An Unsolicited Open Letter To Bicycle Brands

Most every rider I know has a Brett Tippie story. That one personal anecdote from a riding event, a community shindig, or a chance trail encounter that they pull out when mountain biking’s master of ceremonies’ name comes up. Most of these tall tales are fantastic and funny; some are entirely human; mine is simply sweet. 

I was standing at the finish of the 2013 NIMBY 50 in Pemberton when the final riders crawled across the line. Exhausted. Right around the five-hour mark, which, for the record, was a solid three hours of stoic suffering on top of the winning time. Each of them was greeted with the same ecstatic energy from MC-Brett as if they were headed to the podium.

His head down, facing off with Tippie’s end-ride ardour, I heard an exhausted rider’s sinking retort, “I think I came dead last.” Brett lowered his mic, grinned gently, and with nothing but support, he said, “eighty people didn’t finish.” A slight exaggeration, but exactly the recognition of accomplishment that a beaten soul needed to hear. A small smile, earned. And then, without missing a beat, he parted the crowd with a brassy and boisterous “Move Aside! Move Aside Everyone! This Man Needs A Burger!” 

{Above photo: YT Industries}

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My daughter’s Brett Tippie story is enjoying the signature BLT – Brett, Lettuce, & Tippie – at Caffee Motivo in Kamloops. Chicken, Bacon, Chipotle Mayo, Tomato, Spinach, Cheddar. As per Claire, it’s delicious.

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{Above photo: Ergon Bike Ergonomics}

There are plenty of riders who live mountain biking. Some of them are very talented bicycle handlers. Most of them, in my experience, are fantastic folks. Beyond racing podiums and the clock, a few of them are pushing mountain biking trickery, technicality, and amplification or epicness in ways I’m informed make their riding ‘relevant.’ Truth told, I’m not sure to what audience exactly. Or, more importantly, in this context, what all that brings in terms of sponsorship ROI. 

In my view, what sets Tippie apart from other sponsored riders and personalities is that he lives mountain biking community. He’s battled the human condition, arrived empathetic, and he’ll meet anyone on their level. He’s a rad dad who has ridden with his kids, in any weather, since they were wee. He can shred, he can suffer, but he also reminds all of us that mountain biking is first and foremost fun and to not take ourselves too seriously. 

He’s never too cool. Brett’s stoked for the kid with the BSO who’s freshly hooked on jumps. Brett’s stoked for folks who’ve retired from trails but are still pedaling. Brett’s stoked for the plunking hacks like me, decades into having the best time playing bicycles in the forest. He’s stoked for the rider who came in first place, and he’s still stoked three hours later for the rider who came dead last. 

{Above photo: Mountain Life Media}

Your current average customer identifies with Brett. Just like the rest of us, he’s always pumped about riding bikes. Even if that’s just talking about riding bikes. He’s always scrambling to maintain his rigs plus a family fleet of hard-ridden bicycles. He’s always trying to sneak in one more ride, even if that means trusting a new friend* to watch his machine while he sprints through the grocery store madly completing that errand he squeezed to grab a lap or two.

Tippie is the creator of the ‘guilt-free ride’ concept, and, at least in the moment, he can jubilantly sell even the most doubtful folks on the beauty of hanging out with your family until they’re all asleep and then hitting the trails in the darkest-dark at 3am in the morning. 

Brett also shreds down trails in a way that’s aspirational for most of us. A few winters back, he caught up to Crash Test Kevin and me riding on Mt. Seymour. We were standing at the top of a rock section that was fully iced over, deciding the safest way to walk down it. Tippie pulled up, told us a couple of jokes, and then, when his group caught up, he laughed joyfully and rolled straight in with a shout of “F*cking Tippie” from his compatriots. The rest of us gingerly shuffled down on two feet or our butts.

*{Read: any stranger who also mountain bikes} 

{Above photo: Brett Tippie}

Your future customers are inspired to mountain biking by Tippie. A lot is made of Brett’s crossover appeal with snow sports, having raced snowboards for Team Canada and still shredding slopes, but he’s also a professional speaker and host who carries the joy of riding with him everywhere he goes. 

And with Brett, it’s not all about Brett. It’s about his appreciation for his dad’s art, and for his daughters’ art, and for his family’s support, and for his sponsors. Both bike industry and otherwise. I’ve met a lot of sponsored riders, and I’ve never met one who is so obviously all about being thankful for the support they receive. Earned, not entitled. 

{Above photo: MTB-News}

Yeah, so. Brett Tippie. He’s part larger than life and part real life. He’ll announce the whole event and then drive across the country to make the photoshoot. Is there a sponsored mountain biker who hustles harder for their supporters? He’s a real person with a real family, and he’s a supernatural spirit bringing joy to folks who love and will come to love life on two wheels. 

And, he’s an opportunity. I know, first hand, that it’s tight all over the bicycle industry right now, and marketing dollars and cents are being reviewed constantly. But how many potential ambassadors have such a positive every-rider appeal inside the mountain bike community and such potential to bring new riders into the mountain bike community?

Whether your bike company already has its own exciting schtick or it’s a bit corporate and boring, it would only be better with that friendly stoke, freakin’ shredding, and full-on smile. I’m certain that if you ask long²-time supporters like SR Suntour, Maxxis, Magura, Leatt, Adidas-Five-Ten, and Ergon, they’ll say the same thing. You should hire Brett Tippie.