Paige Penrose (‘22 CO)
Work
Exercise physiology student seeking to improve inclusivity in the outdoors. More ‘feet’ are needed on the trails — trail running is missing adaptive athletes.
Priority areas for mentorship
Connection with people with lived experience of disability
Writing
Marketing
I’m a human who really likes to run – it’s about the only time when my brain and body feel like they’re in sync. I came last in every cross country in my early school years and was quite convinced I hated it – I’ve only found out I was wrong in the last couple of years but I’ve spent my whole life on the trails. I call Australia home but I am currently studying exercise physiology in Reno, NV. I really like Earth and the seemingly insurmountable task of protecting our planet becomes less daunting with friends. I’ve run through ancient Gondwanan rainforest in the hope of saving them, I’ve raised funds for various initiatives, I try to contribute to organisations who make change, and I try to say thanks for every kilometre I traverse across this planet, but alone, I cannot do enough. Footprints has given me a family to be inspired by, to fuel the stoke and to stand alongside as we do what we can to be better humans to this planet.
You can’t care about something until you know about it. Ultimately, this project seeks to expand the outdoor state - the number of people who care for and will take a stand for the planet - by making it more accessible. Wild places have had a huge impact on my well-being in different ways throughout my life and it doesn’t sit well with me that trails aren’t a reality for everyone when it is entirely possible for them to be. At this stage my plan is to create a package for event coordinators and race directors to plug and play at their events so that they’re accessible to a lot more people. This includes accurate and meaningful media representation (no inspiration porn), thinking about the little things like if a wheelchair can fit between tables at the expo, providing commonly needed spare parts at aid stations, adjusting cut off times and accommodations for the fact that not every human moves the same way but all types of movements are valid… But I have never experienced disability for an extended period of time nor have any of my family members or close friends so I need a lot of help with this. I want to help facilitate this and get the wheels moving but the change that needs to occur and how we should go about should have the voice of lived experience behind it.
