What was it like growing up with your father as one of the founders of GT Bicycles?
As a kid , to me he was always just my Dad. I wasn’t one to tell. A lot people of who my dad was or what he did. My friends knew and I got a lot of requests for stickers and eventually bikes . It was fun though. Lots of early memories at tracks, Azusa which we ran for awhile , as well as Orange which my Dad helped establish . My mom was the real star of the tracks though, especially Azusa. She worked her ass off out there. Whether it was the running the snack bar or pumping out berms after a heavy rain. She was a big reason why the racing was able to happen.

Can you share any memorable experiences or lessons you learned from him?
A lot of lessons, most learned as I matured and became a father and established a career. As a kid you don’t really see it or have the perspective yet. One of my greatest memories with my Dad was a business / pleasure trip that only he and I went on. First stop was Australia, where we visited a dealer of his named Brian. Probably not the largest dealer of GT, but if you knew my Dad, all of his dealers were important to him. So we had dinner with him and did some sailing, first time on a hobie cat. Then we chartered a fishing boat for a couple days and fished off the Great Barrier Reef and island hopped. I ended up hooking up on a 300 lb black marlin. Still have the mold from that fish. From there we took off for Japan, and that’s where I got to sit in on factory meetings and see the art of negotiations according to Richard Long. He always got his price! Then to Taiwan and Hong Kong. I was probably 12 years old at the time so 1986-87. Looking back it was a trip of a lifetime and I’m thankful I went.

How did your father’s passion for cycling and the start of GT Bicycles shape your own relationship with the sport?
I rode a little Bmx as young kid, I was decent. Not like my brother Jeff who was actually number 1 amateur at one point. I found other sports that I excelled so I fell out of the race scene a bit. However I was and will always be a lover and supporter of Bmx. Racing meant the world to my dad. He was ultra competitive.

How has GT Bicycles evolved since its start, and what do you see as the future of the company?
It’s had its up’s and down. I am completely biased on this but I think most in the know would agree with me. When my dad died, GT was never the same. He was the driving force, the passion, and with out him quarterbacking the company, it lost its way, even with the incredible team he had assembled, all extremely talented in their own rights. Many times I’ve wondered what the company would’ve looked like today if my dad had not had that accident. I will say I feel like GT is on its way back. Establishing a HQ back in Orange County where it belongs, the leadership team is great and they really put an emphasis on remembering and honoring where GT came from and getting it back to its roots.