Azure and Eva have worked together for the better part of a decade at Overland Expo and bonded over a shared love of adventure motorcycles and salty beer. Though they’ve worked closely together in event production, training for the Rebelle and Rebelling has taken them from being coworkers to lifelong friends. Living on opposite sides of the country has made training for the Rebelle a puzzle in and of itself, involving multi-platform video calls, state-to-state plotting challenges, and strategically planned cross-country trips to drive together in a variety of different vehicles. We haven’t had a single defining moment that stands out, but growing together as a team and recognizing how similar our goals and aspirations are has been extremely rewarding and fun, in and of itself.
Farage Precision, Rider Justice, Mosko Moto, Step 22, Barspur
Bisbee, AZ
Emerson College, Film & Photography
2023
I require coffee to begin the day and am open to just about any adventure that follows... once said coffee has been savored. I've been fortunate to see a fair bit of the world, by air, land and sea, and am grateful to work in a field where I am able to encourage others to do so, as well.
I am the Director of Programming for Overland Expo. I attended Overland Expo for the first time while I was in the midst of my round-the-world motorcycle journey. I returned to the event several times and each time, I gained so much in the way of inspiration, camaraderie, information, and skills through both attending and speaking at Overland Expo during my travels. When I began working at Overland Expo after my full-time travels ceased, it became a wonderful and very meaningful way for me to give back to a community that had given me so much. I feel very fortunate to be in a position to ensure that the information overlanders need in order to stay safe, thrive and explore responsibly is available through our events. It is also incredibly rewarding for me to see the connections that attendees make at our events: whether it's meeting a fellow traveler who they wind up connecting with further on down the road or meeting a sponsor who sets them up with gear that will help them on their journey. During our pre-event instructor meetings, I always tell our instructor group (which ranges from 60-120 instructors depending on the event) that each one of them has an opportunity to change someone's life for the better this weekend: through a small act of kindness that enables someone to make it to an inspiring session they are looking for, or by helping someone to understand how to do X,Y, or Z that is holding them back from exploring the world in the way they desire. Overland Expo is a large, multi-faceted event, and I am grateful that I get to work in the best facet (though, I am admittedly quite biased): to build community, to create meaningful events within the larger event, and to highlight the stories of overlanders who are out in the world inspiring us all.
Sarasota, Florida
George Washington University, Anthropology & Psychology (double major)
"If you argue for your limitations, you own them." -Gene O’Neil (This was once my least favorite quote, as Gene is my dad.)
I once sang onstage with the Beach Boys. Badly. Very badly.
Our team was supposed to compete in 2024, but Hurricane Milton made landfall one mile from my house the day before the Rebelle Rally started. The Rebelle VERY graciously allowed us to defer our participation to this year. I am so grateful and so excited to compete this year, and as icing on the cake, we'll get to compete with several dear friends who signed up to participate this year.
Anyone who is born with or encounters a physical difference that some might view as disabling and actively chooses to make a positive difference in this world, projecting positivity and hope as they go. E.g. My friend Sylvia Cuberlo Longmire who has traveled through more than 40 countries by wheelchair and helps others book WC-friendly journeys; my cousin, Will, who was born with a brain malformation called schizencephaly and is the inspiration for the WillPower Foundation which raises funds for families with children of all ages who have exceptional needs; my Godfather, Dave, who has been severely hearing impaired since the age of 7 and volunteered for 20 years with the Hearing Loss Association to get folks outfitted with hearing aids; and our friend and sponsor Mark Farage, who was born with osteogenesis imperfecta, and is not only one of the kindest and most intelligent folks I know, but is also doing incredibly important in difficult work all around the world.
Podcast: The World’s First PodcastBook: Ishmael
Show: Jeopardy or How It’s Made (not sure if this is even still on air, haha – shows how much TV I watch)
Giving up my corporate career to move to Australia to learn how to make wine and then riding more than 100,000 miles on a motorcycle through Australia, North America, South America, and Europe… from wine region to wine region, naturally.
2023
Similar to 2023: Our goals are to get all of the blue and green checkpoints we can in the morning, not die in the desert in the afternoon, and be good teammates to one another and to other people. For this year and for myself personally, I would add that I'd like to go for more black CPs, be more decisive, be more confident in my abilities and second guess myself WAY less.
After spending so many years traveling, I now really enjoy tending to my ever-growing collection of plants. I started painting during the pandemic was a way to get away from screens and I still enjoy dabbling and exploring that creative avenue from time to time. I live in Florida (which is decidedly NOT the overlanding/off-road capital of the world), so I spend a lot of time exploring on my paddle board in order to get into nature and away from the hustle and bustle on the mainland.
I spent 6ish years traveling around the world on by motorcycle. While it's not motorsports in the sense of racing or rallying, I think many of the experience I had during that time have shaped how I approach the Rebelle:-Awareness of my surroundings (roads changing, topography changing, light shifting) is subconsciously always at the forefront of my mind, so I feel like I am more rooted to having a sense of direction and where I am in space and time, which is helpful in the Rebelle. -Camping in harsh conditions was just a fact of life for me for 6 years. While traveling around the world, I didn't have the budget to just pop into a hotel if it was going to be below-freezing, so I learned to be comfortable in uncomfortable conditions. I think this is mentally very helpful when it comes to the Rebelle because it's not something that I get "in my head" about. -The Rebelle is, at it's core, a competition. But moreover, it's a journey - and in every journey I've taken, the most important part of the journey is the people I've shared time, space and experiences with; the learnings; and how I've grown as a result. Yes, I would like to do well and score as many points as possible during the Rebelle, but at the end of the day, the valuation I assign to the day is based on how I showed up for myself, my teammate and the people and nature around me. The two most memorable moments of my 2023 Rebelle were an instance where my teammate and I helped another team with significantly less off-road experience get un-stuck and out of a dangerous situation in the dunes; and when another team (who was ranked behind us) chased after us to let us know we were making a mistake. How we show up as humans will always matter more to me than my rank, and so I think it helps me to appreciate the experience of Rebelling, knowing that it is highly unlikely that we're going to land in the top 10 by point ranking, but that it is highly likely that I/we will have opportunities to show up every day and be a positive presence for someone else that day.
-Giving up my corporate career to move to Australia to learn how to make wine and then riding more than 100,000 miles on a motorcycle through Australia, North America, South America, and Europe… from wine region to wine region, naturally.-Went around the world on a Semester at Sea cruise ship for my study abroad in college. -I've been fortunate to scuba dive in many special places around the world.
It was all beautiful and I feel like I liked and disliked all of it equally for various reasons (e.g. lust forests, but difficult to shoot bearings; beautiful dunes, BUT TOO MUCH SAND for our big bootied truck to conquer.).
The most challenging part of the Rebelle for me was learning to trust myself, to have confidence in my navigational abilities and to just GO FOR IT. Challenging that lack of confidence is going to be my biggest personal goal this time around.
The Rally really made me aware of how apt I have always been to doubt or second guess myself. And it highlighted how much time I waste and hence how many opportunities I miss while not being confident enough to make a decision and pursue something I am interested in. I can't wait to challenge myself to be more assertive, confident and trusting of my own abilities during the 2025 Rebelle.
I drove a family friend's Ferrari at 18yo. Everyone thought I would be ruined for other cars after that. As soon as said family friend drove away, I was like "Give me the Outback (Subaru) any day over that piece of junk." Clearly, I had my priorities straight at an early age, haha.
