That’s why Bjorn chose Crested Butte for his summer break from the World Cup circuit. He grew up riding and camping in those mountains, and at 11,300 feet, it still feels like the place that defined him. Setting up his canvas in the dirt, he paints outside in the elements—plein air, with the same raw, unpredictable energy that is imbued in his riding.
Bjorn discovered art alongside racing, spending hours in high school darkrooms and sketching while also riding in NICA, the U.S. youth mountain bike league. When he moved to Austria for his first year on Trek Future Racing, living alone in a town of 2000 people, he turned to his sketchbook to stay grounded. “I found how much I leaned on art to make sure I didn’t go insane when I was alone,” he says. Over time, his style evolved from structured realism to a more abstract, expressive approach, mirroring the balance between the discipline of racing and the freedom he finds in creation.
On the canvas, he starts with a loose plan but lets the process guide him—colors, lines, and figures often end up somewhere unexpected. “I never really know what it’s going to look like until it works,” he says. On the bike, every motion and routine is deliberate—warmups, line choices, pacing—all executed with precision. Living and racing in Europe forced him to reconcile the two worlds: maintaining the strict focus needed to perform at the highest level while keeping the playful, experimental mindset that shapes his art.
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