Member Mirror: Darin Swanson -Portland Bicycling Club

Member Mirror: Darin Swanson

Pete: When did you begin biking and why?

Darin: I started really biking towards an Olympic triathlon in 1998. After that, I mostly biked for triathlons and commuting.

Pete: How many miles do you typically ride in a year? Club rides, or independent rides?

Darin: My average is about 2500 miles a year. I try to make about one club ride a week in peak season but also do a fair bit of training on my own with Trisha. I also do one touring ride a year of about 600 miles. So far: Oregon / Idaho, Eastern Europe, and Southeast Asia.

Pete: You must have a favorite bike in your “stable.” What bike is it, and how many others do you have?

Darin: I have two bikes: a Cervelo racing bike and a REI commuter. I really like how my Cervelo climbs!

Pete: What do you find most enjoyable about biking? Is there anything about the activity that you don’t like?

Darin: The downhills! I do lots of running and the best part of biking is that you can rest and regenerate on the downhills. That is not the case for running! I dislike how hard it is to stay warm when biking. So much easier to stay warm when running!

Riding down the eastern coastline of Thailand . . . near Ban Nong Khao Niao . . . no cars and great biking with a tailwind. It’s a ride we would all have loved!

Pete: In addition to cycling, are there other hobbies, interests, or pursuits you engage in?

Darin: I do lots of running…road and trail…about 2000 miles a year. I have completed 40 marathons and about 25 ultramarathons. My other hobby is keeping tropical fish tanks.

Pete: While we would all like to be biking fulltime, unfortunately, we have to work to support this and other habits. What kind of work do you currently do in your “day job?”

Darin: I am semi-retired. I advise tech startups that are in their early stages (Series A or Series B funding) towards establishing and maintaining hyper growth.

Pete: What is a surprising fact about you that your fellow club members might find interesting?

Darin: I put myself through college by planting trees in Northern British Columbia.

 

 

 

Peter Schmidt, Club Member