PHOTO: Casey B. Gibson

Tilford's toughness leads to spots on the podium

Steve Tilford, 48, lives in Topeka, Kan., which is an unlikely zip code for a pro bike racer. Kansas boasts none of the majestic climbs and mild temperatures enjoyed by his competitors who live in Colorado, California, and Arizona. But few bike racers can sustain the willpower to race at the highest level of the sport like Tilford has.

He's raced in more than a thousand events since he started in 1975. He stepped away from racing during the 1990s and then, a decade later, he returned the same way he went out: on top. Five Masters world mountain bike titles, four national cyclocross titles, three-time member of the world championship road team, and the first national mountain bike champion highlight his race resume.

In addition to his racing, Tilford is also known quite often as "this guy" (as in "there was 'this guy'…") in racer lore that is passed between riders. For example, there was "this guy" (Tilford) who crashed during a mountain bike race in Vermont and, instead of enduring a time-consuming trip to the emergency room for some necessary stitches, he scrubbed the wound himself, doused it with hydrogen peroxide, anesthetized it, and stitched it up -- all in the parking lot next to the racecourse (as rumor has it).

Two years ago there was "this guy" (Tilford again) in first place at a cylco-cross race who went off course and slid onto the icy surface of a pond, the ice gave way and Tilford fell in up to his thighs. He scrambled out of the water, hopped back on his bike and rode to first place.

So far this year, Tilford has collected a number of podium finishes, and he is preparing to defend his Masters national cyclocross title for a fourth consecutive year in December.