From pro football to competitive cycling, Luke Willson has found a new hobby
Luke Willson will be feeling a different kind of pressure Saturday, when he competes at the 62nd Tour di Via Italia.
“I'd rather compete in front of 60-thousand people than sit there and have my nonno berate me for not doing well.” Said the former NFL’er.
Willson said his 91-year old Italian grandfather is a big fan of the historic international race.
“I hadn't looked at the technical guide of the race yet and he was telling me exactly where it goes because he can remember for years going down there and watching the bike race.”
Willson retired from the NFL last August.
With more time to visit, he came home to LaSalle and recalled going on a casual bike ride with his parents.
“I said, 'This is a lot of fun. I'm going to see what this is all about,” Willson told CTV News, adding he ended up purchasing a road bike after returning to Seattle.
Willson bought his first bike in October and crashed in his first race, an incident which he said “wasn’t my fault.”
“I went over the top of a pile.”
After enjoying the competitive side of the sport, he learned how to gain speed on his bike.
“Hopefully by next spring or summer, I'll be able to know whether I'm a cyclist or if I'm just a bum.”
Daniele DeFranceschi, who once competed internationally for Canada, has seen Willson’s pedal power first hand.
“His form is beautiful. The power that he has is unreal,” she said.
“[With] his presence on the bike, it's going to be hard to go up and challenge him.”
DeFranceschi added she’s excited to see Willson get into the sport and feels the sky is the limit for the former NFL’er.
“He can go as far as he wants. When someone has the mindset of a champ, of an athlete, it will happen.”
While Willson has big aspirations, he’s currently trying to enjoying the process of learning the game as he prepares to compete in the CAT 4 division Saturday.
“That's the lowest division. I call it the T-Ball division. But I'll get some points soon, work my way out of there and hopefully be good enough to ride with the big boys in town soon,” said Willson.
Willson is slated to race Saturday at 11 a.m.
A pro race is scheduled for 5 p.m.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Grandparent scam: London, Ont., senior beats fraudsters not once, but twice
It was a typical Tuesday for Mabel Beharrell, 84, until she got the call that would turn her world upside down. Her teenaged grandson was in trouble and needed her help.
Deaths of 4 people on Sask. farm confirmed as murder-suicide
The deaths of four people on a farm near the Saskatchewan village of Neudorf have been confirmed a murder-suicide.
CRA no longer requiring 'bare trust' reporting in 2023 tax return
The Canada Revenue Agency announced Thursday it will not require 'bare trust' reporting from Canadians that it introduced for the 2024 tax season, just four days before the April 2 deadline.
Full parole granted to man convicted in notorious 'McDonald's murders' in Cape Breton
The Parole Board of Canada has granted full parole to one of three men convicted in the brutal murders of three McDonald's restaurant workers in Cape Breton more than 30 years ago.
Incident on Calgary's Reconciliation Bridge comes to safe resolution
Nearly 20 hours after a man climbed and remained perched on top of the Reconciliation Bridge in downtown Calgary, the situation came to a peaceful resolution.
Sunshine list: These were the Ontario public sector's highest earners in 2023
Ontario released its annual sunshine list Thursday afternoon, noting that the largest year-over-year increases were in hospitals, municipalities, and post-secondary sectors.
George Washington family secrets revealed by DNA from unmarked 19th century graves
Genetic analysis has shed light on a long-standing mystery surrounding the fates of U.S. President George Washington's younger brother Samuel and his kin.
'We won't forget': How some Muslims view Poilievre's stance on Israel-Hamas war
A spokesman for a regional Muslim advocacy group says Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre's stance on the Israel-Hamas war could complicate his party's relationship with Muslim Canadians.
Why some Christians are angry about Trump's 'God Bless the USA' Bible
Former U.S. President Donald Trump is officially selling a copy of the Bible themed to Lee Greenwood’s famous song, 'God Bless the USA.' But the concept of a Bible covered in the American flag has raised concern among religious circles.