Mennonites and pro-cycling? Not a likely combination. But, as we all know by now…occasionally the unlikely happens. The AP has taken a look at the early days of Landis’ career, which started when he bought his first mountain bike at the age of 15. Riding every day – often until the wee hours of the morning - Landis earned the title of Junior National Champion by 1993. At the age of 20 he moved out to California with aspirations of becoming a pro-mountain-biker. When his mountain biking team folded, he transitioned to road-racing where he made his mark, and was eventually recruited by Armstrong. The rest as they say is history. But that’s only half the story. Breaking from the Mennonite community would prove to be just as big a challenge. Mountain bike races conflicted with church times, and his parents were not thrilled with the idea on many occasions. Thankfully they learned to accept their son’s direction, and here we sit on the eve of potentially one of the greatest time trials in Tour history.

Read