Jamie Whitmore

My favorite metal is my Paralympic gold medal because it was a great comeback story and the silver medal was an amazing surprise.
 
Transcript: "My favorite metal has to be my paralympic gold medal hands down. It was, I mean, it's just a great comeback story. I was this world-class athlete sidelined by cancer. Didn't think I was gonna ever be able to do anything again. I got back on a bike and I spent the next four years after getting back on the bike and just gunning for that gold medal and to then actually achieve that goal happen was amazing. The, the silver medal was a close second. Because it was the first one. And I honestly did not think I was going to get a medal in the vent because the girls were so much stronger and so to make that gold medal round and then get the silver was amazing. So the gold medal first and then the silver medal,"

I became a woman of faith with the help of my grandmother and dad, who taught me to turn to the Bible and pray when I have questions or struggle. I have also been helped by Fellowship of Christian athletes, my church Springs in Placerville, California, and my Paralympic cycling team, which included Tom Davis, Freddy de los Santos, and other amazing men of God.
 
Transcript: "Hi Elijah, thank you for the great question. How did I become a woman of faith and who's helped me on that journey? Well, I've been saved since I was six years old and I've had great role models my grandmother and my dad Who constantly taught me to go to the Bible whenever I had a question or I was struggling They are faithful prayers Prayers and taught me to you know Always go to God when I had an issue to pray about it and especially through my cancer journey both of them were huge with Reminding me that all I needed was a mustard seed of faith and just have truly led by example in the triathlon world I got connected with Fellowship of Christian Athletes FCA endurance and We've I've attended many camps with them Throughout the years and through there is where I've made some great pastor friends like Lincoln Murdoch Daniel Perkins Scott Benefield And they've just remained in my life all this time. I'd say most recently. It's been my own church Cold Springs in Placerville, California where I still attend I've been there for 10 or 11 years and You know David Cook pastor David Cook has been just an amazing Guy who's always a pastor I should say but he he's just always been there and been a great leader and And helped me through some of the most difficult times But the truth is like God has always placed people in my life when I needed them My team was where it was lacking my Paralympic cycling team I think the faith wasn't super strong there amongst a bunch of athletes and all of a sudden I just kept praying and they started appearing and Tom Davis Freddie de los Santos I mean just amazing men of God who have helped start a Bible study so that every time we travel, you know, we have that focus where we know where it should be So it's just been an amazing journey, and I'm lucky to have had so many people be a part of it"

To overcome the physical and mental challenges of being a pair of cyclists, I have used a combination of trial and error, having a positive mindset, and focusing on the positives in my teammates to help me prepare for races.
 
Transcript: "Can I share any strategies that I've used to overcome physical and mental challenges of being a paracyclist? I think mentally I've always just kind of been one of those people that really pushes and strives to be the best that I can be. And I apply that to every aspect of life. So learning to ride again with a disability, it was hard, but it was constantly trying to find how to do it. And that was through the help of other athletes and certain coaches, kind of giving me tips and just trial and error. So I'd say getting over the physical, the more I rode, the more comfortable I became. Because it was really awkward to be able-bodied and then all of a sudden ride with a disability, learning to clip in and out. But I always just had this mindset that I would figure it out. And I think having that mindset of I will find a way has been key to getting over the physical. As for the mental, I mean, essentially kind of the same way as having that thought. But there really haven't been a ton of mental challenges because being on the bike is the one time that I absolutely feel like I don't have as much of a disability because it's easier to cycle than it is to walk for me. I'd say the biggest challenge has come in the team dynamics of being part of the Paralympic team. Because you've got all these different personalities and attitudes and people have different ways that they prepare for racing versus me. And so I've learned to kind of shut others out when I'm dealing with my own process going into a race. I've learned to find the positive in everyone and to always kind of hang on that kind of stuff. And sometimes it just means putting headphones on and music in and doing what I need to do to prepare to be the best that I can be. So I hope that answered your question."

Ned Over, a great American mountain biker, gave me the best advice in 2001 to focus on Xterra racing, which eventually led me to become a successful and renowned paralympic athlete.
 
Transcript: "The absolute best advice that I have ever received was in 2001 when I had showed up to do an XTERRA race for the very first time. I came in second place overall. I was just this amateur triathlete. I had just gotten my pro license in mountain biking and the great Ned Overin. So if you don't know who he is, look him up. Ned Overin. He's one of the greatest American mountain bikers to ever live. He is still out there tearing it up well into his 50s. But he came up to me and said, you need to focus on XTERRA. This is where you can make some money and do really well. And it was the best advice because I focused on XTERRA. I became one of the winningest athletes ever with 37 wins until Conrad finally beat me. But it took three years of me not racing. But it just kind of was the catapult to where I am today of being now a Paralympic athlete. So hands down, Ned Overin, thank you for encouraging me to pursue XTERRA racing."

Wear a base layer, arm and leg warmers, a cycling jacket or vest, gloves, shoe covers, and wool socks. An embrocation can also be used to keep your legs warm when riding in cold weather.
 
Transcript: "Okay, I hope I have enough time to answer this question because I can remember the first days of learning to cycle and freezing my butt off when I rode. So over the years, I've either gotten tougher or our NorCal winters have gotten better. But here's the deal. A good base layer right here is what I'm wearing and we used to call them undies shirts, but a base layer, your jersey. Arm warmers, leg warmers, shoe covers, and wool socks because all of these can be used for multiple things. And then a legit vest. If you live in a colder climate, I'd say invest in a good cycling jacket that maybe the arms can peel off so it can become a vest because when you're riding, if you can keep your chest area warm, your hands, I forgot about the gloves. You need a legit pair of gloves depending on how cold it gets where you are. But it's your hands and feet that get the coldest. Your chest also. Your legs are usually good, but your knees need to be warm if the temperature is ever below like 60. It's just better as an athlete to have that. Also, embro is a great thing to rub on certain body parts like your legs and whatnot when you're cycling in the cold. So I hope you got all of that. That's a recap, leg warmer, arm warmer, jacket or a vest, base layer, gloves, shoe cover, and woolly bully socks."

After the 2007 World Championships I started having an intense tingling feeling in my left hamstring. After being poked and prodded, I eventually found out that it was a sciatic nerve issue causing the pain. The pain kept getting worse and worse until I couldn't handle it anymore and decided to find someone who could tell me what was wrong.
 
Transcript: "I think this is one of the most common questions that I get about my diagnosis. And the question is, you know, how did I know something was wrong? Well, right after the XTERRA World Championships in 2007, I started having this weird tingling feeling in my left hamstring. And it just didn't go away. And every time I would go to have like an MRI or whatever, somehow they kept missing where the pain was coming from. Because that's the thing is when you have nerve pain, it can kind of radiate differently. So I was like poked and prodded. I mean, I had them thinking I had a ruptured disc, so I got x-rayed. Then they thought it was coming from my brain. And it was that trying to figure out, to pinpoint, where to even look. But the pain kept getting worse. And if anybody has ever had like sciatic nerve issues, it was like 20 times that amount of pain. And that's, so from the beginning, that's when I knew something was wrong was because the pain just progressively got worse and worse and worse. To the point that I just couldn't handle it anymore. And I just kept finding someone or looking for someone who would be able to tell me what was wrong."