Josh Favus
Race Support and Sponsor
I found my love for the bike and the sport of cycling when I was 13 years old and it continues with me to this day. The support I was fortunate enough to receive both on and off the bike shaped me in to the person I am today. In 1993, I met Chris Creed when we were teammates on the MJF Racing team, with Jim Schneider being our coach. We have remained friends throughout life and want to give back to the sport in the best way possible. When Chris approached me with the idea of sponsoring a cycling team, I felt it would be a tremendous way to support developing riders in the same way I was helped as a young rider. Watching these young men reach their goals and develop as responsible adults is a fulfilling experience that I look forward to continuing for many years.
Rene' Creed
Team Owner
Growing up in a family of motorcycle racers I learned at a young age the appreciation for competition and the support systems that racers need. As I kid I witnessed my parents putting up their home for racers like Bob Hannah and Jimmie Erickson. Also being the 7th child with 9 other siblings the art of chaos and importance of family just comes naturally. After almost 30 years of being a part of my families motorcycle dealership legacy Chris and I decided to sell our Harley-Davidson business to further pursue the passions of raising our 7 children and growing the family we started in 2010 with our cycling team. To me there is nothing as valuable as growing great and caring contributors to society through the appreciation of hard work, camaraderie and self awareness. I thank God everyday for the opportunity to touch lives.
Chris Creed
Team Owner
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Chris’s earliest memory of cycling was watching Alexi Grewal win the 1984 Olympic Road Race. He soon became hooked into the sport and began racing in 1987. Soon friends introduced him to the Spirits of St. Louis Cycling Team in St. Louis ran by Jim Schneider. Chris and his friend Ben would hop in Chris’s 1970 Pontiac LeMans and roar the 3 ½ hour drive to St. Louis to travel to races with the team. In 1989, Chris was a proud member of the bronze medal winning team time trial team at the USCF Junior National Championships, a team not unlike our team today…they were the first club team to finish behind the 2 National teams which included such riders as: Lance Armstrong, George Hincapie, and Bobby Julich to name a few. In 1993, Chris was fortunate enough to have been asked to race with the MJF squad out of Normal, Illinois, ran by Josh Favus and family. It was here that Chris received tremendous support, not only financial and equipment based, but family based…something that would stick with him for the rest of his life. After a 15 year hiatus, Chris found his way back into the sport, this time accompanied by his wife Rene’. Chris and Rene’ first got involved with cycling by supporting the Tour of Missouri Bicycle Race. When the race went away, and with bike racing on the brain, most noteably a young junior racer that showed incredible promise, Chris asked his wife about the thought of supporting a team of young men. Chris roped in his old friends Jim and Josh, and the team was born…with a 3 year commitment from all parties involved…fast forward 8 years, and Chris is most proud of the fact that the program has grown to develop 8 riders into the professional ranks of the sport and the young man that caught the eye of Chris in the beginning, that was the inspiration behind the team…is now flying a Super Hornet for the United States Navy. Spending time on the road, in the van, in the races, sharing heartache as well as victory, enduring pain and suffering, learning and growing, these are the things that drive Chris to keep working hard to make the team a reality…it’s not about the spotlight….it’s not about looking for a thank you….it is about giving back to a sport that gave so much, and was such an integral part of forming who Chris is today.
Jim Schneider
Team Director
Jim was a two-time Missouri Elite Road Champion and qualified for both the 1983 Pan American Games Cycling Team Trials and the 1984 Olympics Cycling Team Trials.
After retiring from racing, Jim obtained his USAC elite-level cycling coach license and coached the Spirits of St. Louis Junior cycling team – the top ranked Junior team in the US in 1990 and 1991. During his time as coach of the Spirits of St. Louis junior team, Jim placed 7 riders on the US Junior National team, 3 riders on the US Junior World Championship team and placed in the top three in the US Junior National Team Time Trial 3 times. Three of the riders Jim coached on the Spirits of St. Louis eventually turned pro. Currently, Jim coaches the Gateway Harley Davidson / Trek U25 cycling team, the top ranked elite team in the US in 2016 and 2017.
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Special thanks to Josh's wife Nikki and Jim's wife Cheryl for all the feed zone work, cooking, cleaning and extra work they do outside their other jobs to keep the team taken care of.
Volunteers, parents that give their time and host families make the sport of cycling one big family! Thank you