ALAN KALIN

Concerned that the 11-mile Summit Road to Mount Diablo - a world-famous cycling route - was being bloodied by collisions between cyclists and motorists, Alan Kalin advocated solutions that would allow vehicles to pass cyclists safely and make Mt. Diablo the first major mountain bike route in the nation to separate cyclists from traffic. His solution reduced collisions by 80%, saving lives, greatly reducing road rage and established a safety model for the nation, according to the California State Senate.

From 2010 to 2014, this route produced an average of 23 collisions per year, with many of Kalin’s best riding friends struck. It also frequently resulted in road rage showdowns between drivers and riders, according to State Park officials. After the first turnouts were created, collisions dropped to 3 accidents in two years and road rage greatly diminished.

The Hall of Fame nomination stated that Kalin helped build an organization of 1,500 members, raised funding at $15,000 to $20,000 for each turnout, and worked with legislators to help convince and obtain funding for State Parks to also add a new double yellow line on the summit route, add road sign placement throughout the park, create “Sharrows” and heavily convince cyclists to ride single file instead of stacking up three and four across.

The California State Senate described Mt. Diablo's Summit Road as the first major bike route in America to create cycling turnouts, as well as signage and lane markers to keep cyclists and vehicles apart and safe from each other, and described the improvements as a safety model for the nation.

Kalin has had a lifetime of philanthropy. He served as a volunteer for the Peace Corp in Ethiopia as a famine relief worker and instructor, and after that, worked 30 years as a high school teacher and a military officer in the U.S. Army. He then helped develop or facilitate a free real-time weather app for state park visitors, Eagle Scout bike repair boxes along major riding routes, pothole repair teams, and other mainstream projects.

As an avid cyclist and traveler, Kalin has ridden thousands of miles across the backroads of the Bay Area and across much of the state and driven and explored most all parks and recreation areas. From behind the wheel, both in cars and on bikes, he saw and felt firsthand the conflict and anger between drivers and riders unable to share the same space on narrow roads. Kalin then made it a mission to provide a template to solve this conflict at Mount Diablo.

GREG LEMOND

Greg LeMond was the first American to win the Tour de France. He won it thrice.

Born in Lakewood, Calif., he grew up on the eastern slopes of the Sierra Nevada. Hiking, hunting, skiing and flyfishing were boyhood pastimes. "I was a boy who just could not sit still." he said. 

Afflicted with ADHD, he was unable to get help from his parents and educators who did not have the knowledge to diagnose and cope with his affliction, but when he got into cycling it changed his life. He rode his bike everywhere, often to school by riding over Mt. Rose pass. 

At 17, he finished second in the Tour of Fresno, catching the attention of the US Cycling Federation. He was then selected as the youngest member of the US Olympic Cycling Team and began winning amateur races. 

His debut as a pro was to win a stage of the Tour de France in 1981. He continued to place highly and was the first American to win a medal at the world championships. In the '84 Tour de France, he won the Young Rider jersey and placed second overall. In '86 LeMond became the first American to win the Tour. 

Following a near-fatal hunting accident in '87, he could not ride until '89 where he won another Tour, then again in '90. LeMond's success profoundly influenced American cycling, encouraging generations of Americans to compete and it stimulated broad interest in the sport. 

When his team recommended that he dope his blood, LeMond refused. He became an outspoken critic of performance-enhancing drugs in cycling. LeMond admitted that the prevalence of doping among other athletes shortened his career. Following his retirement from cycling in '94, he was inducted into the US Bicycling Hall of Fame.

Thereafter, LeMond established LeMond Cycles that innovated carbon frames, LeMond Fitness to help individuals train more effectively and LeMond Composites to manufacture high-volume, low-cost carbon fiber composites, among other ventures.

No American has had a more positive impact upon cycling than Greg LeMond.