Blog

You’re from a small town in Massachusetts. How did you end up in San Diego?
I grew up in Hampden, a small town in Western Massachusetts just outside of Springfield. To this day, there are no traffic lights in town. After attending the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, MD, I became a Surface Warfare Officer and picked San Diego to be my home port. My brother, Clay, who was going through medical school on a Navy scholarship, and I had both spent some time in San Diego. We were like, how cool would it be if we could get stationed in San Diego together? We made it happen and we’re both still here. 

What’s your background in sports and fitness?
Like many kids, I grew up playing pretty much every sport, including football, basketball and lacrosse in high school and Division I lacrosse at the Naval Academy. I continued to play lacrosse for a post-collegiate club in San Diego.

I caught the running bug after finishing the La Jolla Marathon in 1996. I had never run more than seven miles and my training was pretty suspect, so it was somewhat painful, but I loved the sense of accomplishment after crossing the finish line. My brother and I proceeded to run the Honolulu Marathon later that year, training and raising money via The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society’s Team In Training program. I was hooked. I went on to run more than a dozen marathons, including qualifying for and running the Boston Marathon, and countless half-marathons, 10Ks and 5Ks.

I run a lot less these days, because riding the ElliptiGO is so fun and so easy on the body. And I have picked up another sport, pickleball, which I have become pretty addicted to. Nothing’s better than a warm-up ride on an ElliptiGO bike to pickleball, a couple of hours on the court, and then a cool-down ElliptiGO ride home.

How did you get involved with ElliptiGO?
I met Bryan Pate and Brent Teal, ElliptiGO’s Co-Founders, back in the early 2000s. We were all working at a company called Palomar Technologies, and we became buddies by logging plenty of miles together. They both found a passion for doing triathlons, but I never found joy (or comfort) on a bike seat, so I stuck with running. After a couple of years, we all left the company and went our separate ways.

Then one day in 2005, Bryan reached out, mentioned he had an idea for a low-impact outdoor running device, and asked me if I still kept in touch with Brent — because he knew I couldn’t build anything! I reconnected them, and that was the beginning of them bringing Bryan’s idea to life. 

In 2008, I got a chance to ride “Charlie,” the second prototype Bryan and Brent built. I was blown away with what they had created, but I felt a little vulnerable on a bike that was so high off the ground. Bryan swung by the house later that year with the next prototype, “Delta,” and I remember thinking, “They’re getting closer.” In January 2009, Bryan and I met for coffee. He wanted to pick my brain about people who could potentially sell these bikes. And it was during that conversation, kind of out of nowhere, that he asked if I would ever consider joining the team. 

My answer was “yes!” I consulted for a handful of months, and my wife, Erin, got involved with the sales efforts, too. Then on July 3, 2009, I joined ElliptiGO as the first full-time employee, and Erin joined as a part-time employee. Our twins were only 18 months old at the time and taking this role meant a huge pay cut for me, but I had never felt more alive in my life! Nearly 16 years later, it’s amazing to see what we’ve accomplished.

How does it feel to now step into the role of CEO?
It’s exciting, it’s scary … it’s a whole host of emotions. But it feels right and I am 100% up to the task. I’m honored that Bryan has entrusted me with this role. I still keep in touch with Brent, and he’s excited for me to take the helm and lead ElliptiGO into the future. Having the support from both of the Co-Founders really means a lot, and I am not going to let them down.

Your previous title was Chief Enthusiast Officer—how will that enthusiasm carry over into your leadership as CEO?
Well, I went from CEO to CEO. And as much as I am ready to embrace the title of Chief Executive Officer, I will never lose the passion behind the Chief Enthusiast.

You’re envisioning a new phase for the company: “ElliptiGO 2.0.” Can you share what that means to you?
I feel like we’ve accomplished so much since we launched our first ElliptiGO bike in 2010, yet we’ve barely scratched the surface on the market opportunity and our ability to positively impact more lives. Candidly, for the past handful of years, we haven’t been in the position to invest in generating new demand or in new product development. That’s changed, and I think our commitment to invest in both of these areas is going to give us a resurgence; that’s what I am calling “ElliptiGO 2.0.”    

How do you plan to continue fostering the strong team culture and community that ElliptiGO is known for?
We are fortunate to have a very seasoned and dedicated team here at ElliptiGO. At the core, we all care. We care about each other, we care about the products we sell and we care about our community, which is second to none. Honestly, it’s our community and their stories of how ElliptiGO bikes have impacted their lives that fuels me and so many on the team. They never get old. I read every review and I thoroughly enjoy our Rider of the Month stories. 

I think we can do a better job of sharing these stories, supporting our community and doing even more to help our customers maximize the benefits of their purchase. For instance, if someone buys an ElliptiGO to help cross-train for running, we should ensure they have access to all of our available resources. And if someone buys an ElliptiGO because they are interested in losing some weight or getting fit again, we should support them in every way possible. If we think about our customers first, find even more ways to support them and create more opportunities for our customer base to interact with and support each other, our community is really going to flourish.

We also need to give more people the opportunity to experience what it’s like to ride an ElliptiGO bike. To do so, we need to expand our Enthusiast community by adding more locations and leveraging the knowledge and capabilities of our amazing customer base to show people how fun and effective ElliptiGO bikes are. If you’ve ever been intrigued about becoming an Enthusiast, I’d be grateful if you’d take a closer look at the program. We’d love your support.

Do you still have your 8S FE (Founder’s Edition)? Do you have any other ElliptiGO bikes at home?
Yes, I still ride and love my 2010 8S Founder’s Edition. If only it could talk, I’m sure it would have some fun stories to share. It’s been my trusty steed for 15 years and luckily, I have Keri (and now BK) in my corner to keep it GOing! I’ve ridden it up Palomar every year that we’ve held the ElliptiGO World Championships, and I don’t plan on stopping riding it anytime soon. I do have my five-year-anniversary ElliptiGO 11R, but that poor bike has never even made it out of the box.

If you could take an ElliptiGO ride anywhere in the world, where would it be and why?
We definitely have it pretty good here in Southern California in terms of weather and beautiful views. A week doesn’t go by without me saying, “This doesn’t get old.” I have been fortunate to ride in a variety of states across the country as part of my travels for ElliptiGO events, and I’ve ridden in a few different countries, but ever since customer Ton de Bruyn shared that he and his business partner, Herry, rent ElliptiGOs and offer bike tours in Bali, that would have to be on the short list. Related, I have heard nothing but rave reviews from so MANY customers that I respect and trust that Pete and Lynn van Nuys put on absolutely unforgettable ElliptiGO Tours in Europe. So that’s on the bucket list too!

What are some of your most memorable moments from your tenure at ElliptiGO?
There truly are so many, I’m not sure where to begin! From pacing the 2009 Rock n Roll Marathon on ElliptiGO prototypes, to being the first (along with Bryan) to climb Mt. Washington on an ElliptiGO, to the 15 ElliptiGO World Championships and Rally Weekends we’ve held, I have incredible memories. 

But my most memorable experience is the 2014 Boston Marathon. The terrible, tragic bombings had taken place the previous year. My wife, Erin, and my sister-in-law, Patti, had both run in 2013, and my brother, my father and I were all near the finish line, waiting for them. Fortunately, both Erin and Patti finished before the bombs detonated. We all left the finish line area less than 10 minutes before the bombs went off, with my Dad and brother walking right past the trash can where the first bomb blew up. Needless to say, it shook us pretty hard. 

We embraced the spirit of “Boston Strong” and vowed to return in 2014. Erin didn’t run because she was pregnant with our son, Brady, but I had qualified to run and fittingly wore a Tom Brady jersey and a three-corner hat during the race. I broke into tears mid-race when I learned that longtime ElliptiGO athlete Meb Keflezighi had won the race, the first American to do so since 1983. It was a storybook ending to a terrible tragedy. That evening, Erin, Clay, Patti and I had the honor of celebrating with Meb and his family in his hotel room, and I got the chance to interview him about how the ElliptiGO helped him win and set a PR two weeks shy of his 39th birthday. I still get the chills thinking about it to this day.

ElliptiGO has been and will continue to be a big part of your life. How has your family supported your ElliptiGO career?
I am beyond lucky to have Erin by my side. She’s my number one supporter and has been right there with me this entire journey. I would not be in this position, taking over as the CEO of ElliptiGO, without her support and belief in me. And I feel so fortunate that we get to interact and spend time together during “work hours.” Most people never get that opportunity. Some even say, “I could never work with my spouse.” For us, it’s so easy and so enjoyable. We never thought twice about it. I can’t tell you how many times we’ve brought our ElliptiGOs on trips, including anniversary getaways. I’m so proud of all of her contributions to ElliptiGO. And she will always be the first female to ever ride a century (100+ miles) on an elliptical bike! As for our kids, all they know is ElliptiGO. We’ve done some great rides with the girls, and they logged some solid miles on the trainer in our backyard during COVID.

Is there anything else you would like to share?
It’s been quite the ride so far — literally and figuratively. We’ve got an incredible product, an even more incredible team and a community I wouldn’t trade for anything. I’m deeply grateful to everyone who’s been part of the journey so far, and I’m excited for the many more who’ll join us as we continue to grow the ElliptiGO movement. The road ahead is full of possibility, and I couldn’t be more energized for what’s to come.

As my email sign-off says,… Enjoy the ride!