March 02, 2023 3 min read
My name is KaJay and I'm a full-time freelance Graphic Designer, mountain biker & snowboarder! I mostly enjoy being creative, short walks to the fridge and long adventures outside. Since graduating college I had been a side-hustling freelancer up until Covid shut a lot of things down and I lost my primary full time job (and all the income/benefits with it). Cue inspirational music: After being laid off, I was able to take a deep dive into the recreation activities that I love, spend WAY more time outside and grow my design career - now I work with small start ups to large international brands on a creative level (crazy right??), bike all over the country and have visited almost all 50 states! More cool stuff: For the past 2 years I have even had the pleasure of working with a handful of companies who support my biking goals - one goal has been the creation of a new all-womens mtb event called Thunderstruck hosted at Thunder Mountain Bike Park in western Massachusetts.
Full Name:Â KaJay Rooke
Nickname:Kaje (Pronounced like Cage/Kayge)
Age: 28Â
Current Location:Â New Hampsha (NH)
HEST Product:Â Â Camp Pillow & Foamy
Side, front or back Sleeper? Front & back sleeper, sorta like a mummy most times to be honest lol.
Any before bed rituals? I always lay down flat on my back with my knees up and arms out like a T, take a few big deep breaths and swing a leg over to twist my back and get all the cracks and pops out before bed.
Best dream you’ve had recently summed up in 3 words? Absolutely SHREDDING snowboards in deep pow.
Early bird or night owl? Hmm this one's a toss up - My bed is so comfy that it's a struggle at first but once I'm up I'm 1000% right away sooo I'd say early bird (I don't even drink coffee - wild right?).
Coolest place you’ve ever woken up in? Either the forests of West Virginia in just my sleeping bag/hammock setup or unzipping my tent in New Zealand right next to this big lake tucked away in the mountains.
Land Legs or Sea Monster?  Land legs fo-sho.
Preferred method of getting your adrenaline/endorphins pumping? I mean anything outside or art-related really. A good day in the trees on a snowboard, sunny day playing on jump lines with bikes & friends, illustrating some dinosaurs, doing some rock climbing, you name it - but a sunrise split board trip up a mountain has to give me the best feeling, especially to start the day.
What is one thing you can’t camp without? Other than needing some form of shelter -
I'd say my toothbrush and my Foamy are must-haves! Especially now that my injuries have started catching up with me and I'm no spring-chicken anymore.
Dreams & goals for the next couple years? A loaded question but in a nut shell, I'd say I want to make more authentic style ramen (or more Asian inspired dishes in general), design a cool t-shirt that sells out, travel back to New Zealand and enjoy biking and snowboarding there again, grow my event (Thunderstruck) to uplift growing industry talent and inspire people of all abilities, travel to the last 5 states I have to visit in the US, learn how to manual on my bike and spruce up my snowboard tricks. That's a good place to start.