Johnson uses the organization to promote Masters cycling

When Lance Armstrong collected his first Tour de France victory, Steve Johnson had already earned eight national titles and one world title as a bike racer. Before becoming the CEO of USA Cycling in 2006, Johnson raced throughout the 1980s and 1990s on teams that would eventually evolve into Armstrong's triumphant U.S. Postal Service team.

Now, as leader of the national governing body of cycling, Johnson, 58, and his staff, create and enforce the rules that govern all competitive cyclists. The fastest growing demographic at USA Cycling since 2002 has been Masters cyclists and, while Armstrong might have influenced a bit of that growth, it also resulted from athlete development programs put in place by USA Cycling.

"For the older generation, none of us has aspirations of riding in the Tour de France, but we can still be energized by his [Armstrong's] accomplishments," Johnson said. "I think there are a lot of individuals who ride for fun and for fitness; the challenge for us is to engage that group without detracting from our core mission: athlete development."

In 2008, Johnson and his USA Cycling staff served the Masters community by co-producing (along with the Louisville Sports Commission) the Masters Road National Championships. The event had existed before, although in the past it was held along with youth and other championships.

These days, this Masters championship stands on its own, testimony to the growing importance of the group, which should only grow in prominence at USA Cycling in the years to come.