Summer Challenge – Past Ambassadors

Walking

Hello! My name is Stacie. I am a second generation native to Tucson and have always loved the outdoors. In 2013, over the course of 9 months, I walked 3,575 miles across America for Beads of Courage from Ocean Shores, WA to Tybee Island, GA.

Multi-Sport Athlete

Chelsey Magness is a professional adventure racer, a mountain bike world champion, a world renowned acrobatics teacher and a mother. Most days you can find her either on her mat, on her bike or chasing her two young sons around in the woods. Her big indulgences are lattes, dark chocolate and staying up way too late training underneath the stars.

Hiking Enthusiast

Hi there, my name is Amy and I really started hiking in 2017 when I signed up to do the 52-Hike Challenge. Since then, I’ve explored many different areas and am currently section hiking/biking the Arizona Trail. Being in nature while challenging yourself physically is very therapeutic.

Founder of Pujats method an improved way of physical therapy for back and neck pain. Sharing secrets of longevity from yogic practices to scientific evidence studies.

“I am 25 years old in my third season for the PLL and am a proud Carry-a-Bead Ambassador. I will be carrying Beads of Courage for our game in Denver on 8/12.”

A two-time NCAA Division II national champion and player of the year at Merrimack, Charlie Bertrand is the first D-II product to make the 23-man U.S. Lacrosse Team roster since 1990. Bertrand’s rapid rise in the sport started with a graduate year at Virginia, where he added an NCAA Division I title to his collection in 2021, and has continued in the professional ranks. “I like what he’s about,” Tierney said of the 6-foot-3, 220-pound lefty, “dodging downhill, drawing slides and making good decisions with the ball.” – www.usalaxmagazine.com

Tyler is a mountain ultrarunner originally from the flats of Wisconsin, now living in Mesa, Arizona. He recently finished his spring racing season, capping it off with a top 50 finish in the Crown King Scramble 50K (31 miles) with 7000ft of ascent. Tyler has been a member of Team Ulman for the Ulman Cancer Foundation where he completed a team run across America, from San Francisco to Boston, in 49 days to support young adults facing cancer. Outside of ultrarunning, Tyler is a Senior Research Analyst in Clinical Research Administration avidly working to get patients access to life-changing research regimens through oncology and rare disease trials.

Canoeing/Kayaking/Paddling

At age 71, Karts likes to say that he is retired from working, but not from living. Karts has completed many record-setting quests, including a solo double-traverse of Death Valley, record-setting Amazon River expedition, and record-setting hike of the 800-mile Arizona Trail. He is the oldest person to complete the Bear Grylls’ extreme survival course and was a crew member on the Amazon original series Eco-Challenge Fiji. This summer, as a Team Beads of Courage Ambassador, Karts will strive to complete a 60-day expedition to canoe 2,020 miles of the Yukon River. Follow Beads of Courage on social media for updates from Karts throughout the summer. For more information on the Yukon River quest, visit yukon2020.com

Swimming

Dean has been a licensed clinical therapist and coach for over 30 years. Astonishingly, in that time he has conducted over fifty thousand face-to-face, one-hour sessions. Besides being an author and highly sought-after speaker, Dean is also a two-time cancer survivor, widower and world record-setting extreme distance swimmer. He is the first person to swim the entire 187-mile length of Oregon’s longest river, the Willamette River (which he did as an active cancer patient) in 2014, and Ireland’s longest river, the River Shannon (180 miles) in 2017, which was the first time he carried Beads of Courage delightedly doing so for the Childhood Cancer Foundation of Ireland.  For more information, visit https://swimminginmiracles.com.

Kaitlin is an avid triathlete, runner and former collegiate soccer player. She has completed 5 full iron-distance triathlons and multiple half-iron distance triathlons, as well as many marathons and half marathons. She is a former collegiate soccer player and was recently inducted into the Athletics Hall of Honor at her alma mater. She loves being active, spending time with her fiancé and two dogs, and cheering on the US Women’s Soccer Team.

Timmy is a seasoned triathlete originally from the mountains of northeastern Pennsylvania, now living in Tampa, Florida. He recently finished his PhD at Clemson University and is getting back into the full swing of swimming, biking, and running! Timmy has been a member of Team USA and competed in the 2015 and 2016 ITU World Championships, as well as being a qualifier for the 2021 Ironman 70.3 World Championships. Timmy has three pets with his fiancé Shaina: Chloe (cat), Milo (cat), and Cooper (new puppy!).

Brooke is a cyclist and former NCAA triathlete and cross-country runner. As a triathlete, she was named an All-American Triathlete five years in a row. She placed first at 2012 Age Group National Championships, and subsequently placed second in the 2013 ITU Age Group World Championships. Her enthusiasm for cycling grew after moving to Tucson, Arizona in 2022, and she placed first in the Arizona Road State Championships. She is looking forward to doing a metric century Gravel ride in Flagstaff, Arizona as part of the summer challenge!

Mixed Martial Artist & Wilderness Hiker

Michael Martinez is a current PhD Environmental Chemistry student from the University of Alaska Fairbanks and a former martial arts champion. Michael took first at the ISKA U.S Open, Pan-American Internationals, Compete Nationals and has trained with UFC mixed martial arts fighters. He has contributed to oncology research, COVID-19, kidney, applied biotechnology, genetic engineering, and lanthanide chemistry research. Michael is Yup’ik and Otomi from Anchorage, Alaska USA. He enjoys hiking with his giant schnauzer named Cima and helping find solutions for green technologies.