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Steve Francisco

Steve “Cosmic” Francisco, nick-named after a wheel set which like him was and is notorious for being invisible to the wind, was born in Glens falls, NY, 34 years ago. Currently, Steve lives in Williston, Vermont with his wife Sarah and their two children Olivia and George. When he’s not home with his family he’s riding 15-20 hours a week. And driving new projects and business, seamlessly jumping between designer-thinker and business-manager, as CEO of JDK, a internationally respected design studio. While Steve doesn’t feel like he’s the best storyteller he’s happy to play a role in them, if they’re good.

After years of BMX’ing the trails behind his house, and fascinated by the Tour De France, back in ’84, ’85 and ’86 when Lemond was at the top of his game, Steve started riding road. He was 12 years old. He loved the racing, the bikes, learning the tactics, the teams and the riders – from the start he was passionate about it all. So he saved half the money, is Aunt spotted him the rest and he bought a road bike.

At the time, Steve was living in Saratoga Springs in upstate NY about 7 miles west of town. He’d ride through town, head east around Saratoga Lake and over to the Historic Saratoga Battlefields, it was a 20-30 mile loop from his house and it quickly became his regular ride. Which, for the first few years, he rode solo as his friends stuck with BMX, skateboarding and cigarettes in lieu of potential ‘exercise’.

For Steve, the Continental is about meeting new people, seeing new things and riding new roads. It’s about ‘the ride’ and everything you see, feel and experience from the bike. It’s about sharing those experiences with the friends your riding with and later, everyone else too.

“I think the range of local knowledge and recommendations, when it comes to Guide Books in general, could be broader. Typically they simply reference commonly known places and routes which often make for a classic ‘tourist’ experience. But what I want more, like where to start the ride, the breakfast place or the coffee shop, and where to eat after the ride is done. I want to find out where and how the locals ‘really’ ride the ride, which direction, the hidden gravel section and the extra climb.

Steve counts riding with his wife and kids, his first (and only to date) win, this summer’s Vermont Six Gap, his first with the East Coast Continental Team, and recently having dinner with Lance Armstrong – at Lance’s house in TX - among some of his most memorable cycling related moments. Riding in Colorado is something he is looking forward to - maybe this summer?

“Riding clears my head and keeps me centered. It’s like work that doesn’t
feel like work, all the rewards of effort, skill and purpose coming together
without any of the bullshit.”

Steve Francisco
Location: Williston, VT

“I love the change of seasons. I don’t think I could live in a place that doesn’t experience the seasonal change as drastically as we do here in the northeast.”