Beer Runner Profile: Marty Weigel
By Tim Cigelske • Oct 16th, 2008 • Category: Beer Runner profile
The first time I met Marty Weigel, we were on a mountain bike trail and he offered me a beer. It was very fitting.
Weigel is extremely active in the Milwaukee Metro Mountain Bikers, as well as co-owner of Benno’s Genuine Bar & Grill and an alderman in West Allis, a blue-collar suburb of Milwaukee. Not surprisingly, the mountain biker club holds their meetings at his bar. He also used to have a beer education segment on local TV, and every spring he leads maintenance of the Alpha Trail, Milwaukee’s all-volunteer maintained mountain biking trails.
I asked him about his passion for bikes, beer, and bartending.
How did you get into mountain biking?
I actually started trail riding on my Sting Ray knock-off in the late 1960s. I rode along the Menomonee River and also the Scuppernong Trails and the Ice Age in the Southern Kettle area early ’70s. My first actual mountain bike was an early Trek Antelope.
How did you start running a bar?
I started bartending my senior year of high school in 1977 at my neighbor’s bar, The Road House, which is now a vacant lot. My brother Benno and I (yes Virginia, there is a Benno) bought our original location in November 1980, and moved to current location June 1989. My wife Suzie and I bought out my brother 1991.
Are there any similarities to running a bar and being active in a local bike club?
Lots. But the best thing is the people. Most bar employees love their jobs and the folks in Metro love to bike. Everybody’s usually in a great mood.
What’s your favorite beer to crack open after a bike ride?
I’ve been a hophead for the last 15 years or more. More than once the vision of a Sierra Nevada Pale Ale has gotten me through the Birkie climbs of the Chequamegon 40. Current favorite is Tyranena’s Hop Whore Imperial IPA from their exceptional “Brewers Gone Wild” series.
What’s your favorite place for a bike ride?
I’ve had the good fortune to ride at dozens of great places (Whistler, Moab, Fruita, Maui, Ray’s, and all around Wisconsin) but right now I love riding out me back door in West Allis and making a day of The Alpha, Oak Leaf, and the Hoyt Park/Menonomonee River/Oak Hill trails (all biking, no driving!).
Favorite place for a beer?
On the back patio here at Benno’s, of course.
What would be harder to live without: Beer or bikes?
Tough one. I make my living selling beer but would it really be living without riding?
Tim Cigelske is the Beer Runner. --
Beer Run•ner (noun): 1. Someone equally devoted to fine beer appreciation and an active, healthy lifestyle 2. A blog by Tim Cigelske on Draftmag.com. Ex. "John downed four microbrews at the triathlon finish line. He's a total beer runner."
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