Joe Hanrahan

Hometown? Milwaukee, WI

Years in the cycling industry?

If you were a dog, what breed would you be? A terrier.

Fixies? Yeah, nah, or meh? Meh. Just put a brake on it.

Tacos or burritos? Oh, fuck. Why did I ask this question? 

Favorite Tool? My favorite tool is also the DAG

Do you want to share your favorite ride around Durango or just say Twin Buttes? I’m a show, don’t tell person. Otherwise, go ride twin buttes. 

Give us a pro tip (does not need to be bike related.) Don’t sweat the petty, pet the sweaty. 

What’s your story? At 6 years old I got a sparkly green and silver Schwinn Stingray with mini ape hangers, banana seat, and a coaster brake. Soon after, I learned how to lay down huge coaster brake skids and named a section of our driveway Skid City. When I was 12 I saw Rad at the movie theater, came home and tried to emulate Cru Jones’ sweet Send Me an Angel dance floor moves on my BMX bike and that led to 4-5 years of flatland and street riding. I started riding mountain bikes in the ravines by the lake and smelly trails next to the Milwaukee River around 1989 and it’s been mostly mtb of all sorts since then. I’ll go through phases of gravel and cx (and just ordered my first actual road bike, probably a mid-life crisis thing, slightly cheaper than a Porsche), but I just think trail riding is the bee’s knees. I started racing DH kinda late at 28. Got pretty into that, won an amateur age group Nat’l Championship in 2005, enjoyed the wonders of “SemiPro” status for a few years and then aged into Enduro, like most washed up DH racers. I’ll dabble in some races now and then, but it sucks to quantify my slowing down. Haha. I got my first bike shop job in college and have tried to escape the bike biz a few times but I always manage to get pulled back in like Carlito’s Way. Over the last 20 years, I’ve been fortunate to work with and learn from incredible people at Poison Spider Bicycles in Moab,The Singletrack Factory (Denver), Salvagetti Bicycle Workshop (Denver), Go-Ride (SLC), Contender Bicycles (SLC), Shimano America, Rotor Bicycle Components and now here at the Cyclery. Learning every day along the way. Deep down, I truly believe that bicycles make the world a better place and appreciate my opportunities to contribute to that cause.