Travis Engel’s Commonground Bikes project combined the best aspects of BMX and mountain bikes. Things didn’t go according to plan, but his concepts have since been picked up by some BMX legends. This and other stories were the focus of the second half of Travis’ interview.

Travis Engel followed his bliss from his hometown in Illinois to California, and great things happened. He got a sweet bike shop gig, which led to a career as a mountain bike journalist with Bike Mag and The Radavist. This is part 1 of his interview.

Hernan Montenegro does it all. He shredded a BMX and fixed-gear in “To Live & Ride in LA.” Nowadays he operates Montenegro Manufacturing, a custom carbon frame operation. But he had to work as a bike messenger for three years to keep the lights on. This is his story.

It’s difficult to overstate Zapata Espinoza’s impact on cycling. Zap has chronicled mountain biking, road cycling and motorcycles for decades. He discussed Mountain Bike Action’s editorial red lines and the fallout from his notoriously negative review of Trek’s first full-suspension bike.

Chad Logan, aka Mr. Tick, talks about growing up in Southern California, discovering mountain biking, his obsession with vintage bikes, and how he got his start building his own bike parts under the label Mr. Tick Bicycle Parts.