Risa August is an Ironman Triathlete and an extraordinary cyclist known and highly respected for her love of pushing her physical limits.
Risa is no stranger to intense challenges, having completed 500-mile bike tours and conquered mountains in the US and Nepal.
Then, Risa’s life comes to a crashing halt. Her body is collapsing, and for good reason. She is diagnosed with a rare pituitary disease, a brain tumour that has been left unchecked for a decade.
After undergoing life-threatening brain surgery and trying to live inside a body that can barely function, Risa chooses a different path. She reaches into her bucket list, and against all her doctors' advice; she trains and embarks on a 41-day, 3,000 km bike tour from Canada to Mexico along the Pacific Coast Highway.4
While the old Risa could have effortlessly conquered such a ride, the new Risa found herself entangled in a body that feels unfamiliar and accompanied by an unwelcome companion, her brain tumour she named Bubba.
Pedalling through rain, physical pain, and the haunting echoes of her memories, Risa confronts a challenge unlike any other.
Risa questions whether the woman she once was and knew would ever resurface or this the person she was destined to become.
An extraordinary story of recovery, resilience, renovation and reinvention to begin your New Year.
Wayne Bossert, Deputy Chairman of Global High Net Worth Clients, RBC, and Director of Brain Canada, joins the show to talk about how Canadian researchers are leading the way.
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