Do you have any hobbies outside of cycling? If so what?
It's hard not to have too many hobbies with all the great things to do these days! I like woodcarving and woodworking, I do a lot of yoga and like to read and write.

Where is your favourite place to ride?
I love riding the beaches around Vancouver and Vancouver Island because all the logs and boulders present endless challenges. Combine that with the fact that you're beside the ocean and in a beautiful natural setting, and it makes for an awesome day of riding.

What would you list as a career highlight?
Probably the fact that I can actually call it a career, that's the biggest highlight ever!

What has been your best riding experience?
Again, so hard to name specific experiences because there have been so many. Just for fun, here are a few: nailing the chain ride line from Crux, ripping down the porcupine rim trail in Moab in the pouring rain, flowing down Red Barron in Roberts Creek giggling quietly to myself, and the experience of undivided focus and concentration I had during endless hours of solo trials practice over the years.

And the worst?
Probably when I landed on an unstable platform and crashed down blowing my ACL.

What band or song have you been listening to the most lately?
Xavier Rudd

Do you have any advice to beginners?
It's all about fun, not how fast you learn or how fast you go. Don't compare yourself to others; just pay attention to the incredible sensations of flowing down a trail or of mastering a new trick for the first time.

What's your best idea of having good time?
A good ride, a perfect cup of tea, inspiring someone to try riding, lying down with a good book in the hammock, I could go on and on. Life is good!!

Why do you ride?
For that feeling you get, know what I mean? What is that feeling? The answer is subjective and can be described in many different ways - but attempting to describe it always comes up short of the actual experience...

Do you remember what your first bike was?
My first great memory of a bike was one that my dad gave to me for Christmas one year. He had secretly been collecting different bits and pieces from old bikes, and building up something custom for me with a fresh paint job. Not only was the bike something to remember, but just the fact that my dad spent the time to make it happen was perhaps, now that I look back, the most special part.

What first got you into riding?
For mountain biking, the hook was the realization that I could take my bike to the forest across the street and go rip around through the trails and through the puddles getting completely covered in mud. It became a daily ritual that my parents' washing machine had a hard time handling!

What do you enjoy most about riding for Norco?
Throughout my sponsorship, they always emphasized setting a good example before sheer results. The way I represented Norco in public was more important than the skills I acquired. They give freedom and support to their athletes to develop skills and push their own boundaries and develop their careers naturally while other companies often dictated what needed to be accomplished in order to gain the next level of sponsorship. There is a mutual respect between the company and the athlete; it goes both ways.

Key goals for 2009?

• Performing trials shows at key events through the season.
• Be a voice for environmental issues
• Increase op-ed style articles through my blog, websites, and magazines
• Continue to visit schools with my Trials of Life presentation
• I will be taking a Yoga Teacher Training Course in the summer of '09
• I'm also working on longer term writing project, but don't want to announce anything just yet about it as the ideas and outline are still forming.

Sponsor Shout out:
Norco Performance Bikes
Shimano Products
Marzocchi Suspension
Ryders Eyewear
Mace Clothing
Kenda Tires