His legs burn from the constant pedaling. The wind stings his eyes. Beads of sweat roll down his face, yet he keeps pushing forward. He looks over his shoulder to see if any of his competitors are gaining ground as he approaches the next change in terrain. The obstacles senior Luke McCollum faces while racing mountain bikes has impacted his life in a positive way.

For thirty days she was isolated from the outside world, only able to see long dirt roads and forgotten trails through the Continental Divide. The race stretched on for 2,768.4 miles as she faced dehydration,...