By Anne-Marie Adachi

On behalf of the executive of the Edmonton Bicycle and Touring Club (EBTC), I would like to nominate Max Mayer for a SAGE Award. We believe that Max who very recently celebrated his 80 th Birthday, and is an inspiration to all who know him in the EBTC, is deserving of a SAGE award for his contribution to participation, promotion and support of active living.

Max has been a member of the club for over 20 years, and during this time has participated in day rides, overnight rides and weekly rides organized by the club with great enthusiasm. On Sunday July 26, 2009 Max completed a monumental feat for an 80 year old, the 178 km ride of the Tour de l’Alberta, an EBTC sponsored event for cyclists from all over western Canada.

Max is a quiet and gentle man, who when engaged has many interesting stories to tell especially when one is cycling along beside him. He is ever so humble about his achievements in terms of the mileage he has cycled, the hills and mountains he has climbed and skied.

Max has a great love for several sports, and although we think it is cycling, he has a passion for skiing, hiking and kay- aking. Max is a member of the Rocky Mountain Seniors Ski Club and when he is not cycling in the winter, he can be found on the slopes at Kimberly, Marmot and just about any resort in the Rockies with good snow.

Aside from his athletic capability and love of sport and the mountains, Max is very well travelled, recently fulfilling a dream of having visited every province in Canada as well as many other countries since emigrating from Austria after WW II in 1951 at age 22. Max made his way via a circuitous route from Ontario and the Yukon to Edmonton. In 1953 Max met and mar- ried his wife Hermine in Edmonton. In October they will celebrate 56 years together. They have raised four children and they have several grandchildren.

Max retired from full-time work in 1987 following a 35 year career with Canadian International Paper. At work Max drove delivery trucks and did any job that needed doing and was promoted several times completing his career at CIP at the Manager level. Following retirement from CIP Max started a second career in the tourism industry with a German based company called Stumbock Club where he conducted tours for visitors from Germany to resorts in Alberta and British Columbia for downhill skiing and heli-skiing. Max’s second career lasted for 16 years. Max has worked with several tour companies over the years and during this time he has taken tourists hiking, biking, kayaking, canoeing, camping, downhill skiing heli-skiing you name he has done it.

As well as tours in the Rockies, Max has conducted guided tours in German and English in the city of Edmonton. In 2005 Max was honored as an “Outstanding Tour Guide” an example of how appreciated he is by his clients. He can still be found volunteering on the Magic Bus to Marmot as a tour guide in his spare time! Max is very well informed and is truly an ambassador for Canada, Alberta and Edmonton.

Max is a role model for all who know him. His secrets to a long life, and this has been confirmed by Max, would be to have a good partner, enjoy yourself, keep in shape, take pleasure in the beauty of the earth, eat good food and drink an occasional cold beer!