The Story Behind Feathers Racing
Feathers Racing was founded with the support of my family — my husband Craig, our kids, and Craig’s parents, Liz and Feathers. From there, it grew from lived experience — emergency services, PTSD, motorbikes, losing direction, finding purpose again, and learning that moving forward doesn’t always mean going back to who you were before — into what it is today: a way to support the causes we care about, create projects that mean something to us, and start conversations that might help someone else.
Where It Started
For 20 years, I worked as a paramedic. It was more than a job — for a long time, it was a huge part of how I saw myself.
PTSD changed the direction of my life overnight. One day I was a paramedic; the next, I wasn’t. Suddenly I had to work out who I was outside of the emergency services and what came next.
Learning to ride dirt bikes became a way to escape the noise in my head. Riding became my mental-health safe space — a place where I didn’t have room to think about anything else — I had to focus on what was right in front of me.
At that stage, there was no Feathers Racing. It was simply something I had found that helped.
Feathers, Fundraising and Finke - the how
I really had no idea what Finke was. I’d heard Feathers talk about it and knew he was an original 'Finker' as well as having ridden in the Legends race, but I had no idea how deep Finke ran in his veins. I definitely had no idea what I was signing up for when I randomly mentioned “I think I’d like to ride Finke.”
Craig, ever supportive, agreed and suggested we raise money for PTSD as well.
We chose Sirens of Silence as the beneficiary, needed a name to fundraise under, and with Feathers’ connection to Finke, Feathers Racing was born.
Bigger Than Me
Finke was supposed to be one big challenge, one fundraiser, and that was it. But somewhere along the way, Feathers Racing became bigger than me.
We found other ways we could help, and other ideas that resonated with us. 'Just One Reason' became part of it, then books, creative projects, more fundraising and a lot more conversations about PTSD, purpose, identity and what happens when life doesn’t quite go to plan.
It stopped being just about what riding gave me, and became more about what Feathers Racing could do for other people.
There still isn’t a grand plan behind Feathers Racing — it just keeps changing and growing, much like healing from PTSD. There’s no set path. You just keep finding your way forward.
Feathers Racing Is More Than Dirt Bikes
Feathers Racing is about riding dirt bikes — that will always be part of who we are. But we want it to be more than that.
We want it to be something people think of when their mind is noisy, when they’re struggling to find direction, or when they just need a reminder that there might be another way forward.
We don’t think there is one path to healing. What works for me might not work for someone else. But we do believe that having a purpose gives life meaning. Meaning gives you direction. Direction gives you motivation. And sometimes that motivation is what helps move you towards better health.
That’s really where Be Your Own Legend comes from.
Know what matters to you. Focus on your core values. Be where your feet are. And find the path that works for you.
If Feathers Racing can inspire someone to do that — even just one person — then it is doing what we want it to do.