Life has come full circle for Willow Rockwell, who was born Willow Koerber in a Tennessee hippie commune and grew up in Asheville. At age 13, she rode her first metric century, and she went on to ride as a pro mountain biker for 17 years. Her resume includes a large number of podiums, and she won the honor of being the Pan American Mountain Bike Champion at the 2010 games. Rockwell won third place at both the 2009 and 2010 World Mountain Bike Championships, and she took second overall at the 2010 World Cup Series.
Rockwell married fellow pro mountain biker Myles Rockwell and retired from pro racing in 2012 after the birth of her first daughter. She published “My Wheels Gave Me Wings,” an account of her journey toward peace and healing following a childhood of sexual abuse and isolation, one month before her retirement. Today, she focuses on her life as a wife and mother, and she offers certified sports psychology coaching as well as astrological consultations.