Currently, Taj is still experiencing back problems, but he's not resting on his BMX laurels. Instead, Taj launched Fairdale Bicycles through Odyssey, and plunged headfirst into the murky world of the big bike industry. Fairdale Bicycles are currently in production, and Taj is hard at making big bikes less scary to the average consumer. It's a new chapter in life for the BMX legend that is Taj Mihelich.

ESPN.com: So Taj, you've had a pretty busy year so far. What were some of the highlights of your year?
Mihelich: The biggest highlight is that I started working for Odyssey at the OTX office in Austin. OTX is basically Odyssey's engineering studio as well as housing Full Factory Distribution (who distributes companies like Sunday, Proper, G-sport, KMC, Odyssey). I love getting to be a part of everything Odyssey has going on. Seeing new prototype parts coming in all the time and getting to be around all that design is so cool. Odyssey also let me start up Fairdale as pretty much just an online 'zine, but quickly morphed into a bike company.

Is Fairdale your full-time job now? And if so, how has it been shifting from life as a full-time pro to working in an office?
I work for Odyssey, Full Factory and Fairdale. It is a full-on working stiff 40 hour a week job for sure! I love it though. Even after half a lifetime of being a BMX bum, I'm happy to be coming into work everyday. Odyssey was such an amazing company to ride for and I am finding transitioning into working for them in the office to be really natural because it is something I really care about. Sitting at a desk instead of spending all day riding bikes is a little hard on me physically, but my riding time is limited more by health issues than work time. For Odyssey and Full Factory, I assist in anything I can, and then Fairdale is my baby.

Courtesy of FairdaleFairdale prototype.

What are you hoping to achieve with Fairdale?
The simplest version is that I want to make bikes that allow everyone to experience the fun of bikes. Not everyone rides BMX, but that doesn't mean they can't have a great time on a bike. It's something I've wanted to do for so many years. I found a bunch of art work from ten years ago when I was trying to launch a similar project. I guess after so long on a BMX bike, you learn to appreciate simple bikes, and in a city like Austin, you learn to love pedaling for transportation (as opposed to being in a car.) I always hate seeing my friends turned off on riding bikes because their bikes are broken down and they don't know how to fix them. With Fairdale, I hope to create bikes that are well thought out and no more complicated by cycling technology than they need to be. Bikes that will keep people riding.

Can you still ride BMX, or is your back still giving you problems?
I can't really ride. It's depressing. I rode at 9th street a little bit this week but I can really only ride for about 15 minutes at a time. I can't pump very hard or handle the G force of any big jumps or bunnyhop very well. Seeing new doctors and stuff -- trying to get well.

Courtesy of FairdaleFairdale bike with a prototype rack to carry a skateboard. designed by Taj.

What's in store for you and Fairdale in the new year?
We will have our first model of bikes available to buy in spring time. Very excited about that. More models should follow soon after. In summer Sandy Carson and I are going to do a tour on some Fairdale Touring bikes that we are prototyping. Other then that, just working on new bikes and drawing dumb drawings.

TAJ MIHELICH ON ESPN BMX

• The Storied Path of Taj
• Taj leaves Giant
• Taj launches Fairdale
• Taj's Recovery Gallery