Sandra Beaubien, 41 years old, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
Ride Ottawa Owner and PMBIA Level 1 Certified Instructor
What makes you unique in the biking world?
For the last 17 years I have been passionate about various forms of off-road cycling, with a focus on mountain biking, fatbiking, bike packing and gravel riding. I ride almost all year, even with 4 very distinct season in Ottawa, Canada. I get out when it is +30C and also when it is -30C, and I motivate my friends to do the same!
In 2011 I founded the Ottawa MTB Chicks, a fun and supportive group for women of all skill levels to build their confidence mountain biking. The group is over 500 ladies with our group rides in the 40s! In 2012 I was asked to join the Ottawa Mountain Bike Association Board of Directors as the voice for women mountain bikers in the region, which had always been underrepresented in the region.
From 2014 to 2019 I was the President of the Ottawa Mountain Bike Association (OMBA), and have worked as a volunteer to advocate for more mountain bike access. Under my leadership in those 5 years we added 100 km of additional single track in our region. Gatineau Park and Larose Forest are quickly changing the riding scene in Ottawa and helping beginner and intermediate riders progress while falling in love with the sport. I supported Fatbiking in it's infancy and helped secured access at various riding areas in Ottawa (we seriously have some of the best fatbike trails in North America with over 100 km open in the winter). I am embedded into the mountain bike scene in Ottawa, and love to share my passion with others. I spearheaded Ottawa's first bike park, the Carlington Bike Park and it has been a huge success since opening in fall 2019.
After 5 strong (and very tiring years) of advocacy work, 2018 was the year to start shifting my focus and riding more. I took the PMBIA Level 1 mountain bike instructor course. AND I LOVED IT! I’m a teacher for my regular job, so it was the perfect fit for me. Combining my love of teaching with mountain biking. Along with two friends we started a mountain bike instruction company called Ride Ottawa. Our goal is to build a better riding community by offering instruction that will allow riders to progress and love the sport as much as we do!
When I do get out riding, I love to explore and travel. That is why as much as I love to mountain bike, sometimes I get the itch to do something a little more adventurous, like a really long gravel ride (the gravel in Ottawa is also stellar) or do a bike packing trip with friends. Typically I travel about 10 weekends a year to various riding locations, and go to Utah in March and either BC or Vermont for an extended trip in the summer. There are so many cool places to ride and I love riding a trail for the first time. So much fun!! 2020 has been a challenging year, but I am hoping to do some travelling again in 2021 or 2022.
What is it that you love about a brand that you want to share with others?
I really like businesses that focus on community. For me riding is all about the community and supporting that company. I'm pictured here with a group of women gravel riders. It is a cross-over sport for all of us, and brings together our passion for cycling. It is important for me to align with brands that are all about community and keeping that community strong and growing together.
What kind of content are you able to create on your own?
I’m an avid social media user and also have experience managing various social media accounts for the Ottawa Mountian Bike Association and Ottawa MTBchicks. I’m comfortable with Facebook, Instagram, Strava and Zwift. I have communities within all of those groups that I interact with.
I also really enjoy taking riding pictures and sharing them on the various platforms. And I love taking pictures of my bikes in cool places. I’ve always liked to do that because I know my bikes like to travel as much as I do!
I’ve also created some Adobe Spark documents, which are a great interactive way to get messages out for the bike community. Below is an Adobe Spark I created to promote the Carlington Bike Park when it is was in the approval, public consultation and fundraising stages.
I am also comfortable in front a camera. Here is an example of a CTV news interview I have done.
As well as a piece on Fatbiking in Gatineau Park in 2016 with CBC in a series called Cold Play!
A lot of friends, and members of the various cycling communities are always amazed at how much riding I do and how many places I go in a year with my bike. It seems like a waste to go on a trip and not bring a bike!! I'll never be the type of rider to go off 6 foot drops, I'm just happy to be out on my bike of choice for that day!
As a brand ambassador, what kind of support would you like?
The support I would really like from your brand would be to have more information about your products and about the other ambassadors. Having a brand that I use regularly and understand the technology behind helps me promote it through my various communities.
In the Ottawa region, there is a real shortage of little girls who mountain bike. It is going to be my next project through RideOttawa, getting more girls on bikes. I would love to have support with that once large social gatherings are permitted again, after the pandemic.. There is a huge skiing community in Ottawa, with a lot of gear available for little girls to get into the sport, but there is not the presence of kids mountain bikes in the region. I would LOVE to see more girls on bikes, and I know by putting myself out there and girls seeing me have fun on a mountain bike will help encourage them to ride!
A cyclist you admire most, and why
Well, I can't pick just one bike so I also can't pick just one cyclist! The top 3 cyclists I admire are Emily Batty, Charlotte Batty and my partner, Mike. Emily and Charlotte are so cool and fun, with totally different mountain biking goals, and I was SO EXCITED to meet Charlotte in 2018 and instruct with her! A huge highlight of the summer for me. I admire Mike because he is so dedicated to everything related to biking and helps out our extended friend network. He regularly stops to help friends and strangers with mechanical problems (even when we are on vacation in Utah!). He also works very hard on his physical fitness and technique to always be an exceptional instructor. He inspires me to always improve my fitness and technique too! And we have some pretty awesome bike adventures together.
Thank you for taking the time to read my application! If you have any questions send me an email to sandra@rideottawa.com
Credits:
Mike McGuire, David Nesbitt, Grant Burke