Its pretty obvious Roderick Mobley can teach a chemistry class, but can you really see him playing and coaching a women’s volleyball team? Of course Erik Wessler can make a book interesting, but many are unaware that biking around Europe is about to become a reality for him. Who would’ve guessed that Margaret Ramsey, a favorite among students, swims and competes in her free time. It’s common knowledge that Menlo students are athletic, but it’s about time the community recognizes that Menlo teachers may even compete in the same races and tournaments as you.

English teacher Erik Wessler has been biking since he was nine years old. His passion for the physically demanding sport started when he began to bike to school as a child. Wessler could never bring himself to give up the hobby and is now bicycling in two different clubs in the bay area. “Every week I’m riding with them or with a group of people that I know in the club,” Wessler said. Wessler averages that he bicycles 5,000 miles a year, which is a tremendous amount considering his current job as a full time teacher at Menlo. Wessler also claims that part of the attraction is the Californian climate. “We live in one of the best places in the world for road biking. The number of loops you can make to the coast are endless. The weather, the roads, and the scenery are all fabulous.” Wessler explains. Some of Wessler’s many achievements include the Death Ride, a route in the California Alps which he takes part in every year, The Triple Crown, where you complete three 200 mile rides, the AIDS ride from San Francisco to Los Angeles, and several week long treks in mountain ranges around the US. This second semester Wessler will be taking a sabbatical, in which he will complete a two-week bicycle frame building class in Portland Oregon at the UBI (United Bicycle Institute), and then continue on to Spain for a month where he will be riding across the country. “I’ll ride from Barcelona to San Sebastián, and then jump on the Compastela to do part of that. Shortly after I’ll continue onto France to complete some of the Tour de France passes, which should all in all take about a month,” Wessler explains. Wessler hopes to continue biking in the future and is positive in believing that one day Menlo students will realize what an efficient and relaxing mode of transportation biking really is.

Margaret Ramsey, another English teacher at Menlo, has been swimming competitively since she was four. Ramsey currently swims on a master’s team with UCSF, which is a group located in San Francisco. “I practice there three times a week for an hour and a half. There’s only one meet a year that they ask us to go too, and even though I can’t go this year I’ll definitely take part in the future, “ Ramsey said. Ramsey admits to being successful, but explains that, “its really nice to just see people being healthy and having a good time.” Although the success of these meets is definitely something to be proud of, Ramsey feels her biggest achievement when it comes to swimming was when she was elected captain of her college team for two years. “I was elected as a junior over a senior and then elected again as a senior in my second year,” Ramsey said. Ramsey also added that her biggest record achievement was when her team was defending champions in the 800 relay and ended up setting the record her senior year. Ramsey hopes to continue swimming for the rest of her life and believes that it will always be something to look forward too.

Roderick Mobley, a chemistry teacher at Menlo, has been playing volleyball all his life. “I started when I was ten or eleven, and loved it right away,” Mobey explains. In addition to playing the physically demanding sport for most of his life, Mobley also took up coaching. “I coached high school and club level volleyball. I took a girls thirteen’s team and a girls sixteen’s team to junior Olympic Nationals, and AAU Nationals,” Mobley explains. When it comes down to playing the sport itself, Mobley explains how he has always, “just been a big fan of the dynamic of volleyball in general. I love the blocking, the hitting, and the digging. It’s just a great feeling to be able to take someone’s hardest hit and be able to dig it and keep the play going.” Mobley has also loved spreading his passion for the sport, which is why he took up coaching. Although Mobley still holds a strong enthusiasm for the sport, this is the first time in fifteen years he has stopped coaching. “I used to coach every fall for the girls from 3:30-5:30 every day. In the spring before I moved to Chicago I would coach a boys team, and then I coached club, which would meet two-three times a week to practice, and then tournaments on the weekend. It was a big commitment,” Mobley explains. Despite his time off from volleyball, Mobley still takes pleasure in watching the sport and may even continue playing in the future.

Although this is just a glimpse into the hidden lives of Menlo teachers, everyone in the Menlo community is full of unforeseen talents and pastimes. When it comes to sports, Menlo teachers definitely prove themselves to be passionate, and maybe even a little similar to the rising athletes they teach in the classroom.