Mike Sinyard: Founding Specialized, Determination, and the Curiosity that Drives Innovation
The Ready State Podcast
Kelly Starrett & Juliet Starrett
4.9 • 623 Ratings
🗓️ 19 August 2021
⏱️ 45 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Mike Sinyard is the founder and CEO of Specialized Bicycle Components. Mike was inducted into the Mountain Bike Hall of Fame in 1988. The StumpJumper mountain bike was added to the Smithsonian National Museum of American History’s collection in 1994.
Mike’s journey begins in the summer of 1973 when he sold his VW van for $1,500 and cycled around Europe. During his travels, he connected with Cinelli and Campagnolo, Italian bike component manufacturers, to establish an import-business relationship. Today, Specialized is a leading manufacturer of bicycles and gear. Made by riders, for riders.
In 2015, Mike launched the Specialized Foundation, known today as Outride, which focuses on linking cycling to improve cognitive, emotional, and social health. The foundation helps kids achieve academic, health, and social success. Outride currently supports community cycling, trail projects, and the Riding for Focus program.
Mike joins us to talk about founding and growing Specialized and the obsessive curiosity that drives their unparalleled innovation.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Hey everyone, I'm Dr. Kelly Starrett. |
| 0:06.8 | And I'm Juliette. |
| 0:08.3 | And you're listening to The Ready State Podcast. |
| 0:12.6 | This episode of the Ready State podcast is brought to you by Paleo Valley Essential C Complex. |
| 0:22.6 | Just for a second, do a thought experiment with me. |
| 0:25.6 | Once upon a time, we used to be limited by how much time we could spend on a boat |
| 0:28.9 | by whether or not we had access to vitamins like vitamin C, foods. |
| 0:33.7 | And guess what? |
| 0:34.7 | No scurvy. |
| 0:35.7 | Can you imagine if we just wiped out scurvy where humans could have gone? |
| 0:38.4 | Well, I think what you're trying to say is that human beings are the only mammals that don't actually make vitamin C on their own, so we have to get it from our diets. |
| 0:45.9 | Yeah, and we know whole foods are always better. I think that we've distilled these things down into these micro components, like how traditional vitamin C, like those |
| 0:54.3 | horrific orange things that used to take, those are not doing it. That's not the whole vitamin C picture. |
| 1:00.5 | No, I mean, most vitamin C supplements are nothing more than escorbic acid mixed with some other |
| 1:05.1 | stuff, and most of that is derived from GMO corn and highly processed in a lab. But paleo valley essential C has concentrated |
| 1:14.2 | sources of natural organic vitamin C, and it just packs a serious punch. We take it literally every |
| 1:19.8 | day in our house. One of the things that I have come to perseverate upon, you know how I do this, |
| 1:24.8 | become a little obsessive. Yes, you do. It's all about tissue quality, |
| 1:28.1 | gut health. That starts with vitamin C so you can actually use and build the collagen matrix. |
| 1:33.6 | If you don't have vitamin C, it doesn't matter how much bone broth you're eating. If you want to get |
| 1:37.2 | some Paleo Valley Essential C, go to the readystate.com slash essential C. That's the letter C, |
| 1:43.4 | and use the code ReadyState for 15% off mike sinyard is the |
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