Launching my business

I sprinted up the muddy stairs with a bike on my shoulder, huffing and puffing as I crested the hill one last time. I eased the skinny tires onto the mud, leapt onto the seat and took off in pursuit of the racer ahead of me. There was one last descent before the finish, providing one final chance to make a pass.

I gave it my all, closed the gap, and looked to make my move as I entered the off-camber turn at top speed. Would it be enough?

It was too much. With one slip, my world turned upside down. My hands were still clutching the handlebars, but the bike was now on top of me as I slid on my back down the muddy hill and off the course. After coming to a stop, I picked up the bike and started to run through the slop, but slipped and fell again, to the delight of the spectators. I tried to right myself with the bike, but slid once more, this time landing on my stomach and face. By now the crowd was roaring with laughter. Looking down at my mud-covered body, I couldn’t help but join them. I had chosen this crazy sport for work?

It was indeed work. It was December in Kansas City, and I was reporting on the Cyclocross National Championship’s course conditions, reviewing a new bike, testing shoes and evaluating a wheel rental service, all while trying to finish my race respectably. You see, just over a year ago I started Cyclocross Magazine, the first print and online magazine dedicated to the sport of cyclocross, a form of off-road bike racing that’s as big as NASCAR in Belgium and Holland and steadily growing here in the U.S. But I wasn’t inspired by hockey-stick revenue graphs or pre-IPO business plans. Although I’ve had to put together my share of those in my past career, I am a long-time cyclocross racer and fan, and started this venture to help grow the sport, produce something that I’ve long wanted myself, and utilize my life-long passion for bicycles and racing. Now I dedicate most waking hours towards that mission.

It’s certainly rewarding work. Although I’ve worked on products in past jobs that impact tens of millions of users, today my efforts feel more meaningful despite benefiting just 1/1000 of that. I’m not curing cancer or creating world peace, and heck, we’re rolling in more mud than dough at this point. But if I’m successful at applying my passion to grow the sport and build a lasting company that informs, excites and entertains readers, I’ll happily be hard at work, getting muddy, and trying to stay upright until I’m a very old man.

Advice for others

Lessons I’ve learned:

Be authentic. Participate in what you’re supposed to be an expert in, even if it involves getting your hands (or entire body) dirty.

Engage your community. They’ll say what works and what doesn’t and will often want to help you.

Keep doing some tasks that you enjoy, even as your business grows. The idea was to do what you love, right?

Lastly, remember why you started your business. If there’s a larger mission or a lifestyle change you were aiming for, stay true to it.