Mid-way through the private skills clinic, we put Tanya on my Jamis Bikes Defcon with Vittoria Tires Gomas, Magura MT7s and everything clicked! She understood why and how you can seperate your bike from you body. Also, the front wheel lift made so much more sense with a bigger travel bike! You can learn skills on almost any bike, THEN when you get a super dialed in bike it makes it even easier and way more fun! The more skills you have, the more fun you have!
Lia the leaper
Erica had the honor or working with this naturally talented athlete! Lia was a collegiate road racer and is now getting into mountain biking. She progressed through the skills so quickly that she was hitting drops at the end of the session (hence Lia the Leaper!)
Ely clinic trail scouting
We are so excited about the clinic that Erica and Lisa are hosting in Ely on August 26th! Erica went to ride the trails and make sure everything is ready to go. Sportsworld in Ely is renting bikes for women that don't own one (yet!) and they are hosting part of the clinic for us in their shop. Thanks to them for their great support in getting more women on the trails in Ely! Also thanks to Nancy of the Ely Outdoor Enthusiasts for helping Women in the Mountains bring their clinic to Ely. We can't wait for August!
Coaching the coach (personal training coach)
Kristen is a personal trainer and was a competitive sailor. She really understands how to move her body and describe what she is feeling as she turns and works on skills. She really appreciated the feedback and responded quickly to every single cue. Excited to see where her riding takes her next!
Couples Clinic/Date Night in the Mountains!
These two couples had a date night with their skills instructor! Erica Tingey led them in a progression to learn to go over obstacles and corner more efficiently. Healthy and fun way to spend a night out with friends! Melissa attended one of the Women in the Mountains clinics last summer and told her friends how fun it is!
Belinda, Brad, Melissa, Troy, Erica
Belinda
Melissa
Troy
PMBIA Certification
The coaches of Women in the Mountains are all now PMBIA certified! Professional Mountain Bike Instructor Association is an organization (the best one!) that teaches instructors HOW to teach mountain biking. We learned so much more than we could have ever expected. Our curriculum has been added to and in some cases it has changed to a different and better approach. We each have a quiver full of tools to meet any student where they are in their abilities.
Erica Tingey is also a USA Cycling Level 3 Coach and Lynda Wallenfels is a USA Cycling Level 1 Coach (the highest level).
Lisa, Lynda and Erica on the lift
Erica giving a sample lesson to the instructors
Erica giving a sample lesson to the instructors
Simon coaching Erica how to coach a roll down
Semi-private session with Ali and Cherell
Ali and Cherell are accomplished triathletes that were looking to increase their mountain bike skills. They spent a few hours working through the basics and quickly progressed to drops and jumps! They are some very talented athletes!
Contender Bicycles Women's Skills Clinic
We joined with Contender Bicycles in Salt Lake City to host an evening of mountain bike skills for women! We had a phenomenal turn out with nearly 50 participants!
June 2017 edition of Women in the Mountains
Women in the Mountains hosted a level 2 skills clinic in Park City, Utah last Saturday. The focus was on cornering and tight switchbacks. The women dialed in their body position and were cornering really efficiently and with confidence by the end of the clinic! We love watching these women gain confidence in their skills!
Coach Lynda, Emma, Lindsay, Kai, Dee, Jillian, Coach Erica, Amy, Jo, Susi, Nora
Erica, Nora, Jo, Susi, Julie, Amy, Dee, Kai
Emma and Coach Lynda
We have a JUMP!!!!!
Women in the Mountains now has a portable jump! This opens up where we can teach since the jump has different heights. Plus our fun factor has gone through the roof, everyone loves to fly!
High School Girl's Clinic
The future of mountain biking is bright! Coach Erica Tingey had the honor of working on skills with nearly 80 high school girls today. They are all so enthusiastic, hard working, respectful and kind. Our sport is being passed onto an amazing generation!
Mountain Bike Skills Clinic in Saint George, Utah for Women
Back row: Charity, Lynda, Laura, Mary, Nancy, Erica, Nicole, Kim, Julie, Shellee, Shawna, Lindsay
Front Row: Nicole, Tonya, Jillian, Lisa, Emma, Alice
Erica Tingey, Lynda Wallenfels and Lisa Leonard returned to St. George for the 4th Desert edition of Women in the Mountains! The clinic was sold out and had the biggest variety in rider skill levels yet. Everyone loved learning to ride the manual and almost half of the women learned the wheelie!
Kim: rocking the "ready position"
Lynda, Erica, Lisa
Back Row: Shellee, Nicole, Shawna, Tonya, Alice, Mary, Laura, Charity, Nancy
Front Row: Jillian, Julie, Kim, Lisa, Erica, Lynda, Nicole, Emma, Lindsay
Private Session with Jenny M.
Jenny booked a private session to improve her mountain bike handling skills. She has ridden a road bike for years and recently purchased a mountain bike. She was excited about the small things (like learning how to start on a hill) as well as the bigger ones, such as how to ride up a curb or a small rock! She is taking another session with her daughter in a couple of weeks.
New Zealand Clinic
New Zealand clinic location scouting (for 2018)
January 14th Desert Clinic in St. George, Utah
We got to ride out mountain bikes in January! IN THE SUNSHINE! The 3rd Desert Edition of Women in the Mountains turned out to perfect.
Here are a few highlights:
Katie, Lisa, Kai, Diana, Rebecca, Kim, Natasha, Lynda, Pam, Erica, Jana, Lindsay, Karen
Katie, Kai, Natasha, Karen, Lindsay, Kim, Rebecca
Erica, Jana, Pam (not picture, Lisa and Lynda)
Testimonials from 2016
Below you will find some of the testimonials from 2016 clinics! We are honored to hear these great reviews.
"Thank you so much for the incredible clinic and for sharing your knowledge with us! I'm excited to implement and improve upon the skills I learned as I hope to take MTB to the highest levels possible for me - but hope to attend more of your skill camps as I know I've only scratched the surface. Happy riding and keep dominating your racing careers!" Dee (11/19/16)
"Thank you so much for all that you do to get more women on bikes. Mountain biking has been a lifeline for me during the last couple of years and the skills that I've learned from both of you have really helped me get more enjoyment out of my time on the trails. " C (11/19/16)
"Awesome Clinic! Would definitely do again. Learned useful skills that with lots of practice will make me a better (and safer) rider" DN (11/12/19)
"What an amazing experience! Excellent information to really help improve mountain bike skills! I would highly recommend any woman who is interested in , or already enjoys, mountain biking to take this clinic. Thank you Erica and Lynda you two are amazing" Brookanne (11/12/16)
"Erica, I absolutely loved everything about the class. Not just bike skills, but attitude skills to go along with it. I learned so much and I am really excited to apply it all to my love of mountain biking. From proper position, placement of weight, to pedal and coaster wheelies and drops. I cannot say enough good about it. My only wish is that I could record it and watch it all over again. Thank you so much!" Virginia (11/12/16)
"You're awesome and your clinic was an absolute blast. You and Lynda did an amazing job. I'm super excited to take the skills leaned and apply them on the dirt. Thank you, thank you!!!" Shirley (11/12/16)
"Loved the clinic! For me, it took a week of practicing the "cues" that were taught, specifically to bend elbows, lower chest, butt out and push your weight through the bottom bracket. This has helped my confidence immensely while descending and made the downhill actually fun and not scary!" Carrie (8/6/16)
"Erica, you really are wonderful. It was a great day on the bike sessioning with a bunch of sanguine women! Thank you is not enough!" Moonbeam (8/6/16)
"Erica, thanks for such a great skills clinic. I love your teaching style it really fit me. You always explained the why behind the what and gave a great demonstration. I am totally excited to take all the skills you taught me and apply them. You had me doing things I thought I could not do. I now have more confidence. Best of all you were very personable and sincerely interested in helping me to be the best I can be. I would recommend you to anyone". Kelly (8/1/16)
"Thanks for an awesome day. Lots of valuable info, tips, drills to build and update the skills! " Susi (6/10/16)
Women in the Mountains: Desert Edition (November 19th, 2016)
The second Desert Edition of Women in the Mountains was another great success! Huge thanks to Jamis Bicycles for supporting these events. The women love their Jamis shirts and all the other goodies provided by Stan's NoTubes, ESI grips, .
This time we ended up with 18 women in the desert sunshine including coaches Erica Tingey and Lynda Wallenfels. We worked on skills at a private home then at a nearby school. During our lunch break the women sat in Elevated Legs and prepared for an afternoon on red dirt! On the dirt the women more about body position going up and down hills. Then the got to practice going up rocks, the most exciting part!
Lindsay, Kathi, Rebecca, Lynda Candice, Wendy, Sherine, Holly, Mindy, Lisa
Dee, Sharon, Rhonda, Gabrielle, Erica, Lydia, Micahela, Amy
Women in the Mountains; Desert Edition (November 12th, 2016)
Women in the Mountains went to the desert! Erica Tingey and Lynda Wallenfels hosted the clinic on the red dirt single track. They had a sold out clinic and an assistant making it a group of 17 women! The day was phonemail with success on everyone's part. The group of women consisted of absolute beginners to great riders.
Shannon, Brook, Kellie, Shirley, Virginia, Anna, Danielle, Cindy ,Shauna, Hailey, Jane ,Paula, Deneen, Amy, Lynda
Ash is FLYING!
Ashley has been through the Women in the Mountains clinic and had a prior private session with Erica Tingey. She was ready to learn the art of flying off of rocks! We met at Trailside Bike park and with all of her foundational tools learned throughout the summer, we were able to get her in the air with ease and comfort in less than an hour! Nice work Ashley!