The Coach’s Call: Mentorship on Mountain Trails

The lush green trails of North Vancouver is where Kelli Sherbinin emerges as a beacon of light in the mountain biking community. From her first ride on a borrowed bike to co-founding Endless Biking, her journey is deeply influenced by her Doukhobor heritage, which values hard work, community, and a profound respect for nature. These principles shape her coaching, where she is more than just a mentor on the trails. Renowned for her approachable and adaptable teaching style, Kelli has become a key educator, speaker, and community advocate, promoting mountain biking as a way to connect with nature and challenge personal boundaries. Her work not only inspires riders to push their limits but also emphasizes the transformative impact of the sport on personal growth.

Standing trailside in the lush rainforest of North Vancouver, Kelli Sherbinin is fully absorbed in the moment, her attention fixed on a rider attempting a challenging feature on their mountain bike. "Look where you want to go; you've got this," she encourages them. With a cautious start, they navigate the technical terrain, triumphing over the rock roll. Before they even have a chance to catch their breath, Kelli is there, excitedly exchanging high-fives and grinning ear-to-ear. As a mentor and coach, she is not only witnessing their victory—she's an integral part of it. 

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Despite growing up in the mountainous region of Nelson, British Columbia, Kelli doesn't come from a particularly outdoorsy family. However, being a descendant of the Doukhobors, a group of Russian dissenters who sought refuge in Canada during the 1890s, she was raised with profound values of industriousness, self-reliance, and a deep reverence for nature. Community bonds and a spirit of compassion among people, also integral to the Doukhobor way of life, shaped Kelli's upbringing and worldview.

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"I grew up learning how to garden, churn butter, milk cows and look for eggs," says Kelli. "And being taught to love everyone like your brothers and sisters."

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It wasn't until after graduating high school that she tried mountain biking.  Her inaugural ride, on a borrowed bike, was in the local mountains. The ribbon of singletrack through the forest, fresh air, and wind on her face, combined with the challenge and reward of reaching the top of the climbs—which were difficult in the beginning—was exhilarating.

"When I got on a mountain bike for the first time, I felt like a little girl again, playing in the forest, on an adventure, or almost like I was on an amusement ride," she says. 

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Living in a rural area, she had ridden bikes her whole life. They were her transportation to the store, school, and friends' houses. But connecting them to nature unlocked something new within her. She began dreaming about being out on the trails, and it was at that point, she recognized the passion for outdoor recreation that she didn't know she had. Kelli got a bank loan to purchase her bike and never looked back.

"When I got on a mountain bike for the first time, I felt like a little girl again, playing in the forest, on an adventure, or almost like I was on an amusement ride."

At the time, no lessons or resources were available, so Kelli learned to ride the hard way through a lot of crashing. 

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"I had a professional job, and I had to wear long skirts to hide all the bruises," she says.

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When Kelli moved to Vancouver in 1998, she became involved in the local community as a ride leader, started advanced rides for women through a local bike shop and began racing. 

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Despite her natural ability and fearlessness allowing her to tackle technical downhill terrain, racing highlighted for Kelli how much she still had to learn. Grabbing the seat with her knees and leaning too far back, among other bad habits, had made her self-conscious. Rumor had it that professional mountain bikers Elladee Brown and Daamian Skelton taught mountain biking in Whistler, so Kelli tracked down their classes and signed up. Their coaching methodology blew her away, she couldn't believe that the skills she'd been learning through trial and error could be broken down and taught in a controlled and safe environment. She began volunteering with the program to learn more. 

Elladee, who has remained a lifelong friend and adventure partner of Kelli's, immediately saw her natural talent for teaching. 

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"Kelli adapts to each person's learning style, which is a gift to have," she says.

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No one believed mountain bike coaching could be a full-time gig back then, but Kelli trusted her gut and became a certified instructor. She got her first job with The Dirt Series, teaching skills camps. 

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"I didn't really know where I was going, but I just kept moving forward," says Kelli. "And the opportunity I had to teach through The Dirt Series confirmed this is my calling." 

"I didn't really know where I was going, but I just kept moving forward."

In 2004, Kelli and her now-husband Darren purchased Endless Biking, an existing company with five clients, an old van, and a website. They began by offering various programs, from co-ed Progression Sessions to women-only Hot Wheels camps. With that year's overall series BC Cup Champion in Dual Slalom under her belt, Kelli moved away from racing as she stepped into a full-time role as an entrepreneur and instructor. 

Since then, decades of riders in the Sea-to-Sky community have benefitted from Kelli's personalized and people-centric coaching approach. Her instruction usually begins with the fundamentals of bike riding and builds on that, creating a solid foundation crucial for progress. This teaching method is highly effective and delivers immediate results. Instead of overexplaining and overwhelming students, she incorporates different communication styles. Recognizing the individual needs of each person, Kelli adjusts her approach based on who she is working with and where they are in their learning. 

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Beyond the basics, Kelli focuses on assisting clients in reshaping their self-talk, addressing fears, and overcoming limiting beliefs about their capabilities. Fascinated by neuroplasticity—the ability people have to rewire their brains to function in a new way—she finds being out on the trails helps people discover their own mental and emotional blockages and move past them. Kelli herself consciously endeavours to choose positive thoughts and words to navigate life, and this personal journey of self-discovery resonates with her clients, many of whom still have Kelli's voice ringing in their ears years later. 

Sieneke Toering met Kelli after moving to Canada from the Netherlands. While never a formal student of hers, she has been the recipient of Kelli's genuine desire to help others. 

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"I moved to a place where I knew no one and started an activity I'd never done before; Kelli was so welcoming," Sieneke says. "Informally, she's given me many tips and tricks. On my solo rides, I still hear Kelli's voice telling me to look ahead." 

"On my solo rides, I still hear Kelli's voice telling me to look ahead." 

Kelli has consistently used bikes to further her connection with nature, explore new places and engage with others. In April 2018, Kelli, along with Elladee, fellow mountain biker Jaime Hill, and photographer Leslie Kehmeier, undertook a 10-day, 230-kilometre, 17,769-foot journey over the world's highest mountain pass, the Annapurna Circuit in Nepal. Witnessing how the people in the remote villages they passed through lived in a self-supporting way, tilling their fields, heating their houses with yak dung, and eating freshly grown food, took Kelli back to her childhood. 

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"I remember my grandma telling me stories about how they did things before the evolution of technology, and I started to make connections to the simplicity of what I was seeing in front of me," she says. "Seeing their self-sufficient lifestyle made me feel like my grandparents were giving me a gift."

While it may not be growing vegetables or making butter on her grandmother's farm, Kelli's family's enduring values have guided her career in mountain biking. Whether she's working the earth while building trails or skillfully repairing and riding bikes—a testament to self-reliant transportation—every aspect of her pursuit pays homage to her heritage. Moreover, through the sport, she's found connections with like-minded individuals spanning the globe, fostering a sense of community that resonates deeply with her roots.

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For Kelli, coaching isn't just a profession; it's a passion for sharing the profound happiness mountain biking ignited in her with others. She sees it as an opportunity to educate, empowering individuals to embrace this mode of exploration safely and, in turn, pass down this knowledge to future generations. 

Twenty years later, Endless Biking is still going strong, offering lessons and camps for mountain bikers ages 6-86. It has expanded to offer guiding, rentals, instructor certification programs, and rides targeted at female youth, facilitating their entry into the sport. 

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Over the last two decades, Kelli has become a mother, summitted the world's highest mountain pass, taught MTB Instruction and Guiding at a university level, is co-founder of and advisor for the Professional Mountain Bike Instructor Association (PMBIA), opened an indoor bike park with a team of business partners and had a song written about her, among many other achievements.  

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However, of all the things that have changed in her life, one hasn't. 

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"Years ago, one of my employees told me that I was always in a better mood when I came back from a ride," she says. "And that continues to be true."