Editors' Corner: I thought I could beat genetics with hard work. Was I wrong?

Presented by Race Tech This is the audio from the Race Tech Editors' Column... I think that I have gotten many of my best qualities from my mom and dad. Mom was a great writer, and my dad was a hard worker who was one of the most creative people around. There are, however, things that my older brothers and I inherited from them that are not so desirable, like high blood pressure and high cholesterol. While both of my big brothers have had to have open-heart surgery, I believed that I could beat the genetic course with hard work and clean living. I discovered mountain biking a dozen years ago, and I honestly thought that my secondary two-wheeled obsession would keep all of those important measurable levels on the right side of the scales. Boy, was I wrong. While some of you may have had better luck than me, I got a massive wake-up call last weekend that saw me hospitalized after a trip to the emergency room with a lethally high blood pressure spike that literally could have killed me. I was discharged from the hospital yesterday, some five days later, with a stent in my heart and four new prescriptions. To be honest, I never really get scared when I find myself in the ER with cuts, scrapes, bruises, or broken bones, (ok ok, the broken neck in 2020 was pretty concerning...), but knowing that my body was failing me a few days ago really frightened me. It'c crazy how quickly word-of-mouth can spread, and it's been humbling to see how many friends, industry co-workers, and SML viewers have reached out by phone, text, e-mail, and DMs. Yesterday, I gathered my thoughts and shared my experiences, thoughts, and fears in this episode of Race Tech Editors' Column. I'm sure most of you will be bored or think I'm being overly emo, but in case anyone is interested, here's my story. If you have had a similar experience or have any advice for me, please share it in the comments! Thank you all for supporting the content that Chase and I create! - swap

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Editors' Corner: I thought I could beat genetics with hard work. Was I wrong? is an episode from Swapmoto Live Podcast by Donn Maeda.

This episode is 36:21 long.

This episode was published on May 1, 2026.

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