• When did you first start riding and how did you get into it? I first started mountain biking in 2015, my partner Andrew convinced me to go for a ride during a bike festival at Velo MSM. It was a completely terrifying experience, there were definitely tears, and I was out of my depth on the blue trails! I gave it another shot at a much more mellow trail network a month later (one without cliffs, rock gardens, and big berms) and the confidence boost on easier trails was enough to convince me to keep it up. From then on, I was able to attend group rides with the Ottawa Mountain Bike Association, eventually guiding their group rides, and becoming an instructor myself.


• What’s the best thing about mtb for you? Two things that really stand out to me as the best parts. One is the total and complete focus mountain biking demands from you as a rider. No matter how my day has gone or how many things I have on my mind, I get to show up to the trails and only think about what is on the trail ahead of me.

The other thing is how visible your progression is. Every year or even every ride there is a challenge to overcome. It might be obstacles like a big drop, a skinny bridge, or riding a section of trail with more flow. There just always seems to be some piece of the puzzle to work on. I love looking back at the obstacles that really stumped me early on in my riding, and knowing they are a breeze now is so satisfying!

• What makes you, you? What’s your best quirk? Fun Fact about you or story? Most of my life is focused on riding! I worked in a bicycle shop in Ottawa for 10 years (thanks Fresh Air crew!). Now I work for a company that distributes bike parts in Canada and the US. So, you could say I think about biking, like, ALL. THE. TIME! It also means I love to get technical, so don’t hesitate to ask me about anything bike gear or apparel.


• Favourite trail?

How could anyone pick just one? I’ll give you my top three:

1. Boneshaker at Velo MSM, QC. Massive rock slabs, jumps & drops. 100% adrenaline inducing, and always requires your A-Game!


2. Slab City at Sentiers du Moulin, QC. A trail where your tires never touch dirt, almost 1.5km of the grippiest granite you will ever ride.


3. Minty Fresh at Mt. Abriel, Nakusp. A perfect mix of technical descents, well built drops, and fast paced berms. It keeps you on your toes the whole time!

But really, I will take anything steep & technical, especially if it has big natural rock features!

• Favourite after ride drink? If I could convince someone to hand me an Iced Chai at the end of every ride, I would be a very happy camper.


• What do you want your students to gain from your coaching/teaching? Confidence! I want students to leave lessons feeling confident in their abilities. It’s my goal to give you the tools to progress in your riding in a safe & fun way! I hope that all my students can use the confidence in their abilities on all their future rides to have a blast on their bikes!


• Coaching Experienced: I got my PMBIA level one at the end of 2019, and then my level two in 2021. Before I started instructing, I did two years of ride leading for the Ottawa Mountain Bike Association.