EP 64 Keep Your Edge: Olympic Speed Skating, Blood Clots, and The Principle's Office With Rebekah Bradford
Rebekah Bradford has hand-sharpened knife-thin blades, has fallen across an Olympic qualifying line in a torn skin suit, and still found the composure to ask for a do over. Rebekah competed in long-track speed skating at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics, which is a fancy way of saying she voluntarily strapped 17-inch blades to her feet and went very fast on purpose. Somewhere between Olympic trials, a torn suit, and a twenty-nine minute window to pull herself together for a re-skate, she made the team and picked up a husband along the way, courtesy of a celebrity date auction. These days, she has traded the ice for product marketing, a couple of master's degrees, and a household that includes a toddler daughter, a brand new baby brother, and presumably far fewer skate sharpening jigs lying around the house. Rebekah walks The guys through a health scare that escalated during an ultimate frisbee game and ended in an ER visit that very likely saved her life. So what does a blood clot scare have to do with your Tuesday afternoon standup? What is the one thing people always get wrong about Olympians? And does Steve's He-Man HR review hold up against actual gold medal level feedback? (Steve's name in the transcript is Wolverine... because we know you all read it... just sayin'.)
Learn more about Rebekah Bradford: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rebekahbradford/
Learn more about the National Blood Clot Alliance at: https://www.stoptheclot.org/
Learn more about Fantastic Tony Benjamin at: https://www.thegrangellc.com/
Learn more about Steven "Big Deal" Smith at: https://thehiringtreebook.com/
Learn more about the Books mentioned on the podcast at: https://thehiringtreebook.com/hr-life-podcast
Learn more about The Gods Must Be Crazy, the movie at: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0080801/
A 2010 U.S. Olympian and two-time U.S. Sprint Champion in speedskating, Rebekah has built a life around competition, resilience, and the willingness to get back on the ice when life knocks you down. Today, she brings that same energy to her role as a product marketing leader at Energy Exemplar, a global energy software company. But Rebekah’s greatest races haven't always been on the track. She is a survivor of bilateral pulmonary embolisms, a transracial adoptive parent, and a leader who has reinvented herself more than once. Her story is one of high-speed competition, unexpected obstacles, big pivots, and refusing to stay down. She brings an Olympian’s mindset to everything she does: prepare relentlessly, embrace the pressure, trust the training, and show up—especially when showing up is hard. Rebekah holds a dual MBA and PMP and lives in Salt Lake City with her family.
Help us a pressure The Utah mammoth to get involved in Pucks for Autism: https://www.nhl.com/utah/
Learn more about Dyno Outfitters at: https://www.utahviaferrata.com/
Learn more about MegastarHR at: https://www.megastarhr.com/
Learn more about Pucks for Autism at: https://www.pucksforautism.com/
Learn more about Thrive Life Project at: https://www.thrivelifeproject.org/
Creators and Guests
Host
Fantastic Tony Benjamin
I am a unique HR leader with more than 20 years’ experience working for some of Utah’s oldest, fastest growing, and most well-known companies. My experience includes Superior Drilling Products, Air Medical Resource Group, Control4, Ovivo USA and Deseret Book. I am a regionally recognized authority on building successful cultures and am an alumni speaker at DisruptHR SLC and DisruptHR St. George. I have earned an MBA from the University of Phoenix, a Bachelor’s degree from Utah State University, and am a certified Professional of Human Resources (PHR). I'm married to a woman out of my league, have three brilliant kids I doesn’t deserve and, although I travel a lot, live in Vernal, Utah.
Host
Steven "Big Deal" Smith
Steve will be the first to tell you that recruiting is marketing. He earned his Bachelor of Science in Finance at Brigham Young University and started his career in recruiting in Feb 2005. In 2008, he took a risk during a recession to help start a new company with Ryan Kohler, called ApplicantPro, a full suite HR platform for small to mid-sized businesses. In March 2025, ApplicantPro became iSolved Talent Acquisition, now serving 177,000 clients and close to 9800 employees. Before the merger, ApplicantPro made the Inc 5000 list 12 years in a row, Top Places to work in Utah 3 years in a row, and Steve was named the Small Business Utah HR Achievement Award winner in May 2024. iSolved was also named an Indeed Platinum Partner in 2023, 2024, and 2025 and is one of only ten ATS platforms in the country to obtain that designation. SHRM-CP & PHR certified, Steve currently volunteers on the Utah SHRM State Council as the immediate past State Executive Director. His book, The Hiring Tree: Laws of Applicant Attraction, was released in early 2023, and has helped thousands of organizations across the country rethink their approach to hiring. If you need help understanding the principles and role of SEO, marketing, and AI when it comes to attracting job seekers, Steve provides a solid framework for hiring effectively.
