Soldier by day, cyclist by night

Photo By Sgt. Felicya Adams | Sgt. 1st Class Christopher Stoltie, the communications and services division helpdesk non-commissioned officer-in-charge, and a Fort Wayne, Ind., native, spins his way to fitness during deployment. Stoltie is dedicated to train for cycling tours and relays and to stay in shape.  

JOINT BASE BALAD, IRAQ

04.06.2011

Story by Spc. Felicya Adams 

310th Expeditionary Sustainment Command

JOINT BASE BALAD, Iraq - The tent overflowed with squeaky cardio machines, overused workout benches, heavy weights, different exercise equipment, and a large fridge full of ice-cold water.

Disorganized dumbbells, faded medicine balls, raggedy mats and more weights covered the rubber-plated floor. In the back of the dimly lit tent on an older-model spin bike cycled a tall, muscular middle-aged man. His calves burned as he pedaled furiously with both shoes securely buckled into the pedals. His well-fitted gloves grasped the handlebars while he concentrated deeply on his breathing, posture and the heavy base line from his techno music.

Nothing could get in the way of his focused gaze.

Neither the cool breeze of the air-conditioning unit, nor the musty smell of sweat, or even the creaking sound of the spin-bike wheel could distract him. He continued to stay determined even as he began to feel tired.

Sgt. 1st Class Christopher Stoltie, the communications and services division helpdesk non-commissioned officer-in-charge with the 310th Expeditionary Sustainment Command and a native of Fort Wayne, Ind., is a dedicated cyclist. When he deployed to Joint Base Balad, Iraq, he brought his lifestyle and hobby with him to help keep him motivated, to keep his long-term goals on track, and to stay in shape.

Stoltie has been avidly cycling for almost 14 years. Previously, he was a committed runner, but after two knee surgeries, Stoltie was not able to run anymore.

“I use to run then I switched over to cycling because I beat my knees up pretty bad,” Stoltie said.

From that point on, his interest in cycling developed into a new lifestyle for him. Not only did cycling replace running in his life, but it made a huge impact on his rehabilitation time after each surgery.

“After each surgery I went into spinning and then on the road for cycling and it actually improved my recovery time by two-fold,” he said.

He also had some influence from others to help fuel his cycling ambitions.

“I watched a lot of the Tour de France and picked up on it,” Stoltie said. “A lot of my buddies did triathlons, so I just started riding with those guys and it grew from there.”

This is Stoltie’s third deployment to Iraq, but it is his first time bringing his personal equipment and way of life with him. Instead of bringing his expensive cycling bike and bike trainer, which converts his road-bike into a stationary bike, Stoltie took a few pieces of gear off his bike from back home and transported them here.

“My bike is too expensive, it’s almost $4,500, so I’m not going to have it shipped here,” he said. “I took the pedals off my bike and put them on the spin-bike here, and my road shoes I brought over just clip into them.”

Stoltie said he also brought the saddle from his cycling bike, and positioned it on the spin bike here along with his very own pedals.

Even though he’s passionate about cycling, he doesn’t plan to cycle on the road here in Iraq. In place of cycling he uses the spin bikes to stay in shape. Stoltie did acquire an inexpensive bike while on deployment for transit purposes.

“I have a little, cheap bike, a $99 bike that doesn’t fit me,” Stoltie said. “It’s actually hard to ride and I’m used to a fitted bike. This thing is awful, but it’s nice to be able to get around on.”

Stoltie has been biking on a consistent basis since he arrived in Iraq and has all intentions to start biking as much as he did back home.

“Hopefully, I will be able to get back into it here for about an hour to an hour and a half a night, and at least once a week I’ll do a three-and-a-half- to a four-hour ride on the spin bike, because it’s my time to let go, to decompress on the bike,” he added with enthusiasm.

In addition to wanting to stay in shape, Stoltie’s background has been a huge factor that influences his drive and determination to cycle.

“All my uncles, except for one, and my dad all died before the age of 50 from cancer,” he said. “I’m 42, but I’m not going to let it beat me if I get it. If I do get in that fight, I’m going to win. It’s in the family, so I just want to stay fit.”

In fact, his entire right thigh is colored with inspiration from his family.

“The tattoo on my leg, it says ‘Livestrong,’ but if you look at it, you can see my dad and all three of my uncles initials who have died of cancer,” Stoltie said as he proudly showed off his meaningful ink work.

The passion was evident in his eyes as he continued to tell what his tattoo represented.

“My uncles and my dad have all inspired me because they didn’t stay fit or work out,” Stoltie said. “I’m probably more fit than those guys were ever in their lives, so I definitely like to stay in shape for that reason.”

Not only does he permanently wear “Livestrong” on his body, Stoltie donates to Lance Armstong’s foundation to help with cancer research. In the summer of 2012, when he returns home from deployment, he will be riding with Team Livestrong in the Ride Across Iowa, Stoltie said.

“I’m biking and training to help with cancer research,” he said.
Stoltie was supposed to ride with the team in 2011, but because he’s currently in Iraq, he will be participating in 2012.

In addition to the Ride Across Iowa, Stoltie has quite a few more goals he’s looking forward to when he returns home.

“I definitely want to do Ride Across Indiana and the Hilly Hundred,” Stolite said. “I also want to get into racing and do some longer rides. One of them is called the Race Across America; it’s a 3,000-mile ride from California to Maryland.”

Regardless of his limitations with cycling on the road here in Iraq, Stoltie plans on getting in better shape during this deployment to prepare for all of his future rides.

“I’m trying to get back down under 180 pounds so that when I do get back home and start riding on the road again, I’ll be close to being in race shape,” he said.

It’s difficult for him to track his mileage here, but he said his main cycling goals are to stay fit, keep his weight down and stay motivated to help prepare for those races and tours.

Without a doubt, Stoltie is truly devoted to his lifestyle of being a cyclist, but he also puts the same emphasis on his military career.

Sgt. Maj. Paul Rooney, a senior signal sergeant with the 310th ESC, and a Columbus, Ohio, native, said he has known Stoltie for quite a while and remembers him bringing his bike to annual training and seeing him in his spandex with a big smile riding down the road, but more importantly he remembers Stoltie making a significant, selfless decision.

“He was with [U.S. Army Reserve Command] as a recruiter, and as I was bringing him over to my unit to mobilize with us and he had to make a decision because he was chosen to ride with Lance Armstrong, and he actually gave up riding with Lance for a period of time to start going through the mobilization process with us,” Rooney said.

While Rooney talked admirably about Stoltie, he also mentioned that he was interested in riding with him when they both returned from deployment.

“I know he’s been starting it back up here and maybe one of these days when we get to Indy we can go on a long trip,” Rooney said.
With all his motivation, dedication and drive not to give up, Stoltie has the conviction to maintain his lifestyle on deployment while meeting all his goals.

After the workout, his uniform was completely drenched in perspiration, and sweat continued to pour down his beet-red face as he carefully climbed off the bike. He ripped his soggy gloves off, slid off his custom-fitted bike shoes, and took the weight off his feet by sitting down. As soon as he gulped down a half a bottle of ice-cold water, he was ready to stretch his tired but solid legs.

With music still blaring, the humidity in the tent bearing down, and his muscles tired and fatigued, Stoltie still managed to effortlessly display the look of passion that he would continue to fight and work for his family, his country and himself.

• Date Taken: 04.06.2011
• Date Posted: 04.17.2011 06:46
• Story ID: 68869
• Location: JOINT BASE BALAD, IQ