By John Arlia
Cronkite News
TUCSON — In 2008, Tucson resident Brendan Lyons was, by his own description, an overweight emergency medical technician who dreamed of becoming a firefighter. That dream and the fitness it would require seemed out of reach until a friend introduced him to cycling.
“I ended up being pretty decent on a bicycle and weight just started (coming off),” he said. “I lost about 75 pounds. In 2009, I ended up attributing the bicycle to getting on full-time as a firefighter.”
Shortly after achieving that career goal, Lyons increased his cycling regimen and started training for El Tour de Tucson, a 109-mile charity bike ride around the perimeter of the city. It was during his preparation for that event that Lyons realized his newfound hobby could be dangerous.
“A car pulled out on the street from an apartment complex, and I’m in the bike lane,” he said. “I go head over handlebars, tear up my chin. The car took off.”