CLOSE-UP : For Friday, Bikes Are the Wheels of Fortune

Byron Friday and his bicycles are virtually inseparable. On the road, Friday is a professional motocross racer. At work, the Van Nuys resident has turned his talent into his trade. He’s general manager for a Chatsworth company that manufactures the bicycles.

And, for recreation, Friday organizes--what else?--bike races. He set the wheels in motion in his latest promotion last Sunday: An off-road mountain bike race at Stonehaven Park in Porter Ranch.

“It was a real challenge,” Friday said. “It’s much different racing rather than putting on an event. So many other things are involved.”

Friday, 25, has had an affinity for bikes since he was young. His racing career began more than 10 years ago, and took him to Belgium, Holland, France and England for two-month, two-wheel tours.

In fact, an injury is about the only thing that keeps Friday out of the driver’s seat. And that is precisely what kept him from competing in his own event Sunday.

Although he showed up on his bike, Friday was not in competitive form. He is still recovering from a broken collar bone suffered on his latest tour of England, when the driver in front of him fell, causing a spill. It was the first major injury in Friday’s 10-year racing career.

But the injury didn’t ruin Friday’s 15-mile off-road race. His primary interest Sunday was in promoting mountain bikes--not racing them.

At work, Friday says, the 18-speed, heavy-duty bikes are a top seller.

On the road, they provide more durable transportation.

And, for recreation, the mountain bikes could be a shift in gears for Friday.

“One reason I got into this was because motocross is more or less a kids’ sport,” he said. “But I’m going to be involved with bikes for the rest of my life, and I can do this for the rest of my life.”

Bicycles and Byron Friday, it seems, were made for each other.