Mike is a wonderfully humble rider, who you may recognise as one of the main characters of @karitanetrails. A hard worker, a firefighter, a weapon on all things two wheeled, a speaker of fluent Swedish, I mean, what more could you want in an instructor? What’s that? Oh, good call- his favourite fruit burst flavour, almost forgot... give Mike a purple fruit burst any day of the week.

Fun fact? Remember that Liam Bailey fella we re-introduced last week? When he was a teen, he bought the same shirt as Mike after seeing him plow through the crankworx DH course. He was hoping Mike’s speed had something to do with the jersey…

Meagan has been a part of WORD since day dot! Hailing from Canada, brilliance on a bike is simply in Meagan’s blood type. As the president of @Revolve_Wellington (like WORD but without you kool kids) Meagan has experience coming out her ears when it comes to teaching people how to be great riders, and just as importantly, how to be great people who ride. 

Want to find out why Meagan thinks Mt Vic is one of the greatest parks to be (She lived in Squamish, so that really means something…)? More importantly, want to learn all you can from one of our communities greats? There are still spots available for our teen girls summer programme… just saying, it’s really that easy..

We’ve been struggling to keep this cat in the bag for some time now… Wanna know who Lachie Ross’ idol is? You guessed it, none other than Wellington’s very own Jesse Cseh! That guy that ‘Everested’ Yea-Gnar? Was that the same legend that has raced EWS? Hang on, you mean THAT Jesse could be my instructor? Yep, you heard it here first. Be sure to offer Jesse a yellow fruit burst, his fave. It was a tough call, but Jesse landed on Schladming, Austria, being his favourite bikepark around. Want to strike a convo with Jesse but don’t know where to start? Ask him about his early rivalry with one Liam Bailey on the Wellington DH scene… Oh, and did we mention he’s a GSMBC Lvl 1 qualified instructor?

Drum roll please… Liam Bailey is a man of a many hats, and a familiar face here at WORD. After a couple years training under cover, he’s back with his usual tricks up his sleeves, and a few new ones. Liam doesn’t kid around when he says Red fruit bursts are his favourite. “Are there any others?” Need a conversation starter? Ask our Liam about his love of his infamous Scott- make sure you’ve got time on your hands… Oh, and did we mention he’s a GSMBC Lvl 1 qualified instructor?

Isla is a long-term asset of the WORD team, and someone Te Whanganui a Tara is gladly familiar with! Not guessed yet? it is with great pride and excitement we welcome Isla Day back into the fold!

Wondering where our poster child has been the past couple years? Well, hard to fit it all here, but Isla has been living in four different countries over the last two years… Touring the world with her powerful brainbox, studying in universities across the globe! We are chuffed to have Isla back on the team and think you should be too!

Isla holds a special place in her heart for Mākara Peak, finding it hard to look past Starfish for her favourite trail. Got a moment on your hands? We challenge you to see how far back on our Instagram you can find a young Isla… This legend has been shaping what we do for some time now. Keen to share a fruit burst or two with Isla? Fair enough, be sure to have a purple one to hand.

Abbie is no stranger to ‘type 2 fun’- anyone who has had the privilege to be in her presence will know that Abbie brings an infectious, and admirable attitude to any and all challenges. Hailing from the Wairarapa, she took her first big leap enrolling in the NZ army which taught her a lot about the world, but crucially- taught her a lot about herself and what she could achieve when she put her mind to something.

Whilst Abbie is just as at home in rock climbing shoes, mountaineering kit, or a pair of ski’s, we think of our Abbie most at home on two wheels whilst eating her favourite coloured fruit burst: Red. Having learned that “going downhill fast is much more thrilling than lugging heavy packs around,” we think Abbie agrees.

Fun fact: we have been lucky enough to have Abbie on the team for a number of years, and she is now a member of our very own board!

The ever-talented James Ollivier! Our Jimmy is a humble man, whose abilities on a bike always amaze. Born in Jersey, an Island no taller than 143m, James homed in his early talent on trial bikes around his homeland.

Nowadays, we struggle to keep up with him in the hills of Wellington. If you were to catch James at his favourite bike park, Whistler BC, you’d likely see him eating his favourite-coloured fruit burst: Green.

Oh, and did we mention he’s a GSMBC LVL 1 qualified instructor?

Frank is quickly proving his smiles alone are an asset to any team- we can’t get enough of his grin, and we think you’ll find it infectious too. 

Considering Frank grew up in a German village that had no elevation to speak of, it’s pretty impressive where this gentleman can get himself on a bike. Frank is a new recruit here at WORD and we can’t believe our luck to have him on the team. Curiously, every single one of Frank’s bikes have a name… We wonder how many the man is stashing…