We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Kara Haun a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Kara , thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Can you tell us a bit about who your hero is and the influence they’ve had on you?

My Dad is my Hero. He was a Fire Chief for 36 years and passed away in 2014. He was a great Fire Chief and Leader and a great family man. He dedicated his life to the fire service and serving others, however did not live long enough to be able to enjoy his retirement. This strongly influenced the way I live my life, lead in the fire service as a Battalion Chief, and also how I live every day to the fullest now and have plans to do the same in my retirement. It also has helped me shape a life with my wife that will set us up to empower and help other women become leaders in their respective industries in a future business endeavor.

Kara , love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I am 41 years old and a Battalion Chief for the Fire Dept. I started my Fire Service career at 15 as an explorer, then full time at the age of 19. I have a wife and 4 sons, twins that are 17, a 15, and a 13 year old. I’ve owned a CrossFit gym since early 2005 before CrossFit was popular. I started with a down and dirty garage gym and had that until 2013 when I opened CrossFit Nika- Nika Athletics with my wife Ashley Haun. I love to surf, snowboard, mountain bike, rock climb, adventure race and pretty much anything else outdoors in the mountains and on the water. I am inspired by a life outdoors full of fun and adrenaline and I love to enjoy these things with my family and friends. I enjoy doing hard things and pushing my limits and inspiring others to lead and do the same.

Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?

It took years of training hard both physically and mentally to become successful and respected as a 5’2 female in the fire service. I learned at a young age that in order to save the lives of people much bigger than me, I would have to put in the work in the gym to be able to drag my partner or pick someone up off the floor. This is what lead me to find CrossFit and eventually open my own gym. You can be given respect in the fire service. You must earn it by showing you can do the job and then as you move up lead others in a supervisory role.

How’d you meet your business partner?

I met Ashley actually at CrossFit in Mt. Dora in 2011 when I competed with them at the CrossFit Regionals. We quickly became best friends and opened a brick and mortar CrossFit gym together and now she’s my wife. The rest is history.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://nikaathletics.com
• Instagram: harakaun nikaathletics
• Facebook: NIKA Athletics