Letter From the Editor
IF YOU GREW UP in the ’ 70s, then no doubt you were amazed by the dynamic duo known as Terry Bradshaw and Lynn Swann. The two Steelers set all kinds of records together and lit up the Super Bowl four times, where it seemed every other pass Bradshaw threw was a Hail Mary to an ever-ascending Swann, who somehow always came down with the ball. The next day at school it was all anyone could talk about. How did they do what they did? It was miraculous! They must be superhuman!
There’s no doubt that Swann did in fact possess otherworldly talent. Bradshaw? He was just a tough guy with a cannon for an arm. Today’s admirers of the former quarterback consider him to be a gregarious, fun-loving guy, judging by what we all see on Fox NFL Sunday. But of course, the 73-year-old has had his share of failures and challenges to go along with all those trophies and glory. In 1995, Bradshaw was diagnosed as clinically depressed after years of trying to figure out what was going wrong in his head. He talks about that difficult journey on page 88.
Even as the subject of mental health becomes more and more destigmatized, it’s refreshing to have legends like Bradshaw talk about such issues publicly. According to Johns Hopkins Medicine, an estimated one in four adults suffer from a mental disorder. That is to say, everyone knows a handful of people who are struggling, very often in suffocating silence. Mental health is one of the themes of Men’s Journal’s new podcast, Everyday Warrior with Mike Sarraille. Mike’s a former Navy SEAL and bestselling author who is all about cutting through the BS with his guests and focusing on the “resilience of the human spirit.” Check out his Episode 1 conversation with Sammy Hagar on mensjournal.com to hear an inspiring long-way-to-the-top story like no other.
Know what else rocks? Our annual Style + Design package. Not only will you find some of the year’s best gear, like eco-friendly apparel, specialized camping equipment and retro-style motorcycles, you’ll also meet three dudes whose job it is to innovate the future. And for an awe-inspiring trip into the past, we visited six American ruins that rival anything in the Middle East. These monuments to American ingenuity litter the country from coast to coast and it’s fascinating to examine what’s been left behind in the name of progress, crumbling but not forgotten.