An Introduction

Hi, I'm Brad... and I'm a singletrack-o-holic. It was June of 2005, my wife and I in our 6th month of losing weight, when we walked into Hamilton Bike Shop in Richmond MI. My wife selected a comfort bike for herself, and I decided on a Gary Fisher Marlin. Our plans were to ride a bit for fitness and to help with weight loss, with possibly "a bit of trail riding" for me.

The next week, on Wednesday after work if I recall correctly, I pulled into the West Branch parking lot at Stony Creek. I changed clothes, unloaded my bike, filled my bottle, strapped on my helmet, and proceeded to have an absolute bleeping blast! The day was not without it's challenges: down the "snakes" instead of up, walking just about every hill in the "roller coaster", wheezing my way up the 2-track climbs. But as big as the challenges were, the smile on my face was even bigger.

Since then, I've been a hopeless addict. I rode as much as I could through 2005, learning the techniques and building stamina. By late summer, I was able to ride Gruber's Grinder at Holdridge. Spring of 2006 saw the purchase of a Gary Fisher Rig, with my Marlin being religated to touring/dirt road duty. In the fall of 2006 I entered the Addison Oaks Fall Classic, where I place 2nd in Beginner Men 30-35. This year I joined an MTB race team, Team Sandbag. I'm racing in Sport/Beginner Singlespeed (Tailwind) and doing a few races in the MMBA CPS series (Open Singlespeed).

For now, I'll leave you with a few images.

My trusty steed: a 2006 Gary Fisher Rig

The start of the 2007 Pontiac Lake Time Trial. I placed 13th in Sport/Beginner Singlespeed.

I'm the one on the right.

Yankee Springs Time Trial - 28th place Open Singlespeed

Fort Custer Stampede - 14th place Open Singlespeed

Bloomer XC - 4th place Sport/Beginner Singlespeed

I'm the one in the Team Sandbag (TSB) jersey.