Bee's story: Stetina's Paydirt

BaseCamp athlete Bee Kickel shared her experience at the 2026 Stetina's Paydirt bike race in Nevada.

Struck Silver at Stetina's Paydirt in Carson City, Nevada on May 16, 2026.

Had a few rough patches prior to this event. Still fighting stomach issues from Mallorca and a week off to help out with National Science Bowl. Training wasn't optimal, and of course, these "issues" made me want to push hard to get ready. WAY WRONG CHOICE (Thanks for not firing me, Coach Kathy). It wasn't until the night before the event that I was able to eat and feel better.

On paper this event doesn't seem that difficult: 4 timed segments with neutral sections in between. The total time for those segments were your race time. I can honestly say for the first time that I'm a BADASS and actually mean it! This was the hardest/most technical day I've had on a bike! I was strong the entire day and felt physically fine, but the mental matches added up FAST! Thank goodness I was riding with my bestie Tracy Ellwein. There were times we just looked at each other and said "F$#K." But nobody died, and we both were on the podium. I was 9th woman overall and 1st in my AG. The award was an ounce silver ingot placed around my neck by Mr. Stetina himself (really nice guy btw).