Milan student, cyclist raises money for Lance Armstrong Foundation

By Sheila Pursglove, Special Writer

A gift of a Trek Discovery Channel road bike on his 12th birthday ignited a passion for cycling in Austin Elam.

Three years later, the 15-year-old Milan High School sophomore may be outgrowing that bike, but not the passion.

Not only is he an accomplished cyclist, he has put his skills to good use and raised money for the Lance Armstrong Foundation in his first 100-mile ride, the Apple Cider Century.

"I wanted to try something new, to set a challenge for myself and test my limits," he says.

"The century in cycling is an important achievement for someone who's into the sport and it takes a lot of dedication and training to get yourself into good enough shape."

Austin's mom, Molly Michaels, suggested he combine the century ride with a good cause.

"I chose to raise money for the Lance Armstrong Foundation because I grew up watching him on TV in the Tour de France, and he's still one of my idols. I'd just seen him on the tour in person, which made it even more special for me to raise money for his charity," Austin says.

"It's amazing how much he's accomplished in his life since he was first diagnosed with cancer. My grandfather and step-grandfather both died from cancer in the last five years, and a few of our family friends are still battling it, so I decided to dedicate my first century to them and to all those who are dealing with cancer."

Austin completed his first century ride in six hours and five minutes, raising more than $1,100 for the foundation.

During a 10-day trip to Europe in July, Austin and his mother saw the end of Stage 13 of the Tour de France in Colmar, France. The pair staked out a spot about 150 meters from the finish line and waited in the crowd for more than two hours to see the racers arrive.

An announcer talked over the public address system conveying to spectators what was going on in the race kilometers away, and announcing sponsors and team cars as they came through town in a parade-like caravan that arrives at each finish line in advance of all the riders, Molly says.

"Even though we couldn't understand more than a word here and there, we could sense the excitement and anticipation of the crowd, and got caught up in it, too.

"We were really lucky Lance Armstrong had decided to return to the tour this year. He's been such an inspiration to Austin over the years, and even though he was little more than a black-and-yellow blur racing down the Avenue de la Republique in Colmar in the rain that day, it was just so exciting to know we had seen him ride in person."

Since returning from France, Austin has ridden almost 1,300 miles in rides that include the 62-mile Cereal City ride in Battle Creek; 62-mile Irish Hills ride in Sylvania, Ohio; 62-mile Assenmacher ride in Flint; 62-mile Mad Anthony River Rally ride in Toledo; 75-mile MOST ride along the shores of Lake Michigan; 100-mile Apple Cider Century in southwest Michigan; and 100-mile Hilly Hundred ride near Bloomington, Ind.

Other rides over the past three years include the 2006 and 2007 Big Mac Fall ride along the upper Lake Michigan shoreline and across the Mackinac Bridge; 2007 and 2008 62-mile Hancock Horizontal ride in Findlay, Ohio; and Irish Hills and MARR rides in 2007.

Next year, he hopes to take part in the weeklong Pedal Across Lower Michigan ride or the Michigan segment of the Cycle America ride from Ludington to Niagara Falls.

One day, he hopes to do the entire Cycle America ride, a 64-day, 4,200-mile, 13-state ride from Seattle to Boston.

In his passion for cycling, Austin is following in his father's footsteps -- or rather, wheels. David Elam began cycling in his 20s and completed a number of organized long-distance tours, including his first century ride of 100 miles. He set his hobby aside when Austin was born, but each July was glued to TV coverage of the Tour de France, along with his son.

"I became really interested in cycling and wanted to try it for myself," Austin says. "Once I did, I got really hooked on it."

When Austin was old enough, the pair started riding together. Typical training rides are a 40-mile round trip from Milan to Tecumseh or 32-mile round trip to Saline, with variations of these routes. Over the summer, Austin and his dad rode five to six times a week.

"My dad works at night, so we can spend time together every day after school and on weekends. Cycling gives us a chance to bond," Austin says. "I've never ridden with anyone but my dad.

"We give each other some friendly competition, often comparing who left who in the dust on this or that hill. Usually we help each other out, taking turns riding in front to make it easier for the one in the back. My dad's a really fun person, and I love to spend time with him."

In September 2007, the pair followed another of the world's major bike races, the Tour of Missouri, for three days from Kansas City to Springfield to Branson.

A high school athlete, Austin plays on the basketball and baseball teams, volunteers as spotter in the announcer's booth at JV football home games, and assists with the Little Reds Youth Basketball Program.

Outside of school and sports, he enjoys spending time with friends and family, especially his younger brother, Carson. A member of Marble Memorial United Methodist Church in Milan, Austin's future plans include college and more long-distance cycling adventures with his dad.

He hopes to visit Switzerland and France again, and is taking French in high school to be better equipped with the language on his next visit.

And he dreams of riding on infamous Tour de France climbing routes.

"I just have so much fun cycling. I really love to do it and get such a thrill out of it," he says. "I love the challenge of a difficult climb and the speed and thrill of the descent.

"Plus it's a way to spend quality time with my dad."

Sheila Pursglove is a freelance writer. She can be reached at bingley51@yahoo.com.