Name: Ruandy Albisurez
Preferred Pronouns: Roo
How long have you been a part of NWTA?
I am new to NWTA. I knew it was present when I first moved to the Portland area about 10-12 years ago, but I thought for some reason that it wasn’t an organization anymore for a long time. Now that I recently moved back to the Portland area, I have become a member and am actively involved.
What made you interested in becoming an instructor?
I’ve been introducing people to mountain biking for most of my twenty years of riding. I figured it was finally time to officially instruct people to cover myself with insurance and properly instruct beginners. I want to help expand the mountain bike community landscape by being an instructor. Being a person of color, I hope to make beginner riders of color more welcome with my presence as an instructor.
What do you think is good about the sport of mountain biking?
One of my favorite things is the community. I have the vision of diversifying it here in the NW. I am originally from Southern California, and the community is plenty diverse there. I want to bring that same inviting feeling to the NW. I want everyone to know that this sport is awesome and feel welcome to get into it without any reservations about it at all.
Where do you think it can improve?
On a local level, I think the mountain bike scene can greatly improve by having more trail access closer to the city. Not all people have the capability to drive an hour with a bike to get to all the amazing trails in the area. The sport would definitely grow a lot more if there was better access to local trails around the city.
Where do you think you could make the biggest impact?
I’m a media producer. Personally, I think my most significant impact will come from documenting everything I do, whether through photos or video. And I plan on doing just that. I began organizing some BIPOC group mountain bike rides where we are riding with a no-drop policy. I want to encourage the BIPOC community to come out, ride, and help them develop some experience out on the trail. To learn the lingo and develop some of their basic skills to get to where they can fully enjoy the sport and the rest of the community.
What do you hope to do now that you are Level 1 certified?
Now that I am certified, I plan on leading beginner workshops in the Portland area. We’ve already received some amazing help from Trek and had a few bikes donated that will greatly aid in helping some potential newbies get their feet wet out on the trails safely and reliably using good equipment. Hoping to turn those beginners I train into group rides to get them out and show them the ropes on the trails. I want to help kids and adults turn into lifelong mountain bike enthusiasts.
Share something about yourself that isn’t about bikes. (Passion, side gig, hobby, ??)
Hobbies, passions, and side gigs?? Way too many to list! My newest passion would be being a grandpa to my beautiful 6-month-old granddaughter Amara Luna. She’s going to be a feisty handful but also pretty sure she’s going to be a shredder for sure! I’m starting a creative agency here in the Portland area with a couple of friends of mine, and we’ve already got that underway. One of the best parts about that is our name, Savage Tricycle! Super stoked on that, haha!
Anything else?
The only other thing is that my two sons are shredders! And I really love anime and house plants. The end!
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BikePOCnw Ride on 11/6
Roo will be part of leading a mountain bike ride for BIPOC riders in Forest Park on Saturday, Nov. 6.
- Waiver here: BikePOCPNW ride waiver
- Route: FP MTB ramble
DETAILS:
- We’ll meet at the Thurman trailhead/gate of Forest Park: 4198-4100 NW Leif Erikson Dr, Portland, OR 97210
- Meetup 9am
- Rollout 9:15am (if you’re late, it’ll be easy to find us & catch up)
- Plan on 2+ hrs
- The pace will be chill but will depend overall on the group
- The route is 15+ miles & 1200+ ft of climbing with opportunities to make it longer and/or more challenging
- We ride rain or shine so dress for it…fenders to keep the mud off yourself are a good idea
- If you drive. there are lots of places to park off Thurman and Forest Park is easy to bike to from most places in Portland
- Forest Park will have lots of other users – we’ll go over this before we roll out