‘This isn’t just my challenge – it’s ours’: Rylee Walker’s ‘Against All Odds: A Crossing for Cystic Fibrosis’ premieres this May

In our last interview, what struck me most was something Rylee Walker, endurance paddler and Cystic Fibrosis advocate, said: “One of the biggest challenges I continue to face is the constant question: ‘Is what I’m doing enough?”

It’s a question many of us grapple with – it can either unsettle us and make us fold inward, or push us to act. And Rylee chose to act, continuing to show up for both her community and herself, despite being diagnosed with a genetic condition – Cystic Fibrosis – that makes breathing, a natural act we take for granted, a continuous fight.

In 2025, Rylee set out to become the first woman with Cystic Fibrosis to complete the full 80-mile paddle across the Gulf Stream – from Bimini, Bahamas, to Lake Worth Beach, Florida. While the attempt was ultimately cut short, it marked the beginning of something bigger: a lasting project built around resilience, purpose and storytelling.

Diagnosed at a young age, Rylee has faced the challenges of living with this condition, with determination, refusing to let it define her. Teaming up with filmmaker Andrew Nycz, she turned the experience into a powerful documentary, ‘Against All Odds – A Crossing for Cystic Fibrosis’, aimed at raising awareness for the cystic fibrosis community and inspiring anyone to move beyond the limitations placed on them while continuing to explore and push her own.

We caught up with Rylee in the lead-up to the 10th edition of the 80-mile endurance paddle and international race – The Crossing For Cystic Fibrosis (10X4CF) – taking place from 10 – 13 June, to discuss her attempt, the documentary premiering on 2 May, and the message she hopes viewers will take away after watching.

Photo by Nycz Productions

Hi Rylee, welcome back to TotalSUP! We’re catching up on the eve of the Against All Odds documentary premiere, created with Andrew Nycz – could you tell us more about the project and how it all came together?

Thank you so much for having me back! It honestly feels surreal to be here on the eve of the premiere — I can still remember the very first conversation about Against All Odds like it was yesterday.

Andrew and I actually knew each other well before any cameras rolled. Back in 2024, right before my first solo attempt at the Crossing for Cystic Fibrosis, we connected on Facebook about the idea of telling this story through a documentary. What started as a conversation between friends has grown into something so much bigger than either of us imagined when we first said yes to it.
The vision was clear from day one, and it never changed — even when everything else did. Share the story of life with CF, the fight to paddle across the ocean, and the mission to prove that a label doesn’t define what any of us are capable of. Weather didn’t shake that. A cancelled year didn’t shake it. A shortened attempt didn’t shake it. If anything, every twist along the way has only added more meaning to what Andrew was quietly capturing on screen.

Against All Odds premieres May 2nd, and I still can hardly believe we’re here. What people will see on that screen is the result of two years of trust, storytelling, and showing up for each other — through the highest highs and the lowest lows. I’m forever grateful to Andrew for believing in this story from the very beginning, and for helping us create something the CF community can carry with them for years to come.

In what ways did crowdfunding – its pressure, uncertainty and ultimately the powerful support of the community – shape both the documentary and your own journey?

Crowdfunding is a vulnerable thing. You are asking people to believe in a vision that doesn’t exist on a screen yet — to trust that your story is worth telling. The pressure of that, and the uncertainty along the way, is very real.

For us, the hardest part was simply getting as many eyes on the project as we possibly could. You can only reach so many people on your own, and every single day the clock was ticking closer to the deadline. There were absolutely moments it felt like we might not get there.
But we did. We hit our goal right at the very end of the campaign, and the feeling of crossing that line is something I will never forget. Because what crowdfunding taught me is that the people who back a story like this aren’t just “backers” — they are believers. They believed in the vision. They believed in the energy behind this story. And most importantly, they believed in the lives this film was going to change. That is the kind of support that carries you.

And because of them, nothing about the film was compromised. Every moment, every voice, every piece of the story Andrew and I wanted to tell made it into the final cut. Against All Odds is on that screen exactly the way we dreamed it would be from the very beginning — and that is only possible because our community stood behind us. That same army of angels that has walked alongside me through every part of my CF journey showed up for this film, too. I carry that with me on every paddle, and I’ll carry it long after this premiere.

Photo by Nycz Productions

The Against All Odds theme feels especially profound – after the 2024 Crossing for Cystic Fibrosis was cancelled due to weather and your 2025 attempt was cut short, how have those experiences reshaped your mindset going forward?

The last two years have taught me that Against All Odds is so much bigger than 80 miles of ocean.

In 2024, the weather was the one thing I couldn’t outwork. In 2025, the ocean handed us a whole new set of challenges. There is so much more to that story, but I’m saving the full picture for the documentary — you’ll see it all unfold on screen.

For a long time, I thought this theme meant finishing the full crossing. Now I know the real odds we defy aren’t the ones we see coming.

They are the ones that meet us mid-paddle and ask us who we really are.

The real crossing isn’t always the one on the map. It is the one that changes who you are.

Photo by David Scarola Photography

Something that really stayed with us from our last conversation about the Crossing for Cystic Fibrosis, were your words, ‘This isn’t just my challenge – it’s ours’ – what does that sense of shared purpose mean to you today?

When I said “this isn’t just my challenge — it’s ours,” I meant that the fight against CF has never been mine alone to carry. It is carried by every person who has trained with me, every family that has donated, every CF warrior who has sent me a message reminding me why we do this, and every believer who has stood in the gap when I had nothing left.

What shared purpose means to me today is that the finish line was never meant to belong to one person. Whether the ocean lets us cross or not, the mission is still ours. The awareness we raise is ours. The lives we change are ours. Every single person who has been part of this journey — in any form, big or small — has a hand in the story of Against All Odds.

And yes, the film walks through my life and the most personal parts of it — but what you’ll see on that screen was only made possible because of the people who have been right there with me through all of it.

Photo by Nycz Productions

What message do you want the documentary to leave people with and how do you see your journey continuing beyond it?

The message I want people to walk away with is simple: not every crossing leads you across the ocean.

Some of the most important crossings of your life will happen on dry land. They will look nothing like the picture you had in your head — and they will ask just as much of you. Your courage. Your faith. Your willingness to keep going when the path changes in front of you.
Against All Odds is really a story about what happens when life doesn’t go the way you planned, and the strength we find in choosing to move forward anyway. If even one person watches this film and walks away believing they are capable of more than the labels they have been given, then we have done what we set out to do.

As for my journey — this film is not the ending of the story. It is the beginning of a new one. There is so much more ahead that I can’t wait to share when the time is right. Because the truth is, the most meaningful crossings in life aren’t always the ones you see coming.

Against All Odds premieres on 2 May.

To find out more about the event, visit crossingforcysticfibrosis.com 

Register for the event here. Deadline for registrations: 24 April 2026

To learn more about cystic fibrosis and Piper’s Angels Foundation‘s impact on the CF community please visit: pipersangels.org

Follow the Crossing For Cystic Fibrosis on Instagram and Facebook

Follow Rylee Walker on Instagram and support Rylee’s fundraiser here