Maia's story: Marji Gesick

BaseCamp coach and athlete Maia Paris shared her experience at the 2025 Marji Gesick mountain bike race in Michigan.

Some days you just know.

In September I drove to the U.P. to race the Marji Gesick.

Since then, I’ve struggled to put into words the experience.

It’s called the hardest one-day mountain bike race in the U.S.

In the weeks leading up, the hype got to me.

I was on the fence, listing excuses—training was patchy, skills rusty.

I knew I’d be walking a lot.

Deciding to start meant deciding to finish.

People show up to Marji with little training and hope to finish inside 25 hours.

So you don’t just quit.

And how lucky am I to even believe I could finish in 14?

I can count on one hand the days when, with every ounce of me, I know success is inevitable.

Two days out, I knew this was going to be one of those days.

Without doubt. Without question.

It wasn’t perfect.

My bike computer broke.

A migraine hit—second one this summer during a race.

If you know that pain, you know.

It’s pure agony.

My body was strong, but my brain and eyes were glitching.

I cried, swore, and kept riding.

I knew my day wasn’t going to end like this.

I gave it time.

Things turned around.

The last six hours, I didn’t just feel better — I felt unstoppable.

In the end, I exceeded my prediction.

Finishing in 13:00.

Some days, self-belief is unflappable.

I wish I could bottle and share it — that rare, unstoppable feeling.

BaseCamp ➡️ the best coaching team around

Shed Built LLC 👊🙌 the best bike mechanic always making sure my bike runs like a dream

Liv Cycling - the shred-ready Pique Advanced Pro

Tyler Cather - All star support crew and bestie 😘

Photo credits - Rob Meendering, Ryan Stevens