I had a blast interviewing Megan Hottman, The Cyclist Lawyer in a Great Books, Great Minds feature article entitled “The Law of Cycling Through a Good Read.” Now it's time for a word from her law firm sidekick Andrew J. Phillips at The Cyclist Lawyer. An experienced Denver accident attorney, Andrew focuses mainly on car crashes and bicycle collisions.
Mr. Phillips is actively engaged in his community and church. Additionally, he is an active member of the Colorado Trial Lawyers Association and the Colorado Bar Association.
Andrew is also a voracious book reader. So I was stoked to interview him for our latest “Cycling Through Books Series,” which I am producing in conjunction with the non profit cycling community WeRide4.
On His Early Life
I grew up in Northern Idaho, one of five children with my single mother. We were as poor as anyone could possibly imagine, living in a trailer while subsisting on food stamps. At first, college wasn’t really on my radar but eventually I ended up meeting a girl who said she’s always envisioned marrying a college grad. So I enrolled in school. At the time I was in Ogden, Utah and enrolled at Weber State. I graduated and then married her. She is now my wife.
On His Law School Days
I ended up going on to law school at The University of Colorado-Boulder. While in school we had our first child. So we were kind of found ourselves in the deep end of things pretty quickly coming out of undergrad. And then we had three more kids right after law school. So life for me has always been busy and fun and an adventure.
On Becoming a Personal Injury Attorney
So here is the story although it’s a bit personal. My wife’s parents were killed in a car accident during my third year of law school. They got hit head on by a driver who crossed the center line and took them both out. So that led me to re-evaluated my whole legal career. Going to law school you often don’t know all of the options that are out there. And honestly, specializing in car crashes and bicycle collisions is not where I thought I’d end. But I’m definitely grateful.
On His Reading Journey
Well, I’m not as well-read as Megan (Hottman). I think she is an incredibly well read person, it seems she’s constantly reading. My life does not lend me a lot of time to read like I'd like to. I have four kids, a wife, and am working full time. By the end of the night if I’m lucky, I’ll get some time to read a few pages of a book.
On His Cycling Passion
So when I was growing up, I used to love to look at maps. My favorite thing to do was to get a National Geographic and pull out the map and just look at roads while imagine riding on them. I recall having a map of the U.S. and dreaming about biking across America. And so I think a lot of my passion for cycling probably started there.
On Commuting To Work
I’ve commuted upwards of 35 miles a day or more by bike. So I really believe in it and do it through all seasons. This year I did one commute, I think it was negative 16 degrees out. It was crazy but so much fun. I believe that cycling is immensely good for us. As I see it, getting more people out of their cars and on their bikes is good for everyone and everything.
On Working With Megan Hottman
We became friends over the last few years with cycling, Lookout Mountain Week, and Bike To Work Day. Megan lives close to me and has become a really great friend and mentor. She was looking to step back a little bit in terms of her practice and wanted me to step in more. And so we’ve figured out a way to make that work. I’m now focused a lot more on cases involving cycling now, which is awesome, because it lines up with my passions, hobbies, and what I like to do.
On A Book That’s He’s Found Impactful
There is a book I read a while ago and was just recently paging through again. It’s called Where There’s a Will by Emily Chapel. I don't know if you’ve heard of her. But she won the continental race across Europe in 2013.
The book’s description:
A London cycle courier with a taste for adventure, Emily Chappell entered an extraordinary new race - The Transcontinental - in which riders must find their own way, entirely unassisted, across Europe in the shortest time possible. On her second attempt, she won the women's event, covering nearly 4,000 miles in 13 days and 10 hours, sleeping in short bursts wherever exhaustion took her. In the aftermath of a win that troubled as much as pleased her, she worked with Mike Hall, the founder of the race, until his tragic death on the road.
That book really touched me when I read it and there’s a passage in it that there I wanted to share:
“The knowledge that someone had done something so much harder than I was attempting helped to bring my woes into perspective. If he had covered 200 miles a day for three months with legs and lungs and bicycle, then I could surely get through this. I would picture him riding as I rode, occasionally alongside me but more often in that curious way that our minds have of simultaneously witnessing and inhabiting that which we imagine. I wasn’t yet convinced of my own strength, but I was of his and so I relied on him to prop me up through those periods of misgivings and self doubt. But most of all I looked to him in a new pinnacle of achievement towards which I could aspire without any particular hope of competing with what he had done but with some promise of getting farther than I would have otherwise. As far as I was concerned he was a pioneer breaking a path into unknown territory, 200 miles a day, that I would never have the courage to forge myself, but knew I might one day want to follow.”
That passage speaks to me in so many ways. I often think about how much suffering and how many trials people go through and just how hard life can be sometimes and the paths that they forge for us. And we’re all on a path and we’re trying to get through it. So sometimes remembering what others have done can give us the courage and the strength that we may feel that we’re lacking in the moment. And so I really enjoy that. I found a lot of strength in those words from her.
On WeRide4
I’m kind of new to the group. I was introduced to them through Megan and have gotten to know Sharon Madison, the founder a bit. She’s an incredible person with an incredible story. What a life she’s lived and the good work she’s doing now, I mean it’s just absolutely inspiring in so many ways. So as I get to know WeRide4 better and the stuff that they’re doing, I’m just continually impressed by what they’re all about and am happy to be associated with them.
An Invitation From Diamond-Michael Scott:
“Great Books, Great Minds” is my full-time work and life passion, a labor of love fueled by the endless hours of work I put into researching and writing these feature pieces. So if you enjoy this digital newsletter, find it valuable, and savor world-class book experiences featuring epic authors and book evangelists, then please consider becoming a paid supporting member at $6.00 a month or $60.00/year.