Heart issues won’t keep a local golf pro from participating in the third annual Bricks and Spokes bike ride sponsored by the Vicksburg Main Street Program Oct. 6, beginning at 8 a.m.

Vicksburg Country Club golf pro Steve Caldwell, 57, has suffered two heart attacks in his life, but attributes his recovery to an active lifestyle.

“I believe I am here today because of the cycling,” Caldwell said.

He plans to participate in the 50-mile Bricks and Spokes route, the longest of three. There are also 10- and 30-mile routes.

Caldwell said he has a blood disorder that forms clots in his heart, making him susceptible to heart attacks.

He said doctors have not been able to diagnose him, but do have him taking medication to thin his blood.

Regardless, Caldwell said he will continue to ride and stay active in the hope his heightened physical activity will help him survive the condition.

He suffered his first heart attack on Aug. 11, 2011, and a second in April prior to this year’s Jazz Fest in New Orleans.

“I had just ridden 60 miles with a group on Saturday and 25 miles on my own on Sunday and was getting ready for Jazz Fest and had the second heart attack,” he said.

Caldwell said he was taken to a hospital in New Orleans before being transferred to River Region Medical Center in Vicksburg, where Dr. Paul Pierce IV was his doctor.

“I had two stints put in this year,” Caldwell said.

Six weeks later he was back on his bike.

---