Can’t buy me love

We all have role models. Mr. Brandt, my former high school English teacher and cycling enthusiast, was the first person that ever exposed to the world of racing on skinny tires and pavement, and ram’s horn looking handlebars. I can’t remember much he taught me about English (mainly because I lacked focus at the time), but I can remember staring at his bikes during class and marveling at the fine craftsmanship that set them apart from my accustomed department store bikes. A few times he even went off on curriculum-unrelated tangents after a weekend of racing explaining his success or lack thereof in the event. Sadly, I remember those discussions vividly but am hard-pressed to tell you what a gerund is and its function in a sentence.

As I have grown and matured from that dazed, velo-infatuated sophomore punk, I still keep in touch with him. As a now educator, I aspire to reach students on a level that he was able to achieve and respect his outlooks on all things cycling, spiritual, and education based.

Below is an email he sent to me earlier this week. After obtaining his granted permission, I had to share it with all of you. Enjoy.


I thought of you yesterday when the latest issue of Bicycling arrived at my doorstep. It's filled with the ubiquitous, get-fast-now, get-thin-now, get-carbon-now articles. Who's on the cover? Patrick Dempsey. Yes, the Patrick McActor from Gray's Anatomy. Ahhhhh, nothing better than reading more articles about how people who can fake emotions for a living are given a platform for their views on life.
Why are their views more important than the guy who works on my car? His automotive skills are brilliant, yet, TMZ doesn't fly choppers over his shop, hoping to get a glimpse of wielding his torque wrench. I guess it's the hard-hitting insightful comments people who fake emotions for a living can convey:
Bicycling: Boonen or Hincapie?
Patrick McStupid: Boonen. He wasn't rude to me when I met him. Classic. Now he flaunts his all-access connections.
Bicycling gone Hollywood. I'd cancel my subscription, but I desperately need to lose weight, find speed and wonder what McDipStick's chef has prepared for his post-ride snack.