PETA2: How long have you been vegetarian?

Dane Beardsley: I have been vegetarian for about three years now.

Aaron Behnke: I’ve been vegetarian for 10 years and vegan for eight years.

Brian Tunney: Vegetarian for 11 years, vegan for six.

Alexis Desolneux: I have been vegetarian for 10 years, and I went vegan four and a half years ago.

P2: Why do you think so many riders are vegetarian and vegan?

DB: When there are a few riders who are vegetarian, it exposes the rest of the riders to the vegetarian lifestyle. When people are exposed to new ways of thinking, they are more likely to change their own ways of thinking.

AB: I think it comes from riders having similar thoughts or ideals that can develop within the BMX community.

Photo: Buddendeck/Axis

BT: I think it’s that a lot more people in general in society [are vegetarian and vegan]. I guess it’s because of the vegetarian role models within BMX, like Taj Mihelich, Sandy Carson, Ed Docherty, and a slew of other influential riders.

P2: Was there any one thing that made you go vegetarian?

DB: I can remember when I did eat meat, I hated it. Finally, one day, my girlfriend at the time told me to just do it. She did it along with me, so it made the transition real good.

AB: It was probably a combination of curiosity, having a friend that was vegetarian, and reading about vegetarianism. I found the book Diet for a New America by John Robbins, which sealed the deal.

BT: Initially, it was because I was in college taking physical anthropology classes, which taught me that our bodies had evolved past eating meat. The evolved modern human body possesses a long intestinal tract, no sharp teeth, and no claws, which are typically the characteristics of herbivores. Carnivores, on the other hand, typically have a short digestive tract, claws, and sharp teeth. Anyway, it made sense to me, so from there on, I pretty much cut out any types of meat-eating. It also didn’t hurt my standing with my five militant vegan roommates at the time.

AD: The realities of the animal products industries. When I finally opened my eyes on that, I saw nonsense in terms of human progress. I find it unhealthy that the social norm involves such a systematization of death. I also realized how inconsistent I was with myself for eating animals I would never want to see suffer and die the way they do. I just realized how disproportionate it was to kill a cow so somebody could eat lasagna!

P2: What made you decide to go vegan?

AB: The transition from vegetarian to vegan was just natural progression for me. I don’t remember actually making a decision to go vegan, but I remember realizing that I already was.

BT: Diet for a New America by John Robbins

AD: The same reasons, only that I needed to make some adjustments to live in a more coherent way with my choice to not support the organized suffering and killing of animals. “The animal machine” concept (especially in the milk industry) in terms of profit is in itself a reason for me to refuse the consumption of animal products.

P2: What are some of your favorite vegetarian foods?

DB: So many good foods out there: falafels, black bean burritos … tofu salads are real good, too, and popcorn!

BT: UTZ potato chips, vegan lasagna (even though I’ve got a mean allergic reaction to nutritional yeast), vegan enchiladas at Veggie Works in Belmar, New Jersey, and the Crispy Soul Chicken at VP2 in NYC.

AD: I like homemade food. I like fruits, rösti, Indian curries, veggie burgers, choucroute with German smoked tofu, tomato and roquette salad … seitan and cornichons sandwiches made with fresh baguettes and quality organic vegan butter (I know it’s just a sandwich, but you have to try it if you come to France!). Vegan food can be so diverse and tasty, it could be a reason in itself for me to live that way.

photo: Oliver Weidemann

P2: Any recommendations for someone who wants to buy nonleather shoes?

DB: I know Etnies makes a few pairs of nonleather shoes.

AB: I’ve been wearing Etnies for the past six years. They make a lot of synthetic shoes. The Trauma 2 is my personal favorite, and it is only made in synthetics.

AD: I could recommend Orchid Footwear, since they just got a new all-synthetic shoe intentionally made for vegans. It’s called the “Duval”. Orchid is one of the few BMX-shoe companies out there.

P2: Who are your sponsors? Is there anyone you wouldn’t accept a sponsorship from?

DB: DK Bicycles, my family, and my friends support what I do. I would not let BP sponsor me.

AB: DK Bicycles, UGP (Underground Products Clothing), Etnies (shoes), and Profile (BMX parts). There are plenty of companies I wouldn’t accept a sponsorship from. I think a better question would be, “Are there any companies you would like a sponsorship from?” There are a lot of companies out there that produce quality vegetarian/vegan goods.

BT: Federal Bikes, Primo Products, Etnies, Dig BMX magazine.

photo: Buddendeck/Axis

P2: Is there a specific animal rights issue that is particularly important to you?

DB: Yeah, I hate cattle farms. My father used to own one when I was young. Until you work on one like I did, I don’t think you can fully understand how much the animals go through. Also they are so unbelievably hard on the land.

AB: The right to live.

BT: I feel pretty strongly about spaying and neutering dogs and cats. Where I live, we’ve got a pretty big stray cat population, and so far, we’ve found homes for at least 10 of them, and the ones who still live in the backyard—we made sure to get neutered, so we don’t have an immediate overpopulation problem in the area.

AD: I just hope that more people start questioning their meat, eggs, and dairy product consumption because this is where the biggest bloodbath is going on at the moment.

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