Ken Miner  - by Scott Cotter
It's 2:12 on a Friday afternoon and Ken Miner is...

On the phone. Actually, he's always on the phone, practically from the time he gets up until when he goes to bed. Familiar strains are spoken, as he tries to convince the voice on the other end of the line that he needs to commit to something for the sport of mountain biking. It's not Ken's job, really, but it kind of is, too. Not only does he hold down a full-time position helping to run the family business, he ends up smack dab in the middle of all things mountain biking in the Midwest. Usually he's talking someone into helping out. As the old saying goes, Ken could sell ice cubes to an Eskimo.

That's why so many things get done in his hometown of Kansas City. And why the Midwest has been getting a little more attention these days. In these parts, Ken Miner is hooked up, switched on and glad handing about anyone he can think of at every level of the sport. He's just as likely to shrug off his hard work as he is to get on the phone and convince someone to help him get something done.

Ken helped start the Midwest Mountain Bike Patrol, works closely with land managers in both Missouri and Kansas on access issues, and has the ear of IMBA on things big and small. He has done an admirable job of getting counter culture mountain bikers to work together on a number of issues and has been known to climb up on a soapbox to rally the troops. Even he'd admit that he's not shy about being demanding if it gets something moving in the right direction. But at the end of the day nobody seems to mind because things keeping getting better.

He'll soon take over as the IMBA representative for Kansas, where he expects to work long and hard trying to open up more miles of trail and getting a bigger political presence at the state capitol. His hot button is more trails in parts of Kansas currently under served by singletrack--a tough ticket considering Kansas has less than five percent public land.

Time to Ride
Oh yeah, he does find time to ride, too. He started when his brother suggested it was the perfect way to blow off steam after putting in long hours at a pressure-cooker job. But after the high-stress job ended and he started helping run the family business, the love of riding stuck with him so he's been at it ever since. Any event there is you'll see Ken there, riding, laughing it up, holding a tasty beverage in his hand and garnering support for whatever project he currently happens to be trying to complete.

It's not all good though. Ken wrecks. A lot. He shamelessly tries any obstacle and, unfortunately, will often auger in. In fact, on just about any ride with Ken you're likely to see a nice yard sale. And there's almost always blood. But that's another way Ken has earned the respect of everyone around him. He's got all the unfettered determination of a 19-year-old. Just none of the coordination.

Currently, his tastes run toward technical downhills, but he's been all over, enjoying some of the best singletrack in the country, including the Berryman Trail in Missouri, Nebo Ridge in Southern Indiana, Lutsen Mountains in Northern Minnesota and Trumbull in Connecticut.

No matter what event is happening, large or small, Ken will be right where the action is. He's no stranger to rolling up his sleeves and helping on trail maintenance, lengthy meetings at city hall or the mundane issues of planning events. You might even see him riding a local trail with his young daughter, who seems to enjoy her time on the bike as much as her dad does.

If Ken weren't so involved in mountain bikes, he'd probably be a car geek. In fact, sitting in his garage right now is a pristine 1955 Pontiac Star Chief. In addition, of course, to all the bikes.

Stats

Current Bikes
Santa Cruz Bullit
Cannondale CAAD 4
Gary Fisher HooKooEKoo

Weight
230

Height
5'9"

Shoe Size
9.5

Broken
1 frame
2 crankset / BB combinations
2 brake levers
1 handlebar
4 seats
1 seatpost
3 wheels
2 noses
2 fingers
shoulder (2 times)
pride: too numerous to mention

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