PS Simelane

I got into cycling by accident.

Back in 2010, while studying statistics and economics at Luther College, I taught myself how to ride a bike confidently. At first, it was purely practical. The bike saved me money. It took me toWalmart for free instead of paying a taxi. It also replaced gas money and gym memberships when I started commuting to work. After completing my undergraduate degree in 2014, I earned a master’s in software development and design from New Mexico Highlands University (2014–2016). In July 2016, I landed my first software developer role, focusing on e-commerce.

A year into that job, in 2017, I entered a Grand Fondo in Omaha, Nebraska, a 42-mile, mass-start ride. I wasn’t trying to become a cyclist. I was training for a marathon and needed a way to maintain fitness without more pounding on my legs. I showed up on a Panasonic DX-2000wearing Adidas running shoes, orange running shorts, and a T-shirt. I thought I was killing it until a group of cyclists flew past me. I chased them as hard as I could.

We rode together in silence, communicating only through heavy breathing and the occasional snot rocket. Somewhere in that quiet suffering, something clicked. By the end of the ride, with a group of strangers united by two wheels, I was hooked.

PS Simelane in his early days of Road Bicycle racing

In May 2018, after finishing the marathon in under three hours, I finally admitted it: I was a cyclist. I joined a local team in Omaha and raced criteriums until mid 2020. Along the way, I became mildly infamous on YouTube for chasing teammates after a NorCal cyclist used a videoI sent him as a reminder that chasing teammates is frowned upon.

During the height of COVID in 2020, I started a new job as a software engineer for a computer forensics company. The role came with a four-day workweek and a commute that was either one hour by car or ninety minutes by bike. I loved the three-day weekends, but something was missing. August 2021, I began searching for a software engineering role that aligned with my passion for the outdoors. Cycling companies were at the top of my list. I wanted a healthy work-life balance, time with my family, and a job that didn’t compete with cycling, but complemented it.

What began as cross-training evolved into daily transportation and eventually a full-on racing machine. As I climbed the ranks in criterium racing, a crash nearly ended my season while racingCategory 4/5. I decided gravel racing might be safer and offer better scenery. I was wrong.Towards the end of 2021, A miscalculated turn sent me Superman-style into a cornfield, breaking my clavicle. My wife picked me up after the race and dropped me at the hospital. After scheduling surgery, I walked a mile home with my arm resting in a sling, wondering whether the injury would affect an upcoming job interview.

PS Simelane in riding a gravel bike through a corn field

Through every stage, the bike took me to places I would never have visited otherwise and connected me with people I would never have met. Whenever I move somewhere new, I just find other cyclists, no introduction needed. Other than convincing people to call me PS. PS comes from my full name: Siphamandla Prayer Simengaye Simelane. Everyone back home in eSwatini calls me PS; my full name exists only on official documents. Cycling became a tool for community building. Each pedal stroke added to a growing network of relationships.

In September 2021, I accepted a job at SRAM and moved to Colorado Springs that December.Before my first day, HR messaged me specifically to say: don’t wear a suit. I showed up semi-casual and was still overdressed. That’s when it hit me, I didn’t need special office clothes anymore. I could ride to work every day, fix my bike in the office shop, and never worry about parking. That’s a lot of mental energy saved and redirected to family and work. Life became simpler.

Most importantly, everyone at SRAM wants to work at SRAM. People are eager to share knowledge, lend a hand, and make products better. I had finally found the missing piece.Cycling also became my way of giving back. In Omaha, I worked with the Community BikeProject to build bikes for kids in need. Additionally, I built a bike with my mentee through BigBrothers Big Sisters. At SRAM, I’ve helped with fundraisers for Kids on Bikes, and trail work projects. Community isn’t a buzzword, it’s action.

PS Simelane Riding a Mountain Bike in Colorado

One day at work, I overheard colleagues talking about a mountain bike group ride. Despite having zero mountain bike experience, I asked if I could borrow a bike. That weekend, I showed up in full spandex, chasing aerodynamic gains, while everyone else wore baggy shorts and jerseys. I felt wildly out of place, but it was too late to turn back.

Every turn held a surprise: sand, rocks, uncertainty. My colleagues flowed like water, weaving smoothly around obstacles. I was mesmerized. Coming from trail running, I couldn’t believe how far and fast a mountain bike could take me. Riding forced me to live fully in the present while scanning ahead. On a mountain bike, I felt like a kid again. That ride changed everything.

I still enjoy racing, but some of my favorite rides are commuting to the office while chasing the sunrise through local trails. I eventually sold my commuter car and replaced it with an electric bike, which I use to commute and take my kids to the park.

Raising three kids takes time and energy. Cycling is my source of energy, but I no longer have seven hours to ride on weekends. Instead, a total of seventy-minute commute, a sixty-minute lunch ride, when possible, a few weekend hours, and riding with my kids add up to meaningful fitness and real family time. The bike helps me live more efficiently and sustainably, fully integrated into my family life.

PS Simelane with his family riding bikes

The bike has been a source of health and life lessons. Cycling taught me patience. I learned to believe in myself while racing Criterium. Mountain biking constantly reminds me to live in the moment while anticipating what’s ahead. Fear always appears as an obstacle approaching, followed by triumph once I clear it. Those repetitions remind me to keep learning, stay curious, and never get too comfortable. Long rides became meditative. Whether on pavement or gravel, cycling gave me space to think, reflect, and appreciate the world around me.

I grew up rooted in community, and learning about SRAM’s commitment to inclusivity and service pulled me in even more. Even after joining, I was surprised by how deeply community work is embedded in the culture.

I hope my presence in this industry can inspire someone else to believe that they, too, belong anywhere they choose to be.