“I chased the pain,” says mountain biking legend Tinker Juarez (@dtinkerj), who has spent nearly 40 years atop the world of cycling.  Spartan Up La Ruta series host Roy M. Wallack (@roywallack) - author of Bike for Life: How to Ride to 100 -  talks with Tinker about his career, how Tinker has achieved longevity in the sport and advice on how to grow your own career.     In this episode you’ll learn:  Firsthand, the early days of BMX and how mountain biking grew into a mainstream, extreme sport Tinker’s transition from BMX to mountain biking Tinker’s mindset of “chase the pain” and why it’s enabled him to have a sense of fulfillment in life Why the transition to 24-hour races and how Tinker manages fear during a race   Background: David "Tinker" Juarez is a 2x Olympian, former professional BMX racer and is one of the most decorated mountain bike racers of all time. Juarez got his start in BMX racing when he was just 16. For the next 10 years, built an impressive career in BMX, but then mountain biking pulled him in a different direction. Today, Juarez is still racing for Cannondale, his bike sponsor since 1994, and racing at the elite pro level most weekends of the season.  Hear more about La Ruta, the world's hardest mountain-bike race,  on Roy's Bike for Life Stories podcast: https://roywallack.wixsite.com/bikeforlifestories   SPONSOR This episode of Spartan Up! is brought to you by Optimize.  Use the code word “spartan” to save 10% on a monthly or annual membership.    SUBSCRIBE: Apple Podcasts: http://bit.ly/SpartanUpShow YouTube: http://bit.ly/SpartanUpYT Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1pYBkk1T684YQg7CmoaAZt   FOLLOW SPARTAN UP: Spartan Up on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/spartanuppodcast/ Spartan Up on Twitter https://twitter.com/SpartanUpPod   CREDITS: Producer: Ryan Warner Host: Roy Wallack Sr Producer: Marion Abrams   © 2020 Spartan