Meet our Coaches

Sylvie loves to make wheels turn! She's been riding her whole life having grown up in North Vancouver / Whistler and now calling Pemberton home. She first came across the joys and pains of mountain biking while rehabilitating from her first (of 4) knee surgeries in 1992. She soon learnt how to ride technical trails by trial and error and uh... chasing the guys. Soon after she started entering in any kind of mountain bike race she could find. 10 years later she worked her way up to travelling internationally racing both downhill and cross country. Sylvie finished her more serious racing career in 2002 after being crowned Canadian National Downhill Champion. Now her passion for biking is fueled by backcountry adventures with friends and helping other riders explore beyond their boundaries and improve their skills. She's been coaching mountain biking for over 20 years, offering thousands of women of all levels new ways to discover their potential on the bike. When not helping people on their bike, Sylvie is guiding them in the gym. She is certified as a Personal Trainer through BCRPA and has taken countless certification courses for mobility training, kettlebell, and rehabilitation. Inspiring others to reach their goals whether those goals are athletic, injury rehab, increased mobility, or weight loss. Sylvie has over 18 years experience and works hard to assist clients in reaching that next level of performance by first addressing imbalances to minimize risk of injury and creating a strong base for strength training. Coaching History & Credentials PMBIA Level 2 20 years of mountain bike coaching experience in various programs and founded Sweet Skills in 2006. Head coach for Whistler Adaptive Sports Program (WASP) since 2010 Dirt Series Mountain Bike Camps 2002-2010– Camp Manager and Head Coach from 2002-2004 Canadian Sports Business Academy – Head coach for the learn to ride / coach program for ESL students.

Born and raised in Northern BC, Stacey has recently relocated to Whistler. Utilizing her 15 years of competitive equestrian riding and yoga teaching experience, she is very articulate with her instructional techniques, and is dialled into the benefits that correct position and balance will provide for riders of all levels. Her passion for the sport is demonstrated through her desire to motivate more mountain bikers to ride and progress their skills. Stacey believes the confidence we gain on the bike directly translates to other areas of our lives and is excited to be a part of your journey.

Lynne started mountain biking in her mid twenties and quickly fell in love with going down! After a few seasons racing, realized she was more of the 'freeride type' and spent the next while touring around as part of a bike stunt team in her native Scotland an exploring the amazing trails in BC.  Lynne has been coaching women and girls since 2008 and spent the last 10 years running a womens' freeride event in an attempt to breakdown barriers to women who would like to get more comfortable in the air. She recently relocated back to Pemberton with her family and looks forward to being part of the Sweet Skills team where she hopes to help more women conquer and enjoy the awesome trails in her backyard.

Ferni was born and raised in Santiago, Chile she calls the Andes mountain range her backyard. She raced amateur XC races, a couple of EWS in South America and adventure races in Patagonia . Started working in the bike industry coaching kids after school and quickly moved to Marketing and Team manager for Giant bicycles Chile. After a couple of years working in the bike industry, she Chile in 2016 to feed that need for adventure, where she lived on a campervan in Vancouver Island. Then travelled back to work in some big bakeries in Copenhaguen and enjoyed the surf and food in the coast of Morrocco, South of Spain and Portugal until she fell in love with Whistler and the Sea to Sky where she decided to settle. She quickly started mountain bike coaching and never looked back. Ferni is so passionate about riding and coaching, you can always tell by the big contagious smile on her face! Certifications: • PMBI- Professional Mountain Bike Instructor Association Level 2 guide/Instructor • Bachelor on Graphic Design, Diego Portales University.

From a small town in Quebec, Meredith moved to BC 16 years ago for the skiing but stayed for the mountain biking.  After competing on the Freeskiing Tour, her competition experience transitioned into a coaching role, both on skis and bikes. As a level 2 certified ski and bike instructor, she now coaches for the Whistler Freeride Club and for her own camp 'Rippin Chix', in the winter and coaches Mountain biking for a handful of companies in the summer. We are more than stoked to have Meredith a part of the Sweet Skills coaching team and so are her clients! Check out all the cool stuff she does here: www.mereditheades.com

Laurie was born and raised in East Vancouver and grew up playing multiple team sports. In 2011 after damaging her knees playing soccer, she turned to cycling for rehab. She saw a mountain bike in the back of her local bike shop, looked up some videos about the sport and decided to take a women’s specific mountain bike camp (wearing Lululemon tights, soccer shin pads and Puma high-tops) - the rest is history! The new friends she met enjoyed racing, which led her to compete in over 30 downhill races including racing at the World Cup in Mont Sainte-Anne as an elite and winning a BC Provincial and a Canadian National title. With a BSc in Kinesiology/Psychology from UBC and years of experience training athletes in the gym, Laurie has a keen eye and appreciation for body position and movement efficiency on the bike. Her friends joke that she is “Captain Boring” because she rides difficult sections smoothly and effortlessly (as opposed to Captain Sketchy). Laurie has travelled all across North America coaching everyone from beginners to advanced and from kids on run-bikes to seniors wanting to ride with their grandchildren. There is always something to learn or refine and she is so excited to help you have more fun riding with your new-found skills!

Tera's work experience started when she was thirteen years old with coaching gymnastics. Since then she has become a diversified professional with over 25 years in the health and wellness industry. Tera completed professionally as snowboarder in her 20's, in half pipe and boarder-X. Following that was a transition to cycling where she became a professional downhill mountain bike racer. For many years since, Tera has been passionately coaching mountain biking to a wide range of students and adults. In 2010, Tera founded a personal training company called Tera Meade Training based out of Kamloops, BC, where she works with clients of varying abilities. She trains in her private home gym, outdoors, and offers corporate classes. Incorporating fitness information while coaching and riding in the backcountry is a dream come true for Tera. Join her for some fun adventures this year at the Sol Mountain retreat and or at Boreale Explorers in the Yukon Tera’s certifications: PMBI- Professional Mountain Bike Instructor Association Level 2 guide/Instructor 4 X Canadian National Dual Slalom Champion and National team member for Dual and Downhill 20 hours outdoor wilderness first aid course with valid CPR/AED training Bachelor of arts degree, Thompson Rivers University, April 2006-majored in sociology, minored in psychology YMCA Canada certified training educator, entry level management training, certified bcrpa personal trainer, group fitness leader, older adult trainer, keiser spin instructor, weight trainer, official zumba instructor, balanced body barre instructor and ymca yoga instructor. 2006-2015, 5 years attendee at the world fitness conferences

Unlike most I started mountain biking later in life. In 2007, after years of running a distribution firm and doing the city run around, I decided to move from the Tri-cities and come to Whistler. It was my mission for life to be the exact opposite of what it had been. I decided that that I was going to embrace everything Whistler had to offer and mountain biking was at the top of the list. I bought my first bike in 2008 and it has literally been all down hill from there! Mountain biking has truly turned into a passion that fuels life, and my goal is to share and empower others. I now spend my time working with the youth of the Sea to Sky Corridor through the WORCA youth programs, and collaborating with the other amazing advocates in women specifics events around BC

Kevin has always had a passion for being on 2 wheels. He bough his first mountain bike in 1986 and never looked back. Growing up at the base of Mount Fromme definitely had some advantages. He got to see, and be apart of the sport progressing to what it is today. In 1989 he entered his first race and got bit by the competitive bug. It wasn't long before he was racing cross country at the elite level and then continuing on to compete in trials, road and downhill over the following years. Being one of the top DH racers in British Columbia at the time was a blast and honed Kevin's technical riding skills. Since buying that first bike over 32 years ago his enthusiasm for riding has only grown!

Christine started mountain biking in her early teens in Saskatoon, SK. After university, she moved to Canmore, AB where she lived and played for 15+ years. She was a coach and program manager of Rundle Mountain Cycling Club for 5 years. During that time, she grew the women’s MTB program three-fold, making RMCC one of the biggest clubs in western Canada with 70+ programs each year for 600+ riders of all ages and levels. She recently relocated to Whitehorse, YT and is loving exploring the amazing trails of the North. She's stoked to join the Sweet Skills crew for their camps in Whitehorse! Christine also coaches for Trek Dirt Series Mountain Bike camps and teaches cross-country skiing in the winter. Christine is passionate about bikes and about the arts - she is a landscape painter and works for Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity to raise funds that support arts and Indigenous leadership programs. She has two rad little boys - Maddox and Hazen - who also love to shred on skis and on bikes.

Emma was not born in Whistler (aka never ever land), but says she feels lucky, excited and proud to call this mountain adventure 'mecca' her home. Her bike journey started with her first job as a paper girl, slipping around wet corners as she delivered (sometimes soggy) papers in a small village in the UK. The sharp learning curve began in 2007 with her first season in the Whistler bike park. Since then she has been an avid biker - DH, XC and (dare she say it) road triathlon! Emma will admit she is a little obsessed with how the body moves best and with her mother being a P.E. teacher it was not a surprise she too became a mountain bike coach (2013), personal trainer (2015) and Yoga Teacher (2017). Emma’s competitive focus lay in triathlon, qualifying for the world long distance triathlon champs and off road Xterra champs in 2015. She now prefers a good old muddy shred day with friends and a more random selection of bike ‘missions’, flowing through a yoga practice or hanging out in the sky on aerial silks. Certifications Neurokinetic Therapy - level 2 RYT 200 hour yoga teacher training Personal Training PMBI mountain bike coach

Upon graduating from University Emily ditched coastal life and hightailed it for the mountains. Ending up in Whistler she discovered mountain biking and became hooked! She's been exploring the mountains throughout the Sea2Sky corridor ever since. Emily loves to share her passion for mountain biking and when she's not out riding with friends you'll find her coaching WORCA youth camps, racing local & international Enduro events, and guiding clients with Tyax Adventures in the South Chilcotin Mountains. Always up for an adventure Emily is stoked to show you the goods. Look out if you're on an Enduro course.. she has been known to win almost everything in sight! Check out the latest article about Emily in PinkBike! 

Pika's been around trails and bikes for 8 years, bringing smiles to everybody around. A bit of a therapy dog sometimes! Quick to get out of the way and let you go first, Pika is there to make your riding more enjoyable. Happy to take detours while waiting for you on the climbs, sniffing for squirrels and rabbits and never complaining about the trail choices or company.