Own Your Differences

Yari: Who is Ellie? Where are you from and what do you do?
Ellie: I’m an outdoors person, the mountains and woods are my happy place. I'm an amputee, 23 years old, and from Ireland. I started mountain biking 3 years ago. Aside from this, I work as a clinical trials assistant.

Yari: I guess everyone immediately asks themselves "what happened to you?". So let's get that out of the way.
Ellie: Yeah true! When I was almost 2 years old I lost my left arm in a lawnmower accident at our house. I also severed two of my fingers on my right hand and broke my femur. Thankfully one of my fingers was able to be reattached - I just don't have full mobility in it. I suppose you could say it was a baptism by fire, I didn't choose to be a badass it chose me!



Yari: How and when did you start cycling?
Ellie: I don't know what age I was, but I have early memories riding bikes around the house and following my brothers down the driveway. To set the scene, the driveway was on a gentle hill and had a right hand bend at the bottom. On one occasion, I was obviously sending it down the hill, and I remember the distinct moment I realized I wouldn't make the corner. I subsequently charged into the bushes full commitment. So yeah, I'd say I had a very normal childhood biking experience!

Yari: Did you have a special bike or setup since the start?
Ellie: No not really, the most important thing was to always have the back brake on the right hand side, that's the only adjustment I needed until I got a mountain bike. When I was a kid my dad actually attached the back of an office chair to one of my bikes to provide more support. It was a bit overkill but I thought it was great at the time! I felt very cool riding around on my custom office chair cruiser bike!



Yari: You must have a very special bike. Can you mention any specific details about your setup?
Ellie: On my mountain bike I have the dual lever hope brakes, which allows me to control the front and back braking independently using my right hand. I still predominantly use the back brake only because that's what I’m familiar with. The front brake is amazing on steep trails though and the stopping power feels like such a treat compared to wildly skidding everywhere! Other than that the bike is normal, I don't have any permanent attachment fixed on the handle bar for my prosthetic either. I know some amputees clip into a unit on the bar but mine just smushes onto the grip.


Yari: Your prosthetic arm goes through several phases since inception till you start using it and watching your video seems there are tons of details to pay attention to. Can you talk us through the process?
Ellie: Yeah at the start I didn't know what I needed from a prosthetic so I got a “standard” biking one which was rigid by design. This was problematic because it meant I couldn't compress into the bike properly. Therefore when the next prosthetic was being designed it was a priority to include some suspension. I now use a little 40 Newton pump stay that allows the arm compress. I’m still trying to figure out different angles of the prosthetic setup, so for example the first arm was in a T-rex position where the shoulder, elbow, and wrist were in line with each other and this felt horrible. It was so unnatural. My arm now is a little bit better because the wrist and elbow can rotate but it's still not quite right. This is something I’d like to improve for prosthetic version 3.0! It would also be great to have a small lateral range of motion in the wrist to facilitate tight cornering. I’ve always wanted to have a proper shock in the arm as well, it would look so sick!


Yari: Do you mostly ride alone with able-bodied people or para-athletes or a combination?
Ellie: It's a mix. I suppose sometimes I ride by myself for convenience but riding with others is more fun, especially when you have an awesome womens crew - shoutout to the ladies!!

In the early days I found it hard to ride with others though, I felt quite exposed as the only person of limb difference and I didn't have confidence in my ability back then either. The mental block for me was that I didn't want people to see me falling and crashing and then think less of me, or that I wasn't capable. In hindsight, I think this was a projection of my own fear. I wanted to share this in case it resonates with someone and brings them relief. Nowadays I can relax and enjoy people's company riding because my confidence has grown. It probably would have been amazing for me to ride with a para athlete at that time but there's not many around and I didn't know anyone back then.




Yari: How do you feel about cycling and how the whole community treats you?
Ellie: I've had a great experience! I love the people in this sport because there's no BS about them. If I'm out riding with a group and I want to hit something for the first time, people are just like yeah go for it, they don't "baby" me because I'm an amputee. I'm treated the same and I really appreciate that.




Yari: It seems that nothing can stop you and you are always putting yourself into challenging situations. Tell us about other sports you have tried.
Ellie: I definitely have that outdoor bug and want to do lots of adventurous sports, so that really drives me to sort out the adaptations that I need. The behind the scenes that people probably don't realize is how much time and work it takes to get to the point of executing that sport. At heart I really believe I can do as much as able bodied people. So for me the challenge is to be patient enough to go through the prosthetics process, doing the activity is the reward!

Other sports I've done… I played Tennis for many years when I was younger. Nowadays I love hiking and I've recently started climbing too. My next mission is kayaking. Paddle sports are the most difficult to figure out because it's such a dynamic movement, but I've a new attachment to try out so I'll let you know how that goes!





Yari: Which type of trails do you consider the toughest? Why?
Ellie: Really technical trails are difficult. Anything that has a lot of features like really rooty or rocky and tight turns are awkward too, especially turning left, because there's a limit to how far I can pull the prosthetic in towards my belly. Also steep trails that are bumpy, because if I'm pulling my front and back brake at the same time I only have my thumb gripping the bar, so It’s hard to keep control of the bike. There’s a fine balance to how much chaos I can deal with at once!

Yari: You have done several races already. Tell us about it, what drives you to start competing?
Ellie: I just started doing some of the races in the biking blitz because they're mainly fitness based - which I thought was my strength…until I realized it was not! Haha not to be dramatic but I'm pretty sure I was on death's door. Honestly, I just approached racing with curiosity. I wasn't sure if I would like it, so I tried it to find out and I ended up really enjoying it. I also like being at the races for the buzz and being involved with the community.



Yari: So far, which is the race from which you keep the best memories?
Ellie: The Biking Blitz race in Kinnity was great. It was during the first sunny days of Spring so it felt amazing to have shorts on and be warm. There were moments during the race that I just felt so strong and I was proud to push myself physically. I also had done no specific training for the races early in the season so with Kinnity being one of the last, I was just getting a bit fitter, which was a pleasant relief for my lungs and perhaps all my vital organs.

Yari: And the worst?
Ellie: The enduro at Cahir. I was disappointed because I had practiced the trails leading up to the race in the dry, and of course it wasn't just raining for the race it was torrential - thunder and lightning style rain. It was a bit hopeless haha, I crashed about 10 seconds into my first run on the most insignificant rock and went over the bars. I broke my pump stay (which is the prosthetic’s suspension) and had no spare. My brother brought me a replacement from home and I rode a few trails but didn't finish all the stages. I was still proud of myself for giving it a go.

Yari: What's your opinion on inclusivity and equity in the sports and how companies are involved with it?
Ellie: I think it can be hard for companies to predict the needs of every individual to be entirely inclusive so I don't judge critically. What I would say is, if an issue has been identified and communicated to that company in light of inclusivity, I would hope they make the necessary changes. Recently a guy I know who is paraplegic was riding at a trail center and the bridge was almost too narrow for him to cross in his adaptive MTB wheelchair. If he didnt fit through that would have been so annoying for him and it would've put him in quite the pickle. Therefore I think it should be the trail center's main priority to widen their bridges going forward. I've seen in Whistler they have designated trails for wheelchair users which is rad!


Yari: What about Paralympics or some other high level competition? Have you given it a thought?
Ellie: I would love if para MTB became a thing, that would be so cool!! It also never dawned on me until I started racing, that I've never ridden with a bunch of people where the playing field was level. I'd be so interested to know how I'd fare out competing against other para athletes in MTB. At the moment para cycling in the olympics consists of track and road racing, neither of which I've much experience at. Nevertheless, I’m intrigued by the opportunity and I’ve been getting more involved with the para cycling scene this year. It would be amazing to represent Ireland on the world stage but there's plenty of work to be done in the meantime, so for now I just need to continue moving forward step by step.

Yari: How do you feel skills from biking translate into everyday life?
Ellie: I think Mountain biking strengthens the muscle needed for managing adversity, both physical and mental. Knowing when to call it a day, or send it one last time takes a certain level of emotional maturity. Ultimately, you're responsible for yourself, how you choose to prepare and perform is up to you in all aspects of life. It's also a humbling sport because everyone crashes at some point so it keeps peoples egos in check!




Yari: Which rider impresses you the most nowdays or is your preferred one?
Ellie: I'm not sure If I've a favourite rider… I love watching the women's cross country and the men's downhill. Maybe Ben Cathro is my favourite because I've learnt nearly everything I know from his Pinkbike series How to bike and he’s also a champ!

Yari: Which is or are your preferred ringing spots?
Ellie: I had the time of my life riding the green trail in Super Morzine, that could be my favourite. At home I love the new trails in Ballinastoe, they're a healthy mix of flowy and natural - that's my preferred combo!


Yari: What music are you listening to right now?
Ellie: I listen to a lot of Beyoncé - always.

Yari: Preferred food?
Ellie: I love quiche and fresh mozzarella and I eat pesto straight from the jar - YUM

Yari: Camper van or Ferrari?
Ellie: Camper all day everyday, If you gave me a Ferrari I would probably butcher it by putting the back seats down to fit my bike in it.

Yari: Beer or wine?
Ellie: Ginger beer, does that count?...

Yari: Future plans and expectations?
Ellie: I'd like to get a new prosthetic that connects with the bike better and feels more natural in terms of suspension and angles. I'd also love to see Para MTB become an event in Olympics, that would be epic, and we should all get custom prosthetics that match our bikes!! Another one of my goals for next year is to beat my race times from this year, let's goo!!!




Thanks for your time Ellie!!

You can follow Ellie on the following social media: + Ellie Instagram

And if you want to know even more about her, check this video on her Youtube channel.