Sports Spectrum

Jermey VanSchoonHoven

Call it an action sport or call it extreme. Any way you look at it, observed bike trials is just plain crazy. Jeremy Vanschoonhoven has a slightly different perspective. As one of the sport's best international riders, he's actually seen what it's like at both the bottom and the top of just about every object imaginable.

When VanSchoonhoven hit the professional circuit, he quickly discovered that the road to success was paved with some tough choices. Unlike his sheltered home life, the world of bike trials was not a haven for the Christian faith. "Starting out, it was really tough," he says. "I was one of the youngest pros ever in the United States, and all these guys that I look up to are asking me to go out drinking with them or partying with them."

VanScoonhoven says that things have changed somewhat since his rookie days. "Things have really changed a lot," he says. "Everybody knows that I'm a Christian. They don't really mind too much...I get to talk to people about Christ - people who hardly anybody would get a chance to talk to- just because they respect me for my bike riding."