WILLIAMSBURG— Caroline Bauer thought that her life was going to be spent in the pool; but then she discovered track and field.
“My parents really put me in any sport that I wanted to try, but I realized that I was really good at the endurance-type of sports,” she recalled.
During her time at Jamestown High School, Bauer remained committed to her swimming career. At 16, she decided to leave swimming behind to focus on cross country. By the time she graduated, she became a Virginia High School League state champion and set a state record for the 3200m race.
Bauer went on to a collegiate running career at the University of Florida on a full athletic scholarship.
“I love the state of Florida, I love the sunshine, I love the SEC. I knew I wanted to go to a school with big sports but I also knew I wanted to go to a school where I could use my sport to get in where I may not have gotten in academically. I remember UF ticking every single box,” Bauer recalled.
While Bauer was at UF, Allison Wilson, a teammate mentioned the idea of wanting to start a podcast.
“Allison was going into her sixth year of college and wasn’t sure what she wanted to do with her life. She was meeting with one of our mentors and she had suggested to Allison the idea of figuring out what she wanted to do right now. Allison mentioned the idea of podcasting and was encouraged by our mentor to just do it,” Bauer recalls.
Wilson asked Bauer to join as a co-host and the two began looking at their options. With faith an important staple in Bauer’s life, Wilson agreed that making a podcast about faith and overcoming adversity would be the best course of action.
“We are around so many athletes every single day at this university. We have fellow athletes who went on to become Olympians, people who have truly hit the pinnacle of their sport, but at the same time, we’ve all experienced so much hardship. Most people don’t get to share that side of their story and that’s what Allison and I are here for,” Bauer said.
The two launched their first episode in 2025 with a microphone, laptop, and the studio was Bauer’s back porch.
“We’ve since upgraded our equipment, we’ve had multiple guests on, it’s really grown from that small start,” Bauer said.
While they have spoken with many athletes, Bauer said there is one athlete that would be the dream guest.
“Tim Tebow…he would be the dream guest. Being a University of Florida diehard fan and just the way that he is so bold in his faith. He has been such an icon for us at UF, it would just be awesome to have him on,” Bauer said.
Each Monday, the two drop a new episode to all podcast streaming platforms. For Bauer, the process of being involved in this podcast has been healing for her.
“There is something so special about sharing your testimony and sharing your story. It offers this sense of vulnerability of opening up and it lets people in to that place and it’s been healing. It’s important to let your story be told because you never know who it could help,” Bauer said.
Beyond the Struggle is available on Apple and Spotify podcasts.