Cycling couple sharing a passion
BUTLER TWP — When Butler residents Travis and Julie Saeler go for a bicycle ride, they mean it.
The couple met at a cycling demo at Cuyahoga Valley National Park near Cleveland three years ago. Travis was riding for the Trek (Bicycle Corporation) national team and Julie was on site testing bikes.
Their common passion for cycling blossomed into a relationship and they’ve been married for two and a half years.
Travis was born and raised in Butler and is a 1989 Butler High School graduate. Julie grew up in Altoona.
“I began racing mountain bikes for Trek 15 years ago and eventually got into cyclocross,” Travis, 45, said.
Julie started in cycling 12 years ago as a triathlete and Spinning instructor.
“From the time I was 21 through 26, I did a lot of triathlons and Ironman races,” she said. “Then I went to grad school and time became an issue.
“Cyclocross became more manageable. I could get my training in and be competitive.”
Cyclocross racing is done through multiple laps on taped-off courses covering less than two miles, usually in parks.
Travis Saeler described them as “spectator friendly” events because the courses comprise such small areas. The cyclocross season runs from September through December.
“I probably do 10 to 12 (cyclocross) races a year,” he said.
As a couple, the Saelers have won the 6-hour mountain bike race in Bradys Run this year and last year. Travis placed second in his age group, 25th overall at the Chequamegon 40 — billed as “Nation’s Largest Off Road Adventure” — last year in Cable, Wisc. There were 2,500 cyclists in the event.
Travis has won numerous single-day mountain bike races in West Virginia, Pennsylvania and Ohio through the years. He is employed as a construction electrician and carries the nickname Stork in bicycling “because of my extremely thin legs.”
Julie is currently a health and physical education teacher at Slippery Rock University. She works “as needed” as a bike-fitter for the Trek shop in Pittsburgh.
“People can come in there without a bike and I have an adjustable bike set with which I can determine the right type of frame, style of bike and properly fitting bars for a person,” she said.
“Or, someone can come in with a bike and within an hour and a half, I can have the pedals, saddle and hand plants properly adjusted for that person.”
Travis smiled as his wife explained the process.
“It’s all about comfort. That’s a major part of cycling,” he said.
The Saelers’ past experiences also include bike commuting, bike packing, rail trail rides and charity rides. All of these subjects may be covered in upcoming columns.
“We ride all year round,” Travis said. “Winter riding will be touched upon, as will recreational riding, training, fitness, different disciplines of racing, bike fit, comfort, maintenance, manufacturing and designing a bicycle.
“There’s no part of it we haven’t touched. Everything will be covered from A to Z.”
