your day job?

I live in Flagstaff, AZ and work as an ICU nurse. My 'fun' job is social media/marketing for Juliana Bicycles :)

What are 3 words your best friends would use to describe you?

Loyal, determined, blunt (pragmatic?)

What are 3 passions you have outside of work? 

Anything outside! Skiing, biking, running, running rivers, gardening!

Doughnuts or bagels? Chocolate donuts with sprinkles, always.

Home mountain range? The Kachina Peaks (San Francisco Peaks)

What's something not many people know or would expect about you?

I am very type A. I cannot handle clutter/messiness.

Biggest “send it” moment—on the mountain or in life?

I feel like if you don't have at least a few moments in life that make your butt pucker and send shivers down your spine before you drop in you're not living. There is nothing that makes you feel more alive than dropping into a steep line on your skis, hitting a drop or navigating a really techy section of trail on your bike at full speed, rowing a boat into a big rapid, etc. And when you come out the other side upside right - that is the best feeling ever.

Who’s someone that has inspired you to get after it in the mountains?

Oh man, it's hard to name just one - there are so many hard-charging, incredible people out there getting after it (guys & gals) but I vividly remember being like 9 or 10 years old and watching Ingrid Backstrom in a Warren Miller movie (Impact maybe?) and thinking to myself, "I want to be that cool someday." Growing up as ski racer, Lindsey Vonn and Julia Mancuso were huge inspirations (who am I kidding, they still are). Now I look at gals like Christina Lustenberger or Mikaela Shiffrin (who I grew up ski racing with) and am just floored at the amazing stuff they are accomplishing in the mountains.

What’s one piece of gear you swear by?

The Freyah Bike Pant - honestly you can do everything in these pants! I wear them on the river, backpacking, doing yard work, riding, and you can dress them up with a cute pair of shoes or Blundstones and be totally presentable. And they make everyone's butt look amazing.

What do you do when you're not skiing/riding/biking?

I love boating - rowing boats, kayaking, water skiing, etc. I also love running in the mountains and try to spend as much time as I can in the Grand Canyon running, hiking, backpacking... I also love the gym and working out. Lately I've been a bit consumed with pursuing my Master's Degree in Nursing Education.

How do you help build community in the outdoors?

I have always felt really lucky that when I started mountain biking and racing I was surrounded by people who supported me and believed in me - some of those people were the original ladies of Juliana Bicycles. When I started racing professionally and became a sponsored athlete for Juliana, I felt like it was the least I could do to try to spread the same stoke I was shown. I have been riding for Juliana since 2015 and working for Juliana as the social media manager, helping with marketing, etc. since 2017, and I feel like it's been such a cool way to stay really connected with women in the mountain bike world and give them a voice and platform.

How do you encourage more women to step into outdoor spaces?

I try to remind women that they don't have to look a certain way, have all the fanciest gear, or be good at something to take up space in the outdoors. People rarely start something new and are immediately good at it - it takes time and practice and patience to progress. Who cares if you're the slowest one on the climbs?! Stop apologizing and keep pedaling! You'll get faster, I swear.

Why Wild Rye?

The first time I met the gals from Wild Rye (at our Juliana collab launch with evo in SLC) I knew it was something I wanted to be a part of. Women-owned, women-led, women-focused, environmentally conscious, and sustainable. The commitment at Wild Rye is to women in the outdoors: to make amazing and functional apparel you look and feel good in, but also to do the same thing as we are trying to do at Juliana - elevate, encourage and empower women to step into their power. So when Cassie and Kendall asked me if I wanted to be a WR athlete later that same weekend, I wrote an email to my then apparel sponsor, Rapha, and said, sorry not sorry, I'm jumping ship. I've been with WR since

Follow along on Alex's adventures - @alexjpavon