Hellooo friends! My name is KaJay and I’m an aspiring van-living, design-making mountain biker who lives out on the East Coast but travels all over. I really like to jump my bike and rip through powder-rich trees after spending time creating things. Making people laugh, dinosaurs, computer art, painting, drawing, clay or recycled creations are what bring me extra happiness when I’m not playing outside.

Doughnuts or Bagels? Doughnuts all-day

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

I'm currently in NH working as a Creative Director & Freelance Graphic Designer

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

NGL this list is a big one but I will just say there's a lot of men and women who have been immense inspirations on every possible level and have helped me explore the mountains in more ways that I would have probably ever attempted to do on my own - and for that I'm extremely thankful.

What’s one piece of gear you swear by? 

Woof this one's another tough call... other than everything, I'd probably say the party shirts and mtb Freyah pants.

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

For sure either tackling a new DIY project or trying to take my dog Kona on as many adventures/to as many cool places as possible. My next goal is to find a cool old Suzuki motorcycle or something with a sweet little sidecar so I can cart her around for summer time cruises - so if anyone has any leads def dm me ;)

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

Honestly, I owe a lot of where I'm at now in biking to my parents for gifting me a KHS hardtail then a year or two later the Nerds I met snowboarding who introduced me to bike parks. Those small gestures have marked one of the more defined turning points in my life as far as where I thought my life was heading and where it went. I think knowing how just inviting someone in can help break down that first barrier and introduce them to something they fall in love with is huge. 

Why Wild Rye?

Funny enough, I actually heard a lot about this brand when I JUST started biking on a podcast in 2019 and gained a lot of love for the brand. Hearing about the ins-and-outs really resonated with me at the time and as the company continued to grow. A few years later I landed as a stand-in rider to model some new clothes they were launching and it was a really cool full circle moment to then become a part of the WR pro team after that. That's a long way for me to say, outside of the incredible clothes that they make, I just enjoy everything the brand does/stands for on top of that.

Follow Kajay's Adventures: @kajayy_