MEET YOUR INSTRUCTOR: Lon cullen

Lon has been riding anything with two wheels for over 45 years--from BMX, to moto hare scrambles, to mountain bikes. After a major mountain bike accident that damaged the vertebrae in his neck and blew out his knee, he realized the need to improve safety and control in his riding.

He has since invested himself in developing techniques to ride skillfully and safely without sacrificing any of the joy of the sport.  He believes that good riding should be accomplished with technique, confidence, and skill--not just luck.

Lon has already helped hundreds of people become much better riders.  He has studied with numerous instructors over the years and has applied their combined wisdom to his own riding and teaching.  Lon’s certification and continued professional development:

• (2014) Invested in a day of private lessons from an instructor from Colorado. Emphasis was on technical climbing and descending, and on body positioning on all-mountain trails near Birmingham, Alabama.

• (2015) Earned certification as a Professional Mountain Bike Instructor (IMBA level 2 equivalent). Required 3 days of training on cross country trails in Whistler, British Columbia.

• (2016) Invested in 4 days of private lessons on how to teach and ride better. Emphasis was on jumps, drops, cornering, steep rock rolls, and other advanced maneuvers on intermediate and expert level downhill trails at Whistler Bike Park.

• (2017) Invested in 4 days of learning how to teach and ride better. Emphasis was on cornering, bunny hops, manuals, wheelies, stoppies, and other advanced maneuvers on cross country trails near Brevard, North Carolina.

• (2017) Earned Ninja Mountain Bike Performance Instructor's Certification. Emphasis was on high speed cornering, pre-turns, jumps, drops, steep transitions, and other maneuvers on cross country trails near Ellijay, Georgia.

• (2017) Invested in 3 days of how to teach and ride better. Emphasis was on advanced jumps, advanced drops, and cornering on enduro trails near Boone, North Carolina.

• (2018-9) Several private lessons with Neko Mulally, the 2018-2019 National Downhill Champion.  Emphasis of lessons was on advanced drops, selective braking and bermed corners on some of the steepest descents in the US.

• (2020) Barry Nobles is an X Games and Crankworx professional athlete; he is one of only a few riders ever to have successfully landed a double back flip. Private lesson was on basic jumping.

• (2020) Andrew Taylor is a retired Red Bull Rampage and Crankworx competitor. He helped me on jumping.

• (2020) Jeff Kendall-weed helped me with the skills of pressure control and terrain awareness on some of his favorite trails. Video of some of our work together.

  FOR MORE INFORMATION ON LON GO TO https://www.singletrackskills.bike/home/certifications-additional-training/)

what classes & clinics can you take with lon?

• Beginner & Intermediate MTB Clinic

• Advanced MTB Camp