Welcome to Inside the Boardroom: Fireside Chats with Tom, a series designed to offer insightful conversations with some of the most inspiring leaders across business, sports, and life. These interviews are part of Tom Matlack’s summer course at Wesleyan University, where he is engaging with freshman and sophomore student-athletes to explore the intersections of entrepreneurship, finance, leadership, and personal growth. The goal is to provide young athletes—and aspiring entrepreneurs—with real-world wisdom. The entrepreneurs generously share lessons learned from navigating the challenges and triumphs of building successful careers and businesses.
In this episode, Tom sits down with Ian MacGregor, a former professional road cyclist, national champion, and the founder of Scratch Labs, a pioneering sports nutrition company. Ian’s journey is a testament to resilience, curiosity, and the power of bold decisions. From a traumatic childhood experience that drove him toward independence, to a brief stint in pro cycling, and ultimately to building a business from scratch, Ian’s story exemplifies the importance of vision, grit, and the courage to ask for help.
Throughout the conversation, Ian shares candid insights about how he learned to trust his own skills and instincts, even when starting a new venture with little background in business. His reflections on making strategic decisions—knowing when to push forward and when to step back—resonate especially with athletes balancing performance with long-term growth. Ian’s honesty about mistakes, such as over-relying on external help early on or struggling with identity shifts after injuries, offers valuable lessons in humility and self-awareness.
This interview also highlights the importance of community, culture, and adaptability—themes relevant not just to entrepreneurs but to any young athlete looking to translate their discipline and perseverance into success beyond the playing field. As Ian emphasizes, real growth often comes from moments of adversity, and the most challenging decisions—particularly around people—can be the most transformative.
Be sure to subscribe to Inside the Boardroom and share these conversations with your network, especially students and athletes eager to learn how to turn their passions into impactful careers. Here is a link to the full series.
Here is a copy of the video transcript, provided by YouTube and edited slightly for clarity.
Tom: Welcome Ian. I want to start by mentioning that the students here are mostly freshmen and sophomores—athletes, including soccer players, rowers, and basketball players. We also have some really impressive visitors from the business and finance world—bankers, private equity investors, consultants, and more. But you did something much cooler: you built a business. That, to me, is truly remarkable. Many of the others will share interesting stories and achievements, but creating something of real value—employing people and producing a product—like hats off to you. That’s what it’s all about.
With that as an intro, I like to start big and then go back to the beginning. So, what are you most proud of in your career?
Ian: Oh, Tom, you already got me a little embarrassed! Luckily, when you have a consumer brand, things seem bigger than they are. Looking back, I think I’m most proud of how, through different chapters of my life, I’ve always gone all-in. That started as a young kid ski racing, continued through my cycling career, and ultimately led to Scratch. And I believe that has been a key to our success.
Tom: So, when you look back, what would you say are your strengths and weaknesses, and how have they played out over time?
Ian: Well, I think the ability to go all-in is definitely a strength. I’ve been able to focus intensely on one goal at a time—set my eyes on it and ignore almost everything else. That focus has sometimes caused collateral damage, which isn’t always ideal. As I’ve grown into leadership, I’d say honesty and directness have been major strengths, helping push people to excel. But that’s also a weakness—at my worst, I can come across as a jerk. At my best, that direct feedback helps people perform at their best.
I’ve also been very decisive, even when I don’t fully understand why. That allows me to move quickly and create clarity about what we’re doing. But at times, that can lead to blind spots—closing off to input and sometimes heading in the wrong direction.
Tom: Just to level set, what does Scratch Labs stand for today?
Ian: The core reason we exist is to help people become better. Right now, that’s primarily around solving sports nutrition problems. We have plenty of room to grow and many goals to expand our impact, but at its heart, I think the company will always aim to help people be better.
Tom: Now, I want to go back to the beginning. To set the context for how we know each other: Mikey, who will join us later this week, and I put together a market research report on the trail running market to shed light on what’s really going on in that space. You were kind enough to get excited about it. I have a big box of your product back there that you sent me—so I really appreciate that. That’s how we first connected—through that effort.
Let me add: In our world, especially in Colorado’s outdoor scene, there are extreme examples of research from big consulting firms and very smart people who do amazing work. But often, they miss the niche that a business like ours—and our customers—exist in. I don’t recall exactly how I came across your research, but when I saw it, I genuinely lit up. It had a real impact—not just for our business but for an industry and community we love. That’s why I reached out to say thanks. Simple acts of appreciation are important.
And as you know, I’m an ultrarunning enthusiast. Mikey and I felt like the data simply wasn’t there for our space, and the information you provided was completely objective. Your brand stood out at the top, which always feels good.
In one of our previous conversations, you mentioned you were a blue-collar kid who was good at math. That’s right. You didn’t do all that well in high school but scored well on standardized tests. You ended up at Colorado School of Mines because it was the best school you could get into in Colorado—that’s correct?
Ian: Yes, pretty straightforward. I think the most interesting point is that after one semester of college, I dropped out to ride bikes.
Tom: How did that happen?
Ian: I won’t go into too much detail, but to go back briefly: When I was 10 years old, my mom suffered a closed-head injury. She had been an incredibly important person in my life. Over two to three years, she had to stop working and relearn how to live. She struggled with walking and talking, and had to redevelop those skills. I only understand this now, with the help of therapy, but that moment—a traumatic, extreme scenario—drove me toward a very functional solution: becoming extremely independent.
In that process, I fell in love with alpine ski racing. You can’t totally see it in this video, but I’m not very big. I poured my heart into it, but I wasn’t very good. However, life often leads you down one path to another. That led me to find the sport of cycling. During the summer between giving up on skiing and starting college, I fell into road cycling. I wasn’t immediately passionate about it, but I was good right away. I had some good results racing that summer, and when I started college, I got the opportunity to race for a national-level team that paid me and provided equipment. At the time, I thought, “Wow, I made it—I’m a big deal.” But I didn’t really know what to do next.
I then met a professor at Colorado School of Mines named John Burgerer, who was a fan of cycling. I walked into his office during office hours asking for help. He looked at me and said, “This is an opportunity that doesn’t come around often. I better not see you this spring semester.” That was the moment I decided to go all-in. Without thorough information or a clear plan, I committed. That was the start of a fortunate but relatively short professional cycling career. Over seven or eight years, I traveled the world, paid my bills, bought a house, and paid the mortgage.
Background: I won the national U23 championship twice and was a European pro cyclist for six years. I raced for the biggest team, now known as EF, which was Garmin-Cervélo at the time. I also raced for Nova Durik, which supports Type 1 diabetic athletes, although back then it was a mix of regular athletes and diabetics.
Tom: Why did you stop racing professionally?
Ian: By age 26 or 27, over the previous 18 months or so, I started experiencing intermittent symptoms. It was hard to pinpoint, but I was struggling to understand what was happening. As a top athlete, I thought of myself as invincible, but we’re actually quite fragile. I had an issue called iliac endofibrosis, where the main artery that feeds blood into my legs was kinked—similar to a kinked garden hose. This resulted in about 60% blood flow to my left leg. I faced a choice: undergo vascular surgery or end my cycling career. My initial instinct was to get surgery because my identity and livelihood depended on cycling.
It was a tough period. I don’t want to overstate it—these are first-world problems—but it was emotionally challenging. Luckily, I had good mentors and support, who helped me see that I wasn’t just a cyclist. Major vascular surgery at that age was risky, especially for what might happen 50 years later. I decided to forego surgery, which led to a period of personal struggle, depression, and reflection. I had to get help, and it was a difficult but valuable time.
Tom: What was returning to college like at 26-27?
Ian: It was humbling—going from being a top athlete and magazine feature to just another undergrad. My wife and I had to get a roommate to help with our mortgage. Still, I was prepared and ready the second time around. I wasn’t interested in being a star anymore; I just wanted to learn. I didn’t care much about grades initially; I was focused on riding and training. But after returning, I threw myself into it and found it enjoyable. I connected with some students, professors, and older military veterans, which helped build a community.
Tom: How did Scratch Labs start?
When I was a pro cyclist with Garmin, my now partner Alan Lim was the sport science director for the team. We had known each other since his PhD days at CU Boulder when I was still a ski racer. Our connection was a bit of a happy accident. Alan helped us cyclists optimize our performance—not through marginal gains like aerodynamics or lighter gear, but by addressing the real bottlenecks like nutrition and recovery.
Back then, the sports nutrition options were pretty bad—they made us sick and didn’t taste good. Athletes are paradoxically fragile—like canaries in a coal mine. If we consumed evenI’ll share one quick story that perhaps connects the dots. When we first started Scratch—and truly knew nothing—one of the pieces of advice we received was that we needed a financial model. We spent about $5,000–$6,000 to get a model from someone we considered an expert who knew all the right things. But what I got back was a spreadsheet that was terrible—a spreadsheet I, as an engineer, could have made much faster and better. I already knew more about the business than I realized.
The problem was, I was afraid because I didn’t know the lingo or jargon—cost of goods, margins, things like that felt intimidating. There’s a balance between asking for help and getting input from others, but I wish I had just trusted my own skills back then. That $5,000 could have been better spent elsewhere.
Tom: Now, we’ll try to cover as many student questions as possible, but I want to leave time for a few final ones—about six or seven. You’re on schedule.
(Ed Note: The student questions were not part of the transcript)
Ian: That’s a really good question. You mentioned something that’s very important: how we make strategic choices versus the vision. To me, a vision needs to be far enough out that you can’t fully answer how you’ll get there—not right away at least. If you start trying to solve how from the beginning, you’re limiting yourself.
Two tools I recommend:
First, there’s a restaurant group out of Michigan called Zingerman’s. Their yellow “recipe” book actually provides a step-by-step guide on how to write a vision. I use it personally, in my business, and even with my 10-year-old daughter—it’s fantastic.
Second, there’s an author named Ben Hardy, who I might get wrong, but his idea is that “10x is easier than 2x.” The point is, if your goal isn’t big enough, you get stuck in your current paradigm. When your vision is far enough out, you’re focusing on the what, not the how, which is crucial for strategic planning.
Tom: Thanks for that. Thanks, everyone.
Ian: So, I was 26 or 27, at the very beginning of that peak four- to five-year period in pro cycling. Honestly, it’s a little hard to admit now—15 years later. Looking back, that experience feels like a classic country song about unanswered prayers. I was really good at pedaling a bike, and it gave me a sense of identity; I could pay my bills. But I didn’t love it.
It took me about 3–4 years to realize this: I was four or five years into building Scratch, and I suddenly felt more engaged in my life as a whole. When that injury (iliac endofibrosis) happened, I felt like a victim—angry, upset, frustrated. But I’m actually grateful it happened.
Tom: I can relate to that, and I’ll share more about pivotal moments in my life in future classes. The worst things that happen often turn out to be the best—they break your previous paradigm and open up new opportunities you wouldn’t have seen otherwise.
Ian: More broadly, the hardest decisions for me have involved people—difficult ones like letting someone go, especially when I respect them deeply. It’s tough. Also, in a growing company, the key people who take you from here to there aren’t always the right ones to get from that next step on. Recognizing those changes is hard.
Specifically, I coach my team on making decisions when they have enough good information. Daniel Pink describes decision types in three buckets:
Hats: You can put it on, take it off—no big deal.
Haircut: If it’s bad, you can fix or change it in a few weeks.
Tattoo: A permanent decision that requires careful thought.
Knowing which type of decision you face helps determine how much time and effort to invest.
And on a lighter note, Braveheart is one of my favorite movies—full of emotion, action, and a little bit of violence. I enjoy breaking rules, so I’ll add a hyphen here: believe— or leave. Believe in yourself, or go find something else.
Tom: It’s been a pleasure talking with you. Thank you so much for your time; your story is truly inspiring. Keep at it—we’re all behind you. I’ll keep using your products.
Ian: Quick reminder—if you’re here, take a moment to find Tom and introduce yourself if you haven’t already. Don’t be afraid to ask for help. I might not have all the answers, but building that habit pays off. Trust me, it will.
Tom: Thanks again, and good luck!
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