Community

Ambassadors

Introducing the Rocky Mountain Crew

We’re stoked to introduce our new global ambassador program, the Rocky Mountain Crew – a network of community leaders focused on helping others progress and have as much fun as possible on their bikes. Whether it’s learning the perfect cornering technique or fixing a flat for the first time, the Crew is there to help. They are friendly faces and helping hands on the trails. And most importantly, they love to ride.

Branham Snyder - Rocky Mountain Ambassador

Branham Snyder

Bellingham, Washington, USA

Branham grew up in Mexico and now lives in Bellingham, WA. With a background of working in bike shops, he has great mechanic skills and loves to teach others. He's also a local coach for the program "Vamos" which helps underprivileged kids get an entry into the sport. Branham will be leading community events in the Bellingham area around bike mechanics, helping with trail building projects, and advocating for more community outreach at his shop with events that help connect the newcomers with the veterans.

Fiona Finnie

Newtonmore, Scottish Highlands, UK

Mountain biker and gravel rider, Fiona is based out of Scotland. As the co-founder of the award-winning women's mountain bike festival, Limitlass, Fiona has been instrumental in fostering a vibrant and inclusive community for female riders. Fiona was recently recognized as one of Cycling UK's 100 Women in Cycling for 2023. An experienced mountain bike coach and guide, Fiona shares her expertise, offering riders a chance to explore the rugged trails of the Scottish Highlands.

Matt Monod

Banff, Alberta, Canada

Over the past 6 years, Matt’s been coaching enduro programs for local youth which is where he does most of his riding. He says working with the kids keeps him sharp, as well as gives him the opportunity to express the way he sees the sport. The past year Matt spent building trails, coaching, and racing downhill in the Alps, which has broadened his horizon on riding, coaching, and trial building aspects. Back in Canada now, he’s mainly working with a group of teens in the Bow Valley in an enduro-specific program, as well as working closely with coaches.

Susan Clifford

Hyde Park, Vermont, USA

Susan has been a coach for years and has been really active within the women’s biking scene. Susan will be leading weekly group rides, facilitating community skills sessions, weekend skills camps, and rolling up her sleeves for trail work events. She’s organizing a trip to Peru through the non-profit World Ride which provides opportunities for women in underdeveloped countries to experience mountain biking. She’ll be joining us at RoamFest Knoxville.

Dan Raymond

Whistler, British Columbia, Canada

Dan has been a professional trail builder since 2011. He’s the Lead builder for Whistler Off-Road Cycling Association. His crew is responsible for building and maintaining most of Whistler's trails outside of the WB tenure and Lost Lake. Lord of the Squirrels, Chipmunk Rebellion, Rubbish, Dessert Platter, Robin Yer Eggs, and Yummier Numby are just some of the new trails that WORCA has created since 2014 on top of performing full renovations to many local classics.

Clare McCann

Banff, Alberta, Canada

Clare is known as the Director of STOKE. Biking is her job, her lifestyle, and a bit of an obsession. She is one seriously passionate mountain bike rider; instructor; guide; business owner; trail builder; snow dogger; bike festival volunteer; MTB enduro teamer and world traveler (bike trips, of course!) She owns and operates Bikescape Mountain Bike and Winter Adventures in Banff, AB - the first and ONLY MTB operator, licensed in Banff National Park. Clare hosts the MTB Social Club - a weekly, ladies social ride, set at a pace where we have a blast and catch up on the news, current events with all the fun of riding bikes!

Eric Melson

Missoula, Montana, USA

Eric spent a lifetime working in shops and has been obsessed with bikes ever since he can remember. He runs a small coaching and guiding company in western Montana called Ride Montana, and is the general manager for a youth enduro development team called Ride Montana Racing.

When he’s not coaching or shredding, he can be found lobbying in the statehouse, volunteering for the local trails organization, and assisting non-profits as a consultant.

Brianna Lobb

Lake Hawea, Otago, New Zealand

Brianna is a Canadian who’s lived in New Zealand for the past 5 years, based out of Wanaka. By day she works as a high school outdoor education and physical education teacher, and by evening's a mountain bike coach. Brianna is working at the local high school delivering a mountain bike program, and running local Enduro and DH races.

Other ways Brianna contributes to her community are coaching with the local women’s program BlackFox Ride (also known as Mission WOW) and a national kids coaching program called WORD (World Off Road Department).

Andrew Howieson

Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

Andrew, or better Howie - how everyone else calls him, is based out of Australia but has spent a fair amount of time in Canada before. Howie loves anything bikes and is a true advocate for the sport. Be it through coaching, trail advocacy or just being a friendly face and approachable person within the sport. Howie is the president of the local not-for-profit trail organization, Yarra Ranges Mountain Bikers as well as one of the main spokespeople that are lobbying for a new trail network in Warburton.

Nate Kirschner

Victor, Idaho, USA

Nate is based in the Teton Valley, specifically Victor, Idaho. He is a volunteer board member of Mountain Bike the Tetons, the local IMBA chapter. MBT's trail crew has been busy planning and has a full summer lineup of projects. He’s also involved with the Snake River Trail Alliance, an association bringing multi-user groups together for southeastern Idaho trail projects. There are some great sustainability and rehabilitation projects in the works. Most of his energy will be focused on an ambitious multi-use rehabilitation project in the Northern Palisades.

Addison Zawada

Morin-Heights, Quebec, Canada

Hailing from the south-eastern US, Addison now lives in Quebec, Canada. You can find him pretty much anywhere, but always on two wheels - if it's the flat roads of the Florida coast, the rock hard dirt of at the local BMX track, or LOAM deep on the steeps.

He's the head mechanic for his local shop Atelier Technolodge. Beyind turning wrenches Addison is a pillar in the local bike community, be it through communal rides, mechanic sessions, dig days, or as the head mechanic on the latest Pinkbike series.

Thank you to our supporting partners

Stories featuring our ambassadors

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Location highlight: Exploring Toby Creek on the new Instinct

Location highlight: Exploring Toby Creek on the new Instinct

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Tech highlights: What sets the new Instinct apart

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Sardines and Singletrack - Chase adventure and trust you Instinct

Sardines and Singletrack - Chase adventure and trust you Instinct

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