Mike Parkin develops bicycles for Cannondale in Connecticut. He is an avid road and mountain biker, and his job affords him the opportunity to ride every afternoon. One of his designs was recognized by Popular Science as"Best of What's New 1999." He has worked at Cannondale since December 1996.

Mike and his newest design

In His Own Words

The Job
"I develop bicycle frames from concept to production. I come up with ideas, model them using CAD software, do finite element analysis to help make them strong and light, make prototypes, ride test the prototypes, redesign, test, and get them into production."

How He Got There
"I was into cycling in college. One of my friends told me the name of the Vice President of Engineering at a bike company in Rhode Island, so I called him every week or two for 6 months until he gave me a summer internship. I realized what I wanted to do for a living when I woke up one morning and thought to myself,"Cool! Time for work!" I then worked for a composites company near school developing products for the same bike company. When the composites place got bought by an aerospace company and moved, I interviewed with several bike manufacturers around the country. I got an offer from one in California, was ready to accept, but got an offer from Cannondale. I loved the people and company, and it was only 6 miles from my parents, so I took it and have been here since.

"I studied Mechanical Engineering at Georgia Tech in Atlanta and specialized in composite materials. A summer internship at a bike company to get my foot in the door, then part time designing carbon fiber bike parts during college which turned into a full time job when I graduated. After that job ended, I worked in a machine shop for some hands-on experience while I looked for another bike job."

How to Get His Job
"Do the same things I did. Study engineering and get an internship. Persistence is the key. I called about the jobs I wanted every week or two for months even if there was no posted opening."

Pros
"I have the freedom to take an idea I have and make it reality. If the bike goes into production I can see other people enjoying it on the trail."

Cons
"There can be a lot of self-imposed pressure to excel and make the best product when your job and hobby are so closely related. You can't leave your job at work, if that makes any sense."

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