Father, son build bonds mountain biking

It was three hours before Super Bowl kickoff and Mike Orman hustled to squeeze in a mountain bike ride between storms.

But mountain biking was the last thing on his mind.
To borrow a phrase from Lance Armstrong, it wasn't about the bike. And it wasn't about the ride.

For Marine Master Sgt. Orman it was about his 12-year-old son, Chris. It was about helping him get fit for wrestling. It was about helping him discover new skills.

But more than anything, it was about building bonds, the kind of father-son bonds that pay off forever.

I ran into Orman, who is a recruiter at the Marine's Santa Ana office, several days before Super Bowl Sunday. I watched as Chris nimbly cranked up some of the toughest hills in O'Neill Regional Park, hills that most mountain bikers walk up.

I noticed dad was just behind. And always behind. MORE