a no-brainer … it is there, so why not, no one else has done it before. Besides, I like to go FAST! But the fulcrum of that risk vs reward balance is set a little different for me … I like to say that it’s in my genetics.
I am often asked “How did you decide to attempt this Bicycle Land Speed Record?” After I explain the way the idea came about (see earlier post about this explanation), the next question is invariably “WHY?” I have found that the easiest answer to this question is to provide a little sampling into my background, along with a few choice examples from my parents about their amazing feats, and it usually this answers the question.
I started racing bicycles at 14 years old. By the time I was 18 I had taken that competitiveness to a World Class level by placing 2nd in the Jr World Championships … in none other than Downhill Mountain Bike racing. Not really your typical teenage girly thing to do, but to me it was the best adrenaline rush I had experienced. And that adrenaline seeking started with an influence from my parents. By way of example, my Mom, jumped out of an airplane for the first time last year on her 80th birthday … just because.
She also raced Powder Puff Demolition derby cars in the late 60’s. How cool is that?
And my Dad … well, among other feats, he rode his bicycle around the outer perimeter of the United States 12,100 miles in 9 1/2 months on a bicycle self contained and sleeping in a tent … when he was 70!
Once I explain my genetic background, why I am doing the Bicycle Land Speed Record seems to be a given…or at least the question turns into either an acceptance of fact or a pondering of my sanity. Either way, I count myself fortunate to have the amazing parents as I have. I am blessed that my Mom is still with us, full of energy and excitement to this day; However I do miss my father who left us too early in 2006 … and get this, he left this world doing something amazing. At 74 years young, he was on a 22 mile hike when a storm rolled in and he didn’t make it down the mountain before the snow fell and stranded him on the trail. It was a shock to loose him, but up till the very end, he was living his life to the fullest!