Steve Tilford
1978

Steve Tilford 1978 From a very early age, Steve Tilford rode bicycles. He became so good at such a young age he won the Kansas State Road Cycling Championship at the age of 14. All his cycling took place outside of his high school hours; regardless, he was named to the US Junior National Cycling Team in 1978, the same year he graduated. Shortly thereafter, Steve was invited and became a permanent resident at the US Olympic Training Center in 1981. That same year he began competing internationally for the US Team. In 1983, he won both the US National Cyclocross Bike Championships and the US National Mountain Bike Championships, a very rare cycling double in cycling. Steve turned professional in 1986. That year, he placed 2nd in the Olympic Mountain Bike Trials. During his professional career, Steve would finish in the Top 20 at the World Mountain Bike Championships five times. He was the Professional Cyclocross National Champion in 1991 and 1992. As a Masters competitor, Steve won the World Masters Mountain Bike Championship five times and the World Masters Cyclocross Championship twice. Steve is a member of the US Mountain Bike Hall of Fame, has a display in his honor at the US Mountain Biking Museum in Marin County, California, and is a member of the Shawnee County Sports Hall of Fame.