If it hadn't been for a leg injury 2 1/2 years ago, 37-year-old Ken Leybourne might never have given up competitive motocross for mountain bike racing.
But after going through extensive surgery to repair a crushed femur, he was told he'd never be able to race motorcycles again--a tough pronouncement for someone who had been riding since the age of 12. His doctor, however, recommended bicycling for rehabilitation.
Leybourne installed a stationary bike in the garage of his Aliso Viejo home and started back, one pedal stroke at a time. He made enough progress that soon friends got him to try mountain biking.
He finished his first race in the top five, then promptly threw up. Despite that inauspicious start, he found mountain bike racing to be "addictive."
