I was lying on my back when I decided I had to change. I was racing bikes and living in South Carolina. Recently married, my wife pursued a Graduate degree, and I was riding, racing, and working in a bike shop. It was my fourth crash in as many weekends.
It wasn't much later that I started my career working in Printing. Second-shift prepress in the days of Quark and Aldus Pagemaker, film, and metal plates. I learned the art of Printing in those days. I didn't know it then, but that was the start of my career.
Computers got better. Software changed. Film gave way to digital. Printing work became publishing, and I started working in the magazine industry. If I have one regret, it's when the industry changed. 9/11 changed our lives untold, as it did the magazine industry. I loved this work, being a part of creating a publication every month and working with some brilliant folks. I loved the creativity and storytelling. But publications shuttered, and I jumped from magazines to books. Eventually, however, pixels replaced paper. Publishing work became Marketing work.
Marketing for me started in the Insurance industry—nothing sexy, but a valuable product that helps people. I was exposed to the need for diverse materials and content in this field. Insurance materials are regulated, needing to be understood by a wide educational range and speaking to many communities. It was a crash course in Corporate Marketing and Communications, which grew in ability and responsibility throughout the years.
Bicycles eventually called me back when I had an opportunity to take over a storied bicycle brand. My experiences came together: cycling, storytelling, creativity, marketing, and making a product I believed in. But markets change, and what I loved about the bicycle work was distilled into events.
I started the Ramble Ride in 2015. The Ramble Ride enriches, educates, and inspires participants to test their limits and explore what they can do through engaging outdoor experiences. What could be better? Four rides a year, working with friends and family, they got bigger every year, growing in complexity and locations. And though we stumbled a bit during COVID-19, managing other events filled the gap. In 2022 and 2023, my event responsibilities grew to fourteen. I love working with athletes and riders, telling the stories that came out of these rides and events, and helping them achieve whatever they are after. It's rewarding but difficult work with lots of travel and time away from home.
So, it is time for something that requires less travel and a little more balance but still allows me to contribute and take on new challenges.
Let's go.