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Some books whisper gently about overcoming challenges. Others grab you by the shoulders and show you what the human spirit can truly accomplish when it refuses to accept limitations. Risa August’s “The Road Unpaved: Border to Border with a Brain Tumor and a Bike” belongs firmly in the second category, delivering a story so compelling that it earned her a featured spot on the “Milestone Moments in Business and Leadership” podcast and transformed her into a sought-after speaker across the country.
When a Diagnosis Becomes a Doorway
In 2018, after years of subtle changes in her body and a challenging Ironman race that hinted something deeper was wrong, Risa August received news that would have stopped most people in their tracks: a macro adenoma, a large tumor on her pituitary gland. After insisting on an MRI against her physician’s initial advice, she faced brain surgery, radiation treatment, and a confrontation with a rare disease that drastically altered her life’s trajectory.
But here’s where Risa’s story diverges from typical illness narratives. Instead of retreating into the safety of limitation, she asked herself a simple yet profound question: “What can I do?” That question became the catalyst for an 1,800 mile bicycle journey from Canada to Mexico, an adventure that seemed insurmountable as she struggled with the aftermath of her treatments.
The Power of Three Letters: CAN
At the heart of “The Road Unpaved” lies a transformative tool that Risa shares both in her book and through her coaching practice at Feather and Sage Coaching LLC. The acronym CAN stands for “Capable, Able, Now,” a mantra that shifts focus from limitations to immediate possibilities.
Available on Amazon >> The Road Unpaved: Border to Border with a Brain Tumor and a Bike
When facing obstacles or moments of doubt, Risa turns to three empowering questions: What am I Capable of doing in this moment? What am I Able to do right now? What can I do Now? This framework transforms overwhelming challenges into manageable steps, fostering agency and possibility even in the darkest moments. It’s not just motivational fluff; it’s a practical methodology that carried Risa through 1,800 miles of physical and emotional terrain.
From Ironman to Everest Base Camp
Risa’s achievements read like a bucket list written by someone who refuses to acknowledge the word impossible. Before her diagnosis, she was already completing Ironman races. After brain surgery and radiation, she didn’t scale back her ambitions. She expanded them. Trekking to Everest Base Camp. Cycling from Canada to Mexico. Each adventure defied her diagnosis and redefined the boundaries of what a body dealing with a rare disease could accomplish.
Her upcoming solo journey along the Camino de Santiago, a 500 mile pilgrimage across northern Spain, represents her continued commitment to challenging herself. True to her adaptive spirit, Risa plans to cycle the route, modifying the traditional walking pilgrimage to match her capabilities while maintaining the journey’s transformative essence.
More Than a Cycling Memoir
What sets “The Road Unpaved” apart from other adventure memoirs is its dual focus. Yes, readers get the visceral experience of following Risa down the Pacific Coast, facing physical challenges while processing the emotional weight of her diagnosis. But they also receive a roadmap for their own transformations. The book doesn’t just tell you what Risa overcame; it shows you how to navigate your own limiting beliefs.
Risa’s transition from focusing on limitations to exploring potential provides a blueprint for anyone facing their own seemingly insurmountable obstacles. She demonstrates that obstacles aren’t roadblocks; they’re opportunities viewed from a different angle. This mindset shift, woven throughout her narrative, transforms a cycling story into a guide for personal empowerment.
Embracing the Unexpected
One of the most refreshing aspects of Risa’s philosophy is her commitment to saying “yes” to new experiences. Dance classes. Axe throwing. Adventures that have nothing to do with athletics or her diagnosis. This openness to novelty reflects a deeper truth: transformation happens when we step outside our comfort zones and embrace uncertainty.
For someone whose body had betrayed her with an unexpected diagnosis, choosing to lean into more uncertainty rather than retreat into safety demonstrates remarkable courage. It’s a lesson woven throughout “The Road Unpaved” that resonates far beyond the cycling community.
A Voice for Patient Advocacy
Beyond her role as author and speaker, Risa serves as a patient advocate and guest health practitioner, channeling her experience into helping others navigate medical systems and personal challenges. This advocacy work adds depth to her story, showing how personal transformation can ripple outward to benefit entire communities.
Her insistence on getting that initial MRI against medical advice likely saved her life. Now, through her writing and coaching, she empowers others to advocate for themselves, to trust their instincts, and to demand the care they deserve.
Multiple Formats for Every Reader
“The Road Unpaved” recognizes that readers consume content differently. Available in paperback, eBook, and audiobook formats, the story meets audiences where they are. The audiobook format particularly suits the narrative’s adventurous spirit, allowing listeners to accompany Risa on training rides or their own journeys while absorbing her insights.
Available on Amazon >> The Road Unpaved: Border to Border with a Brain Tumor and a Bike
A Message That Resonates
Risa’s story has found audiences on stages across the country, featured on podcasts like “Milestone Moments in Business and Leadership,” and reached readers seeking inspiration for their own transformations. Her message transcends the specifics of brain tumors or cycling adventures. At its core, “The Road Unpaved” addresses the universal human experience of facing unexpected challenges and choosing how to respond.
The book’s power lies in its refusal to sugarcoat difficulty while maintaining an infectious optimism about human potential. Risa doesn’t pretend the journey was easy. She shares the struggles with brutal honesty. But she also demonstrates that difficulty doesn’t mean impossible.
Beyond the Book: Living Unleashed
Through Feather and Sage Coaching LLC and her online presence at risaaugust.com, Risa extends the book’s lessons into ongoing support for others navigating their own challenging moments. She guides clients through discovering opportunities in adversity and dismantling the limiting beliefs that keep them stuck.
This coaching work represents the natural evolution of her journey. Having discovered her own path from limitation to liberation, she now illuminates that path for others, helping them live what she calls their “biggest and best life.”
For Readers Ready to Transform
“The Road Unpaved” speaks to anyone who has ever felt limited by circumstances, diagnosis, age, or self-doubt. It’s for the person recovering from illness wondering if they’ll ever feel capable again. It’s for the athlete facing unexpected setbacks. It’s for anyone standing at a crossroads asking whether to play it safe or push toward something greater.
Risa August’s story offers no guarantees about outcomes, but it provides something more valuable: a proven framework for approaching life’s challenges with agency, creativity, and resilience. Her journey from diagnosis to cycling 1,800 miles with a brain tumor demonstrates that our greatest challenges can indeed lead to our most profound achievements.
Ready for Your Own Journey?
“The Road Unpaved: Border to Border with a Brain Tumor and a Bike” is more than a memoir. It’s an invitation to examine your own limiting beliefs, to ask “What can I do?” and to discover that the answer might surprise you. Available now in multiple formats, this book belongs on the shelf of anyone ready to stop letting circumstances define their capabilities.
Visit risaaugust.com to learn more about Risa’s ongoing adventures, explore her coaching services, and get your copy of a book that just might change how you view your own challenges. Because sometimes, the road unpaved leads exactly where you need to go.
