Well, the quiet years must be from the time I quit racing until recently I suppose. My life changed enormously about a month after the final race of my career. I was in a relationship that I should have been out of long before and things got real when I became an expectant father. I had to do what I could, I found the best paying job available to me in the little Redneck town of Durango, Colorado, doing construction. I needed a break from the bike world. After all, that is part of why I stopped competing. I needed to know that I was more than just a bike rider, a man in the world with a strong back and a work ethic that could pull me through, apart from my accolades as a racer. That is who I was before, and at the time I felt good learning the trade. I was involved in a six–year, $15 million mansion build, and I was determined to see it through from start to finish. I went to jail and got divorced, been through custody battles, been unemployed. I have more than the legal limit of character. I focused on my motocross riding and feeding my family. Though I never lost touch with my mountain bike. I stayed fit and still enjoyed riding. After all, I always was just a mountain biker, not necessarily a new school DH only guy. I am from the old days of learning to ride downhill because I rode to the top of mountains to get the thrill of dropping in. Real life treated me a bit rough. I had never been beaten down so hard as I was in the last ten years. Making mistakes and learning the hard way is tough when there is no one to rescue you. I was an ‘only man’ until recently. After officially separating from the mother of my son in 2008, I met Willow in the summer of 2009. During the ‘09–10 seasons, I helped my wife (then girlfriend) Willow become the best in the world for a period of time…saw her win two bronze medals at the worlds. Then I was a catalyst in that falling apart, as I gave her the gift of life (Raven was one year old December 31st). I am a complete man now, not the boy racer who was king of the pits in ‘93.
So you haven’t exactly been under–stimulated it seems. Last season you resurfaced as part of the Trek (TWR) team, and we were quite fascinated by your return. What’s the story?I got involved with the Trek team when Willow and I were contemplating how to orchestrate her return to racing post–baby. Like I said, I was involved in a long term project and was used to being busy bringing home the bacon. I made an offer to Martin Whitely (TWR team director/manager) to be a part of his team in order to make the World Cup tour a feasible undertaking. I would have gone to all the rounds of both series had Willow continued her mission beyond South Africa. Having made the decision to retire, it left me with the schedule I had committed to and I wanted to follow through with my arrangements with Martin. I was excited to be a part of the Trek team in any way regardless of the circumstances and enjoyed the experience.
Well, you knew we’d ask…but what was it like working along side World Cup downhill champion Aaron Gwin? He’s clearly a machine, but he’s difficult to figure out. What makes him tick?What makes Aaron tick is as much of a mystery to me as it is to any one. I think he may be able to answer that question better than I. If I knew the answer to that, I may have been a multiple time world cup champion, and beyond that, I would still be out there. Man, I would be racing wheel chairs right now if I had that kind of passion.
Aaron’s faith appears so resolute that perhaps it gives him a mental edge or a boost in confidence. He often mentions that there are bigger, better things out there and typically when he encounters challenges he shrugs it off and says “God has a plan” or something along those lines. This almost makes him seem less emotionally invested, and perhaps helps his nerves in the gate. What do you think?Religion is not something I am into personally, but to each his own. I have never had that discussion with Aaron but it’s definitely a factor. I do believe that we are all a part of the same whole, and feeling connected is feeling connected. It is the life–force within.
Was there anything else that struck you as totally unique in terms of his approach?Aaron is there to work, but he’s also very cerebral. One thing he does that’s different is that he spends a lot of time on the overlooked sections of the track. He doesn’t overanalyse all the parts that everyone else is looking at. He focuses on the simpler sections and improves those. The sum of those parts makes for a faster time. Gwin also doesn’t ever go too full–on in practice. He rarely rides 100% unless it’s during a race run. I was the opposite, and pinned it full–on all the time until I got injured.
Well, aside from his struggles in chasing that elusive World Champs and taking it as the first American since you did in 2000 he seems to be quite consistent. How long do you think he’ll stay at it and remain on top?I can’t say where he is going to go as far as his long term plans for racing. Speaking from my experience, it is a real challenge to be an undisputed force at the top in competitive sports. It may take a bit of anxiety away to think to yourself that you only have to make this type of effort for the short term. I honestly just wanted to make it out alive at the end. When you are at the top, everyone wants to knock you off. The only way to avoid trash talk is to remain at the top, anything else is subject to criticism and speculation. My take on how long any one can stay at the top is a matter of reflection. For me, I was at my best when I was hungry, when I owned nothing, and had nothing to lose. All people are different, but for me, the more I had and the more comfortable I was, the greater my ability to justify and rationalize avoiding the things that scared me. Not to mention, things are easy until you aren’t indestructible. I started feeling pretty vulnerable around the age of 30. Rock on, I just like seeing people go out on top and remembering them at their best rather than when they are all broken down and failing.
The Trek team seems to have really groomed him as an athlete and at least to the average enthusiast it seems like the program is incredibly well run. Martin Whitely is the driving force and a catalyst in this. What was it like working with him?Martin does an amazing job with the team. I have nothing but good things to say about the way he does business. I want to publicly thank him for supporting my wife during her pregnancy and giving her a legitimate shot at a return to racing. Martin truly loves racing and is possibly the biggest fan of the sport.
Speaking of the sport, it’s come quite a ways since you were racing. Both with the elevation in talent, level of risk and the drastic improvement of equipment; yet in contrast, financially speaking the sport seems to be struggling worse than it ever has, especially in America.Modern downhill racing is fantastic. It has truly become what I always hoped it would be. I dreamed of the race tracks that exist today. My fantasy has become reality, the equipment has evolved into a form that has surpassed my expectations. What’s amazing is the athletes are competing on real race tracks, not just a thrown–together random trail down the mountain. It’s nice to see the sport come into it’s own.>>
