RIDEOUT: The Other Side of Hard

Taylor Cavanaugh’s life has been a cycle of achievement, self-destruction, and rebuilding.

Before becoming a Navy SEAL, Taylor had already been expelled from school, arrested repeatedly, survived a violent car crash, and served time in county jail. After multiple branches of the military turned him away, the Navy finally gave him a shot.

Taylor made it through BUD/S and Hell Week and eventually served with SEAL Team 7 as a communications specialist, JTAC, and sniper. His deployments took him to Yemen and Iraq, where he called airstrikes, worked alongside local forces, and operated under rocket and mortar fire.

But outside the teams, the same patterns that had followed him since his teenage years never fully disappeared. An aggravated assault case nearly sent him to prison. Another alcohol-fueled incident and a positive steroid test eventually ended his SEAL career.

Civilian success followed, but so did Adderall, Xanax, opiates, and eventually fentanyl. Taylor went from working in real estate development and venture capital to withdrawing alone in Hawaii, living out of his truck, nearly broke and contemplating suicide.

Instead of ending his life, he bought a one-way ticket to France.

Taylor walked through the gates of the French Foreign Legion, surrendered his passport, was given a new identity, and started again at the bottom. He spent years running, cleaning toilets, training in the French Alps, deploying to Estonia and conducting jungle operations against illegal gold mining operations in French Guiana.

Today, Taylor has turned the discipline that helped rebuild his own life into a coaching business focused on consistency, personal responsibility, and controlling the controllables.

This is Taylor Cavanaugh’s story. Follow Taylor: @tcavofficial

Thank you to our sponsors

Our Title Sponsor ROKA: www.roka.com/ Code “RIDEOUT”

Wild Roman: wildroman.com/rideout Code “RIDEOUT15”

Ken’s book now available here: https://www.theothersideofhard.com/

Chapters

(00:00) Meet Taylor Cavanaugh

(00:20) Gloucester Rough Edges

(01:27) Marine Base Upbringing

(01:48) Pilots And Air Ops

(04:53) JTAC Danger Close

(07:38) High School Hustle

(09:26) College Chaos And Crash

(11:49) Rain Means Change

(14:09) County Jail Reality

(17:06) Sponsor Break Roka

(19:43) Denied Then Navy Shot

(22:56) BUDS Cold And Hell Week

(29:26) Darkest Conditioning Runs

(30:26) Running Form and Gait

(31:54) Marathon Mindset Curse

(33:03) Gobi Desert Stage Race

(34:57) Skincare Ad Break

(36:29) Joining SEAL Team 7

(37:19) Peer Evals and Rankings

(38:18) Comms and JTAC Track

(41:10) Sniper School and Stalking

(45:10) Low Vis Intel Ops

(46:54) Yemen Deployment Tension

(48:56) Iraq Rockets and Base Build

(52:32) Assault Charge Fallout

(55:19) Court Deal in Boise

(57:21) Paying Restitution Hard

(57:48) Jail Then Back To Training

(58:39) Probation In SEAL Life

(01:00:13) Jimmy Buffett Golf Cart Bust

(01:02:03) Steroid Test Career Fallout

(01:06:22) Leaving Teams For Construction

(01:07:27) Adderall Xanax Spiral

(01:09:28) Opiates Return Then Fentanyl

(01:12:32) High Functioning VC Hustle

(01:16:07) Hawaii Withdrawal And Acid Ride

(01:19:07) Homeless Suicidal Turning Point

(01:23:03) One Way Ticket To Legion

(01:24:43) Paris Hostels And Legion Gate

(01:26:38) Passport Taken New Identity

(01:27:23) Gate Shock Pullups Test

(01:29:11) Barracks Vibes Recruit Types

(01:30:34) Kenyan Runner Visa Hack

(01:33:37) Gestapo Interviews Selection

(01:36:32) Starting Over Cleaning Toilets

(01:38:04) French Guiana Jungle Ops

(01:40:39) Ukraine War Estonia Deployment

(01:44:48) Barracks Fights Discipline

(01:49:36) Legion Running Culture

(01:52:34) Amazon Survival Gold Mines

(01:55:19) Gold Flakes Oil Bugs

(01:56:11) Amazon Jungle Hellscape

(01:57:11) Thriving in Humidity

(02:00:13) Running Shoes and Boots

(02:01:57) Social Media Sparks Exit

(02:12:32) Discipline and Agency

(02:18:00) Coaching and Consistency

(02:23:33) Closing Thanks and Plugs
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McKinnon Galloway was diagnosed with NF2 at 16 after a routine MRI for a volleyball concussion revealed two brain tumors. What followed was years of chemotherapy, a phase-one clinical trial, four brain surgeries, radiation, facial paralysis, a cerebral stroke, and the complete loss of her hearing.

Her third brain surgery became life-threatening when doctors discovered that her tumor had developed an extensive blood supply. McKinnon nearly bled out, woke up fully deaf, and learned that complications had prevented surgeons from placing the auditory brain implant she expected to receive. Months later, another surgery left her struggling to walk and unable to move one side of her face.

McKinnon also opens up about her father’s alcoholism and suicide, the strength she inherited from her mother, the realities of navigating healthcare and insurance, and the daily isolation that can come with deafness.

Rather than disappearing into everything she lost, McKinnon built a platform that bridges the deaf and hearing worlds. Now followed by more than one million people across social media, she advocates for better deaf technology, clearer patient communication, and a more personal approach to medicine through her mission of “Humanizing Healthcare.”

Follow McKinnon on Instagram: @mckinnongalloway

Thank you to our sponsors

Our Title Sponsor ROKA: www.roka.com/ Code “RIDEOUT”

AMP Fitness: amp.ai/rideout

Ken’s book now available here: https://www.theothersideofhard.com/

Chapters

(00:00) Meet McKinnon

(00:48) Living With NF2

(02:26) Growing Up Charlotte

(04:20) Diagnosis At Sixteen

(05:44) First Brain Surgery

(08:16) Recovery And Questions

(10:30) Roka Eyewear Sponsor

(12:15) Costa Rica Sea Turtles

(13:42) College And Family Strain

(15:34) Trials Second Surgery

(18:14) Losing Hearing Completely

(20:55) Third Surgery Near Death

(25:09) Deafness And Implants

(27:08) Post Op Complications

(30:56) Surgery Complications

(32:54) Sponsor Break Amp

(33:39) Mom Teaches Independence

(35:37) Dad Addiction Spiral

(40:55) Losing Her Father

(45:03) Faith Trip Bethlehem

(47:46) Radiation And Recovery

(53:29) MRI Scare And Boston

(57:20) Living With NF2

(59:51) Marriage And Work Talk

(01:00:50) Insurance Costs Reality

(01:02:44) Ambulance Bill Fight

(01:03:48) Fees Everywhere Now

(01:05:14) Tipping Gone Wild

(01:06:18) Driving While Deaf

(01:07:43) Handicap Parking Clash

(01:10:01) Hardest Part Socializing

(01:11:48) Hope for Nerve Repair

(01:13:20) Deaf Tech Advocacy

(01:14:00) Social Media Origin Story

(01:17:06) Handling Online Trolls

(01:19:49) Perks of Being Deaf

(01:24:14) Humanizing Healthcare Mission

(01:26:49) Authentic Content Approach

(01:28:53) Brand Deals and Contact

(01:29:53) Daily Work and Pivots

(01:31:02) Wrap Up and Subscribe

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Mishka Shubaly has lived several lives: gifted student, touring musician, Columbia-trained writer, addict, shipwreck survivor, ultrarunner, Yale professor, and the editor who helped Ken Rideout turn his life into a book.

Mishka joins Ken for a deeply personal conversation about growing up with a distant father, leaving home for college at 15, surviving a deadly school shooting, and watching his family lose everything shortly afterward. He recounts years of destructive drinking and drug use, getting shipwrecked in the Bahamas, walking for miles without food or navigation, and drinking his own urine shortly before being rescued.

They also discuss the realization that finally pushed Mishka toward sobriety, the furious first run that changed his life, becoming an ultramarathoner, nearly joining a reality dating show, and how a cold email led Jeff Bezos to write the foreword to his book. Ken and Mishka reflect on addiction, anxiety, ambition, friendship, marriage, and the difficult process of believing that the life you have built might finally be enough.

Thank you to our sponsors

Our Title Sponsor ROKA: www.roka.com/ Code “RIDEOUT”

Wild Roman: wildroman.com/rideout Code “RIDEOUT15”

Ken’s book now available here: https://www.theothersideofhard.com/

Chapters

(00:00) Mishka Joins the Show

(00:44) Writing the Book Together

(02:09) Authenticity Over Advice

(03:57) Running Shoe Rabbit Hole

(08:31) Frugal Life and Family Roots

(12:48) Sponsor Break Roka Eyewear

(14:24) Kids and Wastefulness

(17:46) Sober Anxiety and Control

(21:57) Ibogaine and Rewiring the Brain

(23:29) Mishka’s Upbringing and Rocket Scientist Dad

(27:34) Family Struggles and Parenting Reflections

(32:42) Sponsor Break Wild Roman Skincare

(33:46) Divorce Year and Dad Moves Away

(34:39) Early College Leap

(35:35) Fights and Trouble

(36:02) Campus Shooting Trauma

(38:29) Divorce and Downward Spiral

(44:35) Addiction and New Perspective

(48:50) Success and Enough

(51:39) Family Pressure and Anxiety

(57:36) From Acting to Writing

(59:09) Dad Fallout and No Kids

(01:03:46) New York and Columbia MFA

(01:06:34) Playing It Cool

(01:07:12) Celebrity Sauna Stories

(01:09:31) Columbia Encouragement

(01:11:40) Ivy League Aid Debate

(01:13:33) Loans And Burnout

(01:15:12) Music Life And Hoarding

(01:18:39) Shipwreck Setup

(01:22:06) Running Aground

(01:25:30) Survival Walk Breakdown

(01:30:44) Rescue And Aftermath

(01:33:39) SEAL Prep Coincidence

(01:35:46) Dating Show Tease

(01:36:05) Reality Show Doubts

(01:37:58) Dark Side of Reality TV

(01:40:13) Lawyer Negotiation Tactics

(01:42:20) Dodging the Dating Show

(01:44:36) Sobriety Turning Point

(01:48:49) First Furious Run

(01:52:55) Ultra Lessons and New Highs

(01:54:39) Kenya Stage Race Adventure

(01:57:09) Love as the New Anchor

(01:58:54) Withdrawal and Anxiety Hell

(02:01:49) What’s Next Creatively

(02:04:15) Bezos Foreword Story

(02:06:44) Final Thanks and Subscribe
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Dr. Dawn Mussallem was a young medical student when she collapsed and doctors discovered a 15-centimeter tumor wrapped around her heart. She was diagnosed with stage IV diffuse large B-cell lymphoma and told she had only months to live.

She endured chemotherapy, a bone marrow transplant and radiation while continuing medical school, eventually graduating first in her class. But surviving cancer came at another cost: the treatment severely damaged her heart.

Dawn developed advanced heart failure, received a pacemaker and defibrillator, lost her husband to sudden cardiac death and spent years fighting to stay alive for her daughter. In 2021, with her organs beginning to fail, she accepted a donor heart from a woman who had used intravenous drugs and carried hepatitis C.

That transplant gave Dawn a second life.

Now an integrative oncologist, endurance athlete and Chief Medical Officer at Fountain Life, Dawn joins Ken Rideout to share what she learned through cancer, grief, heart failure and transplantation. They also discuss the fundamentals of longevity that matter most, including fiber, complex carbohydrates, strength training, VO2 max, heart-disease screening, organ donation and the role of nutrition in cancer survivorship.

This is a story about accepting what you cannot control, refusing to surrender your purpose and making every day of a borrowed life count.

Thank you to our sponsors

Our Title Sponsor ROKA: www.roka.com/ Code “RIDEOUT”

AMP Fitness: amp.ai/rideout

Ken’s book now available here: https://www.theothersideofhard.com/

Chapters

(00:00) Meet Dr Dawn

(01:11) Ohio Roots and Early Running

(02:35) Raising Healthy Kids

(06:05) Athletics and Strength Training

(09:15) College Fitness and Ms Fitness

(10:41) Sponsor Break Roka Eyewear

(12:22) Carbs Fiber and Performance

(19:26) Path to Medicine and Mayo

(23:21) Cancer Diagnosis and Survival

(31:18) Chemo And Transplant

(32:08) Hospital Bike Breakthrough

(33:14) Exercise As Medicine

(34:18) Transplant Process Explained

(35:17) Isolation And Infection Control

(36:26) Radiation And Tumor Limits

(37:29) Heart Failure After Cancer

(38:39) Fertility And IVF Struggles

(41:07) Surprise Pregnancy Discovery

(43:40) Postpartum Heart Failure Reveal

(46:25) Diagnosis And Mayo Recovery

(48:57) Devices And HRV Talk

(50:36) Fountain Life Heart Data

(53:44) Lifestyle And VO2 Priority

(57:31) Precision Genomics Testing

(01:01:32) Next Gen Lipid Drugs

(01:02:16) Metabolic And Inflammation Tests

(01:04:37) Loss And Resilience

(01:07:21) Diet For Heart Reversal

(01:10:35) Near Death And Transplant Listing

(01:15:51) Donor Heart Dilemma

(01:19:55) Transplant Recovery And Gratitude

(01:23:35) Integrative Oncology Explained

(01:26:05) Insurance And Breast Cancer Care

(01:28:04) Hormone Blockers And Symptom Relief

(01:32:09) Closing And Subscribe
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Mark Vins is the co-founder and host of Brave Wilderness, one of the biggest wildlife channels on YouTube.

Mark joins Ken to explain how a rejected television concept became a global media brand, why a video featuring the “cow killer” velvet ant gained hundreds of thousands of subscribers in a single day, and what it actually feels like to be stung by a murder hornet, bitten by a giant centipede, and envenomated by some of the world’s most painful creatures.

He shares the safety protocols behind the videos, the risks of anaphylaxis, the physical toll of spending nearly 300 days a year traveling, and the lessons Brave Wilderness learned after entering the Hollywood and television system.

Mark also takes Ken behind the scenes of filming mountain gorillas alongside armed rangers in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and making his first feature documentary, Reef to Ridge, in the Galápagos. The film follows the ecosystem from the ocean floor to the summit of Wolf Volcano, where fewer than 300 rare pink iguanas remain.

This is the story of turning childhood exploration into a global wildlife platform—and using viral entertainment to bring millions of people closer to the natural world.

Thank you to our sponsors

Our Title Sponsor ROKA: www.roka.com/ Code “RIDEOUT”

Athletic Nicotine: https://athleticnicotine.com/rideout Code "RIDEOUT"

Ken’s book now available here: https://www.theothersideofhard.com/

Chapters

(00:00) Meet Mark Vins

(00:46) What Is Brave Wilderness

(01:44) Ohio Roots And Tennis

(03:09) Film School And Early Hustle

(05:20) From TV Rejection To YouTube

(09:07) Sting Videos Go Viral

(12:03) Sponsor Break Roka(13:43) Cow Killer Explained

(16:34) Filming The Sting Safely

(19:30) Anaphylaxis And EpiPens

(26:46) Travel Life And Costa Rica

(29:13) Poison Frogs And Toxins

(32:59) Snakebites And Deadliest Snakes

(37:12) Terrifying Cave Diving

(38:13) Focus Supplement Ad

(38:59) Hollywood Agency Lessons(45:47) Venom Basics Explained

(47:04) Murder Hornet Nightmare

(52:56) Centipede Bloodbath

(56:42) Scorpions Fish and Fireworms

(01:04:36) Gorillas and Ranger Risks

(01:13:44) Rangers Fitness Talk

(01:13:50) Favorite Trips Japan

(01:14:42) Galapagos Feature Reveal

(01:16:29) Wolf Volcano Expedition

(01:17:51) Sharks And Finning

(01:21:33) Dehydration Survival Stories

(01:24:02) Pink Iguana Deep Dive

(01:25:25) Volcano Tourism Risks

(01:28:30) Peruvian Amazon Off Grid

(01:30:49) Sandflies And Leishmaniasis

(01:33:45) Global Wildlife Hotspots

(01:35:27) Predators And Mountain Lions

(01:42:04) Future Films And Running

(01:45:13) Bee Swarms And Safety

(01:48:05) Final Thanks And Subscribe
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