Detours: Bikepacking, Ultra-Cycling and Adventures by Bike

I hope you're all having a wonderful holiday season! This week we're throwing it back to an episode recorded right around this time last year with the incredible Alexandera Houchin. It's one I've found myself listening to as I ramp up training for HT550 in May and every time I listen there is a new pearl of wisdom. I hope you enjoy and see you in 2026! *** When I think of women in bikepacking, Alexandera Houchin is one of the first people that comes to mind. She’s raced the Tour Divide countless time and been a steadfast figure in encouraging more women to take on these big challenges. As an Indigenous woman and member of the Fond du Lac tribe, becoming a sponsored athlete, heck an athlete at all, was not necessarily a pathway she saw for herself growing up.She joins me on the podcast to share about her journey to the bike, and how she’s made a career of this niche sport. We discuss what keeps her returning to these races year after year, her experiences navigating body image as someone with a bigger body, and how she’s redefining what success looks like in this next chapter of her career. Alexandera shares incredible insights on community, representation, and how showing up with her full heart have shaped her path in bikepacking.Trigger Warning: We discuss topics related to body image and disordered eating between the 19:00 and 25:00 marks. If these are sensitive topics for you please feel free to skip this portion of the episode.To keep up with Alexandera’s adventures follow her on Instagram @alexanderahouchin and read her writing on her SubstackAs always, if you loved this episode, please leave us a review, follow wherever you listen and share it with a friend. Even better you can make a one time pledge of your support and any funds raised go back into creating this show. Follow Mel on Instagram: @melwwebbFollow Detours on Instagram: @detourscyclingFollow Albion on Instagram: @albion.cyclingUse code DETOURS15 to get 15% off your next order from AlbionIf you love this show please consider pledging your support to sustain producing this show: https://buymeacoffee.com/detourspodcast

This episode is a little different. For the final episode of the year, the roles are reversed as Detours alum and journalist Hélène Fromenty steps into the host seat, turning the mic back on Mel Webb, creator and host of the Detours podcast.Together, we reflect on a wild 2025 and what the year really looked like behind the scenes of Detours — from building and sustaining an independent cycling podcast, to working on the ground with the Mountain Races, to navigating a complicated relationship with cycling during a season when riding took a back seat.We talk about imposter feelings, representation in bikepacking and ultra-distance race coverage, creative sustainability, and the ongoing balance between personal goals and creating work that serves a wider community. Follow Mel on Instagram: @melwwebbFollow Detours on Instagram: @detourscyclingFollow Albion on Instagram: @albion.cyclingUse code DETOURS15 to get 15% off your next order from AlbionIf you love this show please consider pledging your support to sustain producing this show: https://buymeacoffee.com/detourspodcast

The Arizona Trail Race is a massive undertaking for any rider — rocky singletrack, long stretches of hike-a-bike, and a full bike portage through the Grand Canyon. It’s an especially bold choice for your first bikepacking race.This week, Detours listener Kara Woolgar joins the show after finishing the AZT DFL, a result she’s genuinely proud of (and we are too!!). Kara describes herself as fun sized, which means she’s had to get creative with packing on an extra-small frame. She also has a long list of food allergies, making resupply on the trail uniquely challenging.In our conversation, Kara shares how she got into bikepacking, how she built confidence through local rides and overnighters, and what it was like to spend 17 days working her way up the state of Arizona. From near race-ending blisters to a heartwarming note left for her in a hiking ledger, Kara shares all about her ride at the back of the pack. Check out Kara's Instagram for write-ups on her experience: @karawoolgar Follow Mel on Instagram: @melwwebbFollow Detours on Instagram: @detourscyclingFollow Albion on Instagram: @albion.cyclingUse code DETOURS15 to get 15% off your next order from AlbionIf you love this show please consider pledging your support to sustain producing this show: https://buymeacoffee.com/detourspodcast

The Triple Crown of bikepacking is a massive undertaking: three iconic routes, thousands of kilometres, and a season that demands a hell of a lot from you. In this episode of Detours, I sit down with my husband, Jake, to look back on his year racing across the United States, and everything that he's learned from taking on the Triple Crown Challenge. We talk about the early momentum he built on the Divide, the altitude sickness that nearly stopped him on the Colorado Trail, the slow, steady grind of the Arizona Trail, and so much more. We also get into what it's like to watch a loved one take on these races from the sidelines. Follow Jake on Instagram: @_jakecullen_ Follow Mel on Instagram: @melwwebbFollow Detours on Instagram: @detourscyclingFollow Albion on Instagram: @albion.cyclingUse code DETOURS15 to get 15% off your next order from AlbionIf you love this show please consider pledging your support to sustain producing this show: https://buymeacoffee.com/detourspodcast

The beauty of riding is that it can hold so many versions of us at once — the traveller, the dreamer, the person who loves a challenge, and the person who wants to prioritize fun.Hélène Fromenty is a journalist and bikepacker has been bike touring for years, but Silk Road was her first ever mountain bike ultra — raced as a pair with her partner Stefan — and the experience opened up an entirely new corner of the sport for her. She doesn’t see herself as a racer, and approaches riding through a lens of curiosity, connection, and joy. But after Silk Road, she wanted to understand what she could do on her own. So she lined up solo at Trans Pyrenees Gravel Edition… and won the women’s race.In this conversation, Hélène shares:how she learned to mountain bike just months before lining up at Silk Road Mountain Racenavigating the tension between protecting the joy of riding and wanting to see her own potentialwhat her life as a journalist actually looks like day-to-day (and how she squeezes training into it)imposter feelings after SRMR and how Trans Pyrenees helped her find her footingthe mechanical disaster that almost derailed her race — and the calm she surprised herself withand how bikes are so much more than a sportFollow Hélène on Instagram: @hfrome Follow Mel on Instagram: @melwwebbFollow Detours on Instagram: @detourscyclingFollow Albion on Instagram: @albion.cyclingUse code DETOURS15 to get 15% off your next order from AlbionIf you love this show please consider pledging your support to sustain producing this show: https://buymeacoffee.com/detourspodcast