By Michael Mejia, BTCEB President Emeritus
Sean Bennett, a NorCal Champion mountain bike racer, rode from 2012-2014 with El Cerrito High, one of the oldest Teams in the League. He is the youngest of 3 Bennett brothers who were all NorCal Champions with El Cerrito Racing.
When I coached the team, Sean was the little bro’ who would rather be on his skateboard. He told me he wasn’t sure he wanted to be a mountain bike racer. I told him that I would support any decision he would make. At our last Wildcat Roll in June 2013, he rode with his mom.
And here we are, 8 years later, Sean will be riding in the Tour de France this July for Team Qhubeka Nexthash. He is 1 of only 5 Americans to compete amidst 21 teams with over 200 of the world’s best racers. It’s hard to know what to even say other than wow, awesome, good luck, laugh, cry, revel.
It will be so cool to look for him in the peloton, working for his team, bringing his very best and maybe even allowing ourselves to feel a bit proud. Why should I, or we, feel any pride? After all I did not coach him nor did anyone here. Yet we, the BTCEB, have done something very important.
In the first 2 decades of the new millennium, the BTCEB evolved into the major dynamic and influential cycling community leader. We developed our programs, increased our access to funding, and spread these factors outward to influence our sport. Through our Gala Rides and other community events, amidst all the politics, we became a major focus for riding.
A large part of that was expressed in sponsorships to NorCal Teams, first to Berkeley High in 2002, then El Cerrito High in 2003. By 2014 we were sponsoring 10 NorCal Teams with cash, and gear handouts at the EBRPD Emerald City. High School racers were leading our rides or would show up en masse at Chabot and kick our behinds. So, what we did was to create and support opportunities for young riders to do something we love.
I think it fair to be with Sean in spirit, to feel that we played a part in his success. We’re all in this together. Good luck, Sean.
EDITOR’S NOTE: A little more than halfway through stage racing at Le Tour Sean continues to impress the worldwide cycling community.
