2024 NWTA Board of Directors Election

Voting Eligibility

Ballots will be emailed to everyone that is eligible at the opening of the election or becomes eligible (updated weekly) until the election closes. Eligibility for “Voting Members” is laid out in NWTA’s bylaws and can be summarized as follows:

• Have an Individual Membership or be the Primary Member of a Group Membership (like a Family Membership). The Primary Member submits one ballot on behalf of the Group Membership.
• Have a current Annual Membership or have been current on a Monthly Membership for the preceding 12 months.

NOMINEES FOR THE 2024 NORTHWEST TRAIL ALLIANCE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

The NWTA has a board of directors that is elected annually each January. Each position has a tenure of two years. As with most nonprofit organizations with an established Board of Directors, the Board is responsible for mission oversight, strategic planning, and financial management of the organization. Board members are leaders, ambassadors, and advocates for every member of the NWTA. Board members are familiar with the trail networks, operations, and livelihood of the mission statement and Bylaws of the organization. Ideal candidates have lived experiences working with diversity in race, age, gender, sexual orientation, abilities, and economic background. This year, the organization is particularly seeking experience and expertise in the following areas:

– Mountain bike/multi-user trail access advocacy

– Strategic decision-making skills

– Implementing diversity, equity and inclusion steps in an organization

– Accounting and organizational finance

– Previous nonprofit leadership experience

– Fundraising/grants

– Technology skills

For the 2024 election, these are the open Board seats:
Membership/Sponsorship, Seat 1
Education Coordinator, Seat 2
Data/Tech Liaison, Seat 3
Community Partnerships, Seat 4
Board Member-at-Large, Seat 5 and Seat 6

The nominees are presented below in no particular order.

NOMINEES

Carrie Johnston

Andrew Marchington

Daniel Stuart

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Carrie Johnston

I have been mountain biking since 2013, racing since 2014, and volunteering with NWTA since 2018.

NWTA has opened so many pathways for me that dovetail with my love of riding, including in 2022 when I completed Crew Leader Training – a step toward learning how to pass my knowledge on to riders who are curious about trail stewardship. 

I am applying for the board because my goal is to find even more impactful ways to offer my knowledge and time beyond my existing roles: co-managing the NW Trail Sisters’ social media, helping with NWTA marketing, adopting and maintaining trails, and leading work parties. 

I believe my perspective could be valuable in the conversations around trail planning. And I know that continuing to listen and create value for mountain bikers is the key to building more and better trails — and to becoming the trail advocacy group NWTA strives to be.

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Andrew Marchington

I was born and raised in Oregon, and mountain biking was the beginning of my cycling journey. I grew up in Corvallis and had McDonald forest trails basically out my backdoor. In my professional life I am CFO (licensed Oregon CPA) with experience in a variety of public and private companies. I’m a big advocate for strong governance and ethics and integrity is a natural part of my value structure.

I did my first trail work in 2021 and I got lucky enough to help build the new Little Monkey which was incredibly rewarding and educational. I also experienced the value of touch up trail work later that year while fixing berms, brake bumps and drains. I quickly gained respect for the physical, organizational and institutional labor that goes into all of the trails we all enjoy, basically for free.

I can add value to the organization based on my long history with the sport and my professional experience. I want more people to understand what goes into the trails they ride. I think if your average rider did a day of trail work it would dramatically open their mind exponentially and change how they think about consuming our trails.

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Daniel Stuart

My experience mountain biking really started with racing, where I spent 15 years competing and 4 years managing a race team. When I moved to Portland, I saw fun existing trails, but also a lot of untapped potential for expanded access. I decided to take all of the time and energy previously reserved for racing, and instead invest it into mountain bike advocacy via NWTA.

Since my first election to the board in 2020, a few of the projects I worked on include: leading a complete revamp of the website, helping move from IMBA to our own independent online system, and building out an automated platform for Rocky Point maps. I’ve helped lead master planning and trail design at Rocky Point since the 2019 acquisition, emphasizing the importance of building a good mix of trail types ranging from steep double black descents to mellow green loops.

For my final term, I want to continue growing NWTA to the next level. As first steps in this direction, I lead the recent efforts for the User Survey and the Revamp of Board Elections. I see NWTA’s path forward being one that is transparent and data driven to optimize how it can bring the most benefit to the mountain bike community. I want to see through the generation of a Strategic Plan to lay out a long-term trajectory for NWTA. This will be critical for NWTA to solidify more meaningful partnerships with land managers and take on more ambitious projects in the future.

Jered Bogli

Kent Davis

Matt Ruddy

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Jered BOgli

HI, I’m Jered Bogli. You may know me as that guy that is always at NWTA events with a chaotic
toddler. I am running for Seat #1 Membership/Sponsorship.

I became involved with NWTA in 2019 as Rocky Point was becoming part of NWTA’s portfolio.
In January 2020 I joined the board. My first three years on the board I served as Volunteer Director. In this role I was able to meet so many different people and was able to develop and understanding of the many reasons people get out on mountain bikes and do trail work, this experience is foundational to my growth. Gaining that broad and deep understanding of our members has helped me steer NWTA towards a place where we can bring more people into this amazing sport.

Last year, the board elected me Board President. That is a wide ranging and fulfilling role. We’re
a small but mighty team and all wear multiple hats – my other hat being membership/sponsorship. Membership exploded with COVID, going from under 1000 to well over 5000 today. I believe we need to better serve our existing members with programming and other benefits and focus our new member efforts outside of the immediate metro Portland area to ensure the entire region has a powerful advocacy voice.

Sponsorship – we’ve increased our sponsors across all levels and created more meaningful
relationships with our existing sponsors. We support the brands and shops that support our
trails. I always say NWTA builds community and community builds trails.

Call To Action

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Kent Davis

Introduced to mountain biking in 2003, I was only vaguely aware of the work that was being done on my behalf, even while I reaped the fruits of NWTA’s labor. Attending the annual Mt. St. Helens trail event showed me that singletrack gets built through collective action, with an energy and dedication that is alive and well in our MTB community.

Coming back from a crash a couple of years ago, and longing for a return to the woods, I recommitted myself to making a physical contribution. Since then, I have learned a whole new range of skills, from shoveling switchbacks to operating heavy machinery. Getting much more involved with extensive building at Rocky Point, Stub Stewart and the new area of Cascade Locks, and knowing that countless future riders will be enjoying the built experience, is deeply rewarding to me.

Being elected to the NWTA board will allow me to offer my passion, knowledge and experience to the organization in new and meaningful ways. I look forward to working with other members to make the most of the gains that have been achieved thus far, and ensure that future endeavors are inclusive and holistic in their approach to the land and the people. In my work as a residential builder and property manager, and in life as the father of two teenage boys, I strive to make the best for the people around me. My work on the board will embody this philosophy, and I ask the members of this association to trust that I will continue the mission, and work hard to make a real difference for a better mountain biking tomorrow.

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Matt Ruddy

I’m an equity and education consultant with over 20 years of experience ranging from K-12 classrooms in diverse neighborhoods, graduate school instruction, workshops, conferences, and building equity within teams and organizations. I focus on helping organizations build diversity, equity, and inclusion strategies into their work in meaningful and practical ways that bring growth and better decision-making. I value the benefits of critical thinking, problem-solving, and collaboration as a key ingredient to collective improvement.

I do my best to bring a down-to-earth sensibility to conversations. I try to draw from past professional experiences such as creating an instrumental music program for a diverse community of students on the Lower East Side of Manhattan as well as spending years on the road as a tour and production manager for bands and musicians, traveling throughout 17 different countries.

In each of my career roles, I have done my best to focus on equity, shared experience, and the value of collaboration as key ingredients to collective improvement.

Nancy Stone

Ruandy Albisurez

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Nancy Stone

I have served on the NWTA board for 4 years and am running for my 3rd and final term. When I first joined the board, I was tasked with creating an education program; shortly after, the Trail Sustainability Institute was born. My team and I have taught the fundamentals of trail maintenance to hundreds of volunteers over the past 4 years and trained over a hundred Crew Leaders during that same time. Within the last year, I have implemented advanced trail schools in an effort to grow our volunteer’s skill sets and broaden our capability to provide a higher product of trail. Our robust education program creates confidence in our partners/land managers which is key in being able to expand opportunities across our region. I would love the ability to continue to serve in this capacity because there is ample room for increased growth and I am confident that I can continue to carry this program to the next level.

Along with my work for TSI, I spearhead events for the NW Trail Sisters where we offer learning based dig days, gear swaps, bike maintenance clinics and group rides. In 2023, I was honored to serve NWTA as Vice President.

Beyond my “roles” mentioned previously, I am a steward of this organization. I have spent the past 4 years lending my leadership, guidance, gained experience and over a thousand hours of time serving our Mission. I would be thrilled to utilize this momentum to continue to benefit the NWTA.

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Ruandy Albisurez

I’m Ruandy Albisurez, and I’m eager to be considered for the Community Director position. With nearly 20 years of immersed mountain biking experience, I’ve contributed to the bike industry and served as a certified level 1 bike instructor for the NWTA community. Beyond the trails, I’ve volunteered for various organizations, from bike advocacy to building schools in Guatemala.

As the founder of Warpaint, I’ve led a team supporting BIPOC/racially marginalized individuals in outdoor action sports. My passion for community growth aligns with the Community Director role, and I bring a commitment to inclusion. Serving on the NWTA DEIB Committee, I collaborate to ensure community goals are met.

In pursuit of this position, I aim to leverage my experience and dedication to create a more inclusive mountain biking community. Mountain biking is a sport for everyone, and if selected as Community Director, I’ll continue championing inclusivity, sharing diverse perspectives, and contributing to a welcoming NWTA community. I look forward to the opportunity to lead and support positive change in this capacity.

Questions? For additional information or inquiries, please email [email protected].