Bonus Post... Inspiration

It's Saturday night and I'm sitting at my work computer (a notebook workstation, so I am at home at the dining room table) transferring 2D layouts into 3D CAD models... just a sliver of what I do for a living. More a curse than a blessing, I have to say. Anyway, I needed to take a break so my wife brought me my last Leinie Big Butt Doppelbock from the fridge and I took a few minutes to mentally recharge.

I put in a little ditty about Pantani, one of my recent idols in cycling. But now I think back, way back to when I was just starting out in BMX. Who was my hero then? Stu Thompson. Somewhere... probably in a trash heap is my old BMX number plate "5155" with two signatures, Stu's on one side and Harry Leary's on the other. At the time, these two were each other's nemesis and Stu was a powerhouse. I wonder what ever happened to them. I also kind of recall Greg Hill as one of my brother's fave BMXers. I still remember seeing those "cruisers" they rode back then. And my big, orange DOT approved orange motorcycle helmet. Geees. Why didn't someone say I looked like a giant pumpkin rounding the berms and hitting the whooptidos? Eh, I eventually graduated to a nice Pro-Tec helmet with a JT full-face mask. I'm just glad I got to chuck the gorilla mask.

What about when I started MTBing? Ned Overend. He was one of the few reasons I picked up a Specialized as my first MTB. At the time, he was crushing the competition, and I fell right into his popularity. Cool thing is that he still competes... and hangs tough with even the youngest of competitors to this day. Great!

Cycling fell off the radar for me in high school and even much of my college years. Too much going on and riding a road bike (which I did do in college) was not my fave thing to do. But, I did like to look to Greg LeMond for a little inspiration.

So now, who do I like? Well, your about a decade, I've been following Kieth Bontrager. I enjoyed the fact that he thought outside of the box on practical application of his works. Engineered creatively and beautifully executed. He approached problems like a master. I was a little disappointed that he was bought out by Trek. But really, it was all for the better. His solutions reach the masses instead of being a boutique brand. Nice. I still swear by a lot of his stuff. And boy, do I regret selling my Bontrager CX. I just about bought another one, but I know where my limits are... I'll find another cyclocross bike when Time says its time.

Who else not-so-famous? What about Barry Andersen, the Bull Dog. He was the one who taught me to respect my elders in cycling. Nothing like getting beat down by a little old powerhouse on a long ride. I also like David Fik (don't get a big head if you read this buddy). He showed me that cycling is part of an entire balancing act of life. Fit it in if you can. Fit it in if you can't. You've just got to do it. These two I know personally... who else? I like to read Danielle Musto's blog. Not only is she a relative newbie to cycling, but she rocks the endurance races. I've seen her occasionally at the local trails, or it could have been her little sister... who knows really. Which is cool because she hails from this area. I also admire Mike Clark, formerly of Highwheeler Bike Shop, he is now one of the bigguns at Velo City Cycles. I'll write about him in another little ditty as there is quite a bit I can regurgitate.

The only others I can think of that really inspire me today are the riders known as the Dirt Dads. I ride with them for the most part. Thanks to them, I know I don't have to ride alone and to share what I know and what I can do. Thanks guys.

For a long time, I did ride alone... and still do. I appreciate the solace it brings and the reconnection to nature. I really miss the Sundays where I would ride way out on a trail and stop. I would sit on the side of the trail and just look around and listen. That was my "church". The sermon was given to me by Nature herself....

OK, back to work.