How It All Began
Brock Walker, 1972
Brock was born 1951 in Gaylord, Michigan to Jerrold and Yvonne Walker. He shared his parents with one brother and one sister. His parents owned a crop farm in Alba, MI. (Alba was an isolated farming community of less than 350 people located in Northern part of Michigan's lower peninsula.)
Brock's father was raised in Michigan's Upper Peninsula and his first love was skiing; therefore, everyone in the Walker family learned to ski at an early age. Brock learned to ski at age 5. His competitive spirit lead to selections on six different Jr. National Teams, and in 1971 he was the United States Jr. National Ski Champion.
He continued to enjoy many skiing successes throughout his career: U.S. Olympic Training Camps, Can-Am Ski Racing Tours, European Cup Racing Tours, FIS World Cup B, and he ended his competitive career competing on the Professional International Ski Racing Tour as the youngest competitor ever to race on the tour.
Early age travel exposure via skiing in North America and Europe served as a spring board to expanding awareness that there was an infinite universe out there. The combination of growing up repairing farm equipment, international travel and competition and business exposure with ski equipment manufacturers & engineers led to a life of self-reliance and an interest in mechanical design, product development and health sciences.... eventually, leading to successful relationships with many different industries, Fortune 500 companies, as well as private and public government entities.
His post high school doctorate degree took place in Vermont and Iowa. Dr. Brock Walker opened the Walker Clinic P.C. By 1990, it was one of the largest back pain clinics in the country. He joined a multi-physician advisory board and managed several hundred cases per week. In addition to his practice, Dr. Brock Walker managed a consulting business for clients: Insurance Companies, State Legislature, Auto Industry, Judiciary Court System, Expert Witness for Court Appearances, Lectures and the first D.C. to ever be appointed as a consultant to MI Blue Cross Blue Shield.
Dr. Brock Walker has been married to Deborah for 43 years, and raised one son named Ryan. Deborah is a talented artist, while Ryan has enjoyed many successes as a race car driver in North America and Europe. They all reside in Okemos, MI today, along with their three Jack Russell's: Harry, Annie, & Kylie.
The Early Years: From Patient to Practitioner
His journey to Innovator began as a young man on a ski hill. A world-class downhill racer and a National Champion, Walker learned a lot about human performance. He suffered injuries that left him determined to learn more about the human body. As a result of his injuries, he retired from racing, finished chiropractic college, built collaborative relationships within his medical community and founded Walker Clinic, PC in 1978 …and over a 15 year span, Dr. Walker treated thousands of back pain cases.
“During the 80’s and 90’s, computers and work standards changed the way millions of people worked. Sedentary work environments became the norm and muscular-skeletal complaints soared. These events sparked a lot of scholarly discussion, but resulted in few meaningful real-life solutions. My curiosity eventually turned from clinical treatment of my patients to product innovations aimed at prevention” recalls Dr. Brock Walker.
In 1990, Dr. Brock Walker sold his practice and used his clinical skills to launch a new company that focused on solving human-interface problems any place people connect to their surroundings…..any industry …..any environment…..any task …..anywhere there is a loss of human performance, comfort, and/or suffering. Along the way, there were plenty of achievements, disappointments and human interest stories that have all contributed to his perspective on innovation.
The Discovery Years: From Practitioner to Innovator
Over the last 20 years, Dr. Brock Walker’s Medically-Engineered Technologies™ have saved lives and advanced human performances by designing products, instruments and environments that create negative physical & mental stresses and strains.
He has designed, prototyped, and advised in a multitude of seating and human-interface environments for Fortune 500 corporations, Law Enforcement, US Dept. of Defense, US NAVY, NASA's Space Program, Indianapolis Motor Speedway, NASCAR icons such as Jeff Gordon and Richard Petty Enterprises, as well as former McLaren-Ferrari F1 driver Stefan Johansson…along with numerous other champions and movie icons like the late Paul Newman.
His innovations helped change driver performance and safety in International Motorsports…. including a one-of-a-kind medically-engineered design for an Indy 500 driver who won the Indianapolis 500 Race with a broken back and shattered pelvis.
Other wins include 24 Hours of Daytona, 12 Hours of Sebring, and 24 Hours of LeMan’s events.