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Meet Miss Kittie, the oldest woman competing on the BMX racing circuit

Talk of Iowa, hosted by Charity Nebbe

A now retired school principal, Iowa's own Kittie Weston-Knauer picked up BMX racing at 40, when she was one of two women in the country racing in her age group.

On this edition of Talk of Iowa, Dani Gehr fills in for Charity Nebbe and discusses the book Tough Broad: From Boogie Boarding to Wing Walking―How Outdoor Adventure Improves Our Lives as We Age with author Caroline Paul. In the book, she advocates for more women seeking outdoor adventure and features Iowa BMX rider Kittie Weston-Knauer, a former school principal who continues to race regularly at the age of 75.

Then, Weston-Knauer joins the show to discuss her BMX experiences and how she tries to recruit more people — particularly women — to the sport.

Guests:

  • Caroline Paul, author, Tough Broad: From Boogie Boarding to Wing Walking―How Outdoor Adventure Improves Our Lives as We Age
  • Kittie Weston-Knauer, racer, BMX
Dani Gehr is a producer for River to River and Talk of Iowa. Dani came to Iowa from her hometown in the northwest suburbs of Chicago to attend Iowa State University, where she received a bachelor’s degree in journalism, international studies and French. Before coming to IPR, Dani covered local government in Story County for the Ames Tribune and Des Moines Register.