In this episode you'll hear my first inklings that a return home to the US might be imminent, and that some initial plans for the season might be coming into view. **************** This podcast is comprised of entries from the journal I've been keeping since the day we got on the road in the middle of a global pandemic to go racing. Shamelessly authentic and always with a sense of humor, I hope this story gives you a look behind the sheen of social media-- the shiny posts about racing, travel, a...
Jul 04, 2025•9 min
From rolling over his car in the final race to rocking autographs on people's shoes on the strip, our experience in Las Vegas for Ellis's first ever Nitrocross race did NOT disappoint. **************** This podcast is comprised of entries from the journal I've been keeping since the day we got on the road in the middle of a global pandemic to go racing. Shamelessly authentic and always with a sense of humor, I hope this story gives you a look behind the sheen of social media-- the shiny posts ab...
Jul 03, 2025•11 min
Despite somehow taking a 5 week break between entries from the start of the year until this entry, I'm talking about Ellis's first ever rallycross test day, broken spirits in a Barcelona hotel room and getting real about budgets as the Renegade moves up in the world. **************** This podcast is comprised of entries from the journal I've been keeping since the day we got on the road in the middle of a global pandemic to go racing. Shamelessly authentic and always with a sense of humor, I hop...
Jul 02, 2025•8 min
It's been a minute, but I'm back for more! This episode introduces the start of the 2024 season-- beginnings and ends, plans and procrastinations. **************** This podcast is comprised of entries from the journal I've been keeping since the day we got on the road in the middle of a global pandemic to go racing. Shamelessly authentic and always with a sense of humor, I hope this story gives you a look behind the sheen of social media-- the shiny posts about racing, travel, and of course, eat...
Jul 01, 2025•7 min
And there it is-- another beginning of an end of a beginning. A new year's entry that straddles the end of our 2023 race season and boots us into 2024 if we're ready or not. See you soon for Season Five! ******* TheWholeStory is a podcast about my family’s journey to follow Ellis’s singular passion for racing during a global pandemic. The episodes are audio recordings of the journal I’ve been keeping since the day we left home in 2020. Shamelessly authentic and always with a sense of humor, I ho...
Nov 19, 2024•10 min•Season 4Ep. 89
Explicitly American holidays like Thanksgiving are always a bit odd in Germany, but we make the best of it. It also always conjures up any remaining existential dread that's wandering about. Yay. Holidays. ******* TheWholeStory is a podcast about my family’s journey to follow Ellis’s singular passion for racing during a global pandemic. The episodes are audio recordings of the journal I’ve been keeping since the day we left home in 2020. Shamelessly authentic and always with a sense of humor, I ...
Nov 12, 2024•9 min•Season 4Ep. 88
And there it is... always sneaking around a corner, a deep, existential questioning, taking you down. Well, here it is, post-race-season-life-questioning-moment, on the page for all to see. ******* TheWholeStory is a podcast about my family’s journey to follow Ellis’s singular passion for racing during a global pandemic. The episodes are audio recordings of the journal I’ve been keeping since the day we left home in 2020. Shamelessly authentic and always with a sense of humor, I hope this story ...
Nov 05, 2024•5 min•Season 4Ep. 87
Your kid only turns 18 once, and even when you try to do nice things, they don't always pan out. Cancelled races, visits to a legend's memorial, and endurance kart birthday parties, we made the best of it. ******* TheWholeStory is a podcast about my family’s journey to follow Ellis’s singular passion for racing during a global pandemic. The episodes are audio recordings of the journal I’ve been keeping since the day we left home in 2020. Shamelessly authentic and always with a sense of humor, I ...
Oct 29, 2024•9 min•Season 4Ep. 86
Back at the laundrymat, reflecting on the end of Ellis's NXT Gen Cup championship, and finally realizing how you could be disappointed with a top 3 finish, and the beautiful and crushing moment of bearing witness to your child evolving their interior self. ******* TheWholeStory is a podcast about my family’s journey to follow Ellis’s singular passion for racing during a global pandemic. The episodes are audio recordings of the journal I’ve been keeping since the day we left home in 2020. Shamele...
Oct 22, 2024•10 min•Season 4Ep. 85
Once again outside the laundrymat, I'm wondering if I should write about 'what' or 'how and why,' and once again recognizing the parallel reality of existing in Germany or Hoboken, or anywhere else on the planet. ******* TheWholeStory is a podcast about my family’s journey to follow Ellis’s singular passion for racing during a global pandemic. The episodes are audio recordings of the journal I’ve been keeping since the day we left home in 2020. Shamelessly authentic and always with a sense of hu...
Oct 20, 2024•7 min•Season 4Ep. 84
It's clear in this entry I'm still working to regroup from the last few rounds of the NXT Gen Championship, make sense of what might be next, and attempt to set some boundaries on our time, energy and value. ******* TheWholeStory is a podcast about my family’s journey to follow Ellis’s singular passion for racing during a global pandemic. The episodes are audio recordings of the journal I’ve been keeping since the day we left home in 2020. Shamelessly authentic and always with a sense of humor, ...
Oct 19, 2024•9 min•Season 4Ep. 83
Two back to back race weekends, no trophies. A series of mechanical failures made for some tough realities during this part of the season, and once again, my least favorite idiom--- 'That's racing!' launches me into a bit of a tirade on luck. ******* TheWholeStory is a podcast about my family’s journey to follow Ellis’s singular passion for racing during a global pandemic. The episodes are audio recordings of the journal I’ve been keeping since the day we left home in 2020. Shamelessly authentic...
Aug 27, 2024•10 min•Season 4Ep. 82
Laundry, again. Halfway through a 6 week blitz on the road, I'm reflecting on where we're at with the season, how Grandfather's passing has impacted the past few months, and of course, the nitty gritty logistics of living on the road and schlepping along. ******* TheWholeStory is a podcast about my family’s journey to follow Ellis’s singular passion for racing during a global pandemic. The episodes are audio recordings of the journal I’ve been keeping since the day we left home in 2020. Shameles...
Aug 20, 2024•5 min•Season 4Ep. 54
Sandwiched between two race weekends, the moment arrived that we all knew was inevitable. Grandfather passed away on August 1st, 2023. We did exactly what he would have wanted and we headed directly to the next race weekend and made it count. ******* TheWholeStory is a podcast about my family’s journey to follow Ellis’s singular passion for racing during a global pandemic. The episodes are audio recordings of the journal I’ve been keeping since the day we left home in 2020. Shamelessly authentic...
Aug 13, 2024•14 min•Season 4Ep. 80
Value. Sponsors. Taking care of parents and worrying about, well, just about everything. And while the plate of life is full, Ellis finally gets his start of the NXT Gen Cup season and absolutely crushes it. ******* TheWholeStory is a podcast about my family’s journey to follow Ellis’s singular passion for racing during a global pandemic. The episodes are audio recordings of the journal I’ve been keeping since the day we left home in 2020. Shamelessly authentic and always with a sense of humor, ...
Aug 06, 2024•10 min•Season 4Ep. 79
I've often said that I feel like I have multiple existences, happening simultaneously, and this particular week felt this way in spades. I go on a bit of tangent here talking about life with Grandfather before we left on the Age of Light Tour, and some of my myriad multiverse of feelings about it. ******* TheWholeStory is a podcast about my family’s journey to follow Ellis’s singular passion for racing during a global pandemic. The episodes are audio recordings of the journal I’ve been keeping s...
Jul 30, 2024•9 min•Season 4Ep. 78
It's been a minute since I brought you a 'story and a half.' And if I'm being honest, this was an impromptu recording this morning because I ran out of episode uploads and missed my weekly Tuesday post. So, here you go. Me and Frankie chatting about where we're at, what's to come, what we think about how things have gone, and everything in between. And now I've just bought myself 6 days to record and upload new episodes! ******* TheWholeStory is a podcast about my family’s journey to follow Elli...
Jul 24, 2024•37 min•Season 4Ep. 77
'Preparation prevents piss poor performance.' Sometimes the preparation that your current reality allows space for is not ideal, and you still have to perform. Ellis absolutely crushes his game on and off the track in an exceptionally challenging and crazy busy few weeks in our season. Proud mom moment. Listen in. ******* TheWholeStory is a podcast about my family’s journey to follow Ellis’s singular passion for racing during a global pandemic. The episodes are audio recordings of the journal I’...
Jul 16, 2024•9 min•Season 4Ep. 76
This business is hard. Exceptionally hard. And sometimes you're just tired of giving and making and doing with seemingly little return. From the outside, I'm sure it looks like our brand and our partners and our story is all buttoned up. That we're 'crushing it,' and just underneath the surface, there's a storm. ******* TheWholeStory is a podcast about my family’s journey to follow Ellis’s singular passion for racing during a global pandemic. The episodes are audio recordings of the journal I’ve...
Jul 09, 2024•7 min•Season 4Ep. 75
Things are gonna get a bit heavy here for a minute. On Mother's Day, after a few weeks of strangeness from my father in law (more strangeness than is normal for him)-- I find out that he's been in the hospital for weeks and didn't tell us, and that he's dying. What was supposed to be a break for me alone at home in Germany while the boys made a trip to the States becomes a massive turning point in our season, the year, and our lives. ******* TheWholeStory is a podcast about my family’s journey t...
Jul 02, 2024•9 min•Season 4Ep. 74
For better or worse, our lives are siloed into two buckets-- race days and non-race days. It's a binary system, and one that seems necessary at the moment. But will it actually pay off in some tangible way? ******* TheWholeStory is a podcast about my family’s journey to follow Ellis’s singular passion for racing during a global pandemic. The episodes are audio recordings of the journal I’ve been keeping since the day we left home in 2020. Shamelessly authentic and always with a sense of humor, I...
Jun 25, 2024•5 min•Season 4Ep. 73
A play by play of what three weeks on the road with Team Spiezia looks like-- while it's still technically pre-season, we're not short on things to do or places to go. Belgium, the UK and the Netherlands, back to back for events, with some travel mishaps along the way. ******* TheWholeStory is a podcast about my family’s journey to follow Ellis’s singular passion for racing during a global pandemic. The episodes are audio recordings of the journal I’ve been keeping since the day we left home in ...
Jun 18, 2024•5 min•Season 4Ep. 72
When you buy a second-hand washing machine and then it's a German bank holiday so you can't get the parts you need to hook it up, you find yourself staring into the spinning drum of the washer, thinking thoughts about your existence. Listen to what was on my mind. ******* TheWholeStory is a podcast about my family’s journey to follow Ellis’s singular passion for racing during a global pandemic. The episodes are audio recordings of the journal I’ve been keeping since the day we left home in 2020....
Jun 11, 2024•4 min•Season 4Ep. 71
Sometimes my entries are detailed stories recounting our experiences of life on the road, and sometimes they are meta reflections on what it all means. Some are existential crisis, and others just a real questioning of where we are, what the fuck we are doing, and if it's all going to work out in the end. This brief episode is a pre-season questioning of the alchemy at play. ******* TheWholeStory is a podcast about my family’s journey to follow Ellis’s singular passion for racing during a global...
Jun 04, 2024•3 min•Season 4Ep. 70
And the saga continues. Exactly two years after giving up our long-standing home in Hoboken, New Jersey, we're moving house again. Busted pipes, a comedy of errors, and the universe doing its work-- spoiler alert-- in the end we get exactly what we needed when it comes to a new place to call our own. But it wasn't easy. I'll tell you that much. ******* TheWholeStory is a podcast about my family’s journey to follow Ellis’s singular passion for racing during a global pandemic. The episodes are aud...
May 28, 2024•14 min•Season 4Ep. 69
Anyone who's been listening long enough knows that we move. A lot. This episode is the start of a long and twisted tale about moving to a new apartment (again). A busted pipe, a change of plans, and a commitment to move out of a place with no doors and a dorm-sized fridge for something better-- check it out. ******* TheWholeStory is a podcast about my family’s journey to follow Ellis’s singular passion for racing during a global pandemic. The episodes are audio recordings of the journal I’ve bee...
May 21, 2024•9 min•Season 4Ep. 68
Our family definitely wears 99 hats and works tirelessly toward the goal of getting to the top in the shark tank we call motorsport. But often we question the impact of giving up 'normal' for Ellis as a teenager. Our life would certainly look very different if we hadn't pursued this path, and while we wouldn't give it up for the world, I empathize with Ellis for wanting more independence, daily routine, and friendships. ******* TheWholeStory is a podcast about my family’s journey to follow Ellis...
May 14, 2024•12 min•Season 4Ep. 67
Here we go again my friends! We're back with Season 4 of The Whole Story-- covering the 2023 season, you'll hear my off the record thoughts about race life, family life and life on the road. In this opening episode, we're just getting the pre-season started, and I'm having a bit of a rant on social media culture and what it takes to have meaning in a content-omnivorous world. ******* TheWholeStory is a podcast about my family’s journey to follow Ellis’s singular passion for racing during a globa...
May 07, 2024•8 min•Season 4Ep. 66
And that's a wrap on Season Three of The Whole Story podcast! Midflight on the way home to Germany, I'm sharing my thoughts on another year of the Age of Light, our 'special sauce' and the longtail journey about a kid we call the WonderBoy. Thanks for listening, and I can't wait to share Season Four with you. ******* TheWholeStory is a podcast about my family’s journey to follow Ellis’s singular passion for racing during a global pandemic. The episodes are audio recordings of the journal I’ve be...
Feb 13, 2024•9 min•Season 3Ep. 65
The Obligatory New Year's Eve entry. I thought this would be the last entry for season three, but guess what? There's one more amazing episode coming to wrap it all up. See how we spent Christmas and New year's to ring in 2023. ******* TheWholeStory is a podcast about my family’s journey to follow Ellis’s singular passion for racing during a global pandemic. The episodes are audio recordings of the journal I’ve been keeping since the day we left home in 2020. Shamelessly authentic and always wit...
Feb 06, 2024•5 min•Season 3Ep. 64
