Shawn O. Farrell, a native of Northern California, received his B.S. in biochemistry from University of California, Davis, studying carbohydrate metabolism. He completed his Ph.D. in biochemistry at Michigan State University, where he focused on the study of fatty acid metabolism. Dr. Farrell became interested in biochemistry while in college, as it was relevant to his passion for bicycle racing. He raced competitively for 15 years and now officiates bicycle races worldwide. He has taught biochemistry lecture and laboratory courses at Colorado State University for 16 years and now works for USCycling. Professor Farrell has written scientific journal articles about specific research projects and about laboratory teaching, as well as articles for sports publications, such as "Salmon, Trout, and Steelheader" magazine. He is co-author with Mary Campbell on BIOCHEMISTRY, 7e (Cengage Learning).