WHY IT'S BETTER WITH A GUIDE 

No need to argue with your friends about which way that guy in the bike shop said to go.	The best trails, in the best order, in the best direction.	Greatly increases your chance of making it back to town or camp before the sun sets.	You will waste no valuable riding (or eating) time being lost.
Fabulous food without lifting a finger.	Emily (for example) happily shopped the trip, does the dishes, and keeps the beer cold. Oh yeah, and drives the truck!	Tim works backcountry magic on bicycles.	Guaranteed unstructured leisure time.

 WHAT WE DO 

Each year between March and October we run hundreds of cycling trips throughout the US, and in the winter we go to Mexico and Costa Rica. Many of our guests return year after year, and to keep them happy we are constantly adding new itineraries.

On our mountain bike trips we ride some of the best trails in the country while camping in the backcountry.

On our road bike trips we ride some of the most beautiful pieces of pavement on the planet while staying at unique inns and lodges.

Our family bike trips let everyone enjoy a bike ride, games at camp, and a few nights in a tent.

We also offer custom bike trips and bike skills camps.

Please feel free to send us an email or, better yet, to call us at 800-845-2453 when you are ready to start to plan your next excellent biking adventure.

"The whole entire experience was a pleasure."

Kirstin Wortley October 2004

 THE HISTORY OF WESTERN SPIRIT    ...     

The original days - burb and bar ends.

bear bike elk

"Back in the day", as our oldest guides say, Western Spirit Cycling was founded by a charismatic mad bike rider named Lu Warner. It was 1989, Lu couldn't get enough of riding his bike and decided he should impart some of his joy on the masses. He acquired a Suburban, dubbed "the burb", and a couple of guides and started taking people around the White Rim. Now Lu can be found in some semi-state of retirement in Crested Butte, CO, but his vision was just the beginning.

Just for the record, yes, we still have the burb. It's retired. And those "couple of guides" are our finest Rachel & Johnny - no sign of retirement there!

     ...     THEN THE MID '90s     ...     

Most nights spent here

Ashley Korenblat bought Western Spirit in 1997 and since then has spent many days riding unknown trails (with a headlamp in her backpack, just incase) creating the plethora of trips that Western Spirit now offers. Ashley is a graduate of Dartmouth and Tuck Business School, a former bike racer, former wall street captive and possesser of entrepreneurial spirit. She was president of Merlin during the Titanium mountain bike heyday and served as the IMBA President working to sustain trail availability to everyone. Combine all that with the desire for a Moab lifestyle and an alternative view of a fulfilling career path, and you have the perfect recipe for the owner of a cycling tour company.

Enter Mark. Mark is our charming, wicked-fit, voice of reason, miraculously lured from his ski town tradition to live in the desert. Ashley and Mark got married in 1999 in Moab and now run the company together.

     ...     MODERN TIMES AT WESTERN SPIRIT 

Kip can't help being cute

Mark, Ashley, Anne Clare, Sheri, Tonya, Emily

Well, actually Kip runs the place. Kip is Ashley and Mark's young boy and he has his own bike helmet and chariot. He is also beginning to tear it up on the dirt with his training wheels.
Our office staff is comprised of mostly gals...and Mark. Thank goodness for Mark! Mark is our bike junkie and can be seen pedaling on a daily basis. Ashley makes the best backcountry bacon you will ever have, but definitely burns off those calories towing the little Kipster around town in his trailer. Anne Clare loves riding her road bike and hiking in the mountains. Sheri and Tonya both love the water and do their best to kayak 365 days a year. Emily is pretty "green". She is the founder of a non-profit organization, Community Rebuilds, that promotes affordable and eco-friendly housing.
All of us have worked outdoors and are familiar with what you will experience on a Western Spirit trip. At any given time when you call you can talk to someone who has been on any trip that interests you. That's because we love to be out there too!

 Our Guides 

The guides "training" in Moab, Utah

At Western Spirit, the staff is the heart of our company. Our guides love what they do and are dedicated to providing you with a memorable vacation. Each of them has received extensive training in backcountry travel, cooking, natural history, and first aid, not to mention their cycling and mechanical skills. They are committed to the outdoors and have a great deal of knowledge and experience. Their attention to every detail leaves you free to enjoy the riding.

"You have excellent people. As long as you have these types of people guiding for you, your company will be the best."

Geoff Martin, August 2005

 Our Philosophy 

Lizard Head Pass, Telluride CO

In our busy world, we often don't get to be outside enough. Even if you do, there's some phenomenon that just makes you want more. Nothing like going somewhere to make you realize all the other places you still need to go! Traveling outside makes you see Mars when it's the closest to earth it'll ever be, makes you smell the fragrant lupine covering the mountain slope, makes you feel the wind, see the perfect sunset, catch an eclipse of the moon, experience the herd of elk in the alpine meadow, and start to tell time by the location of the moon in the night sky.
What's that all worth in our busy world? Well, it is our world.
On all of our tours, we strive to protect our fragile mountain and desert environments. Many of our campsites are remote and unimproved, and we seek to leave them better than we found them.

"The landscape is tremendous and inspiring, and the ease and grace with which Jane and Brad approached, presented and shared it is something one rarely sees in the world today. My gratitude and respect to them, and thanks to all of you. "

L. Dombek

 IMBA 

Western Spirit Cycling strongly supports the International Mountain Bicycling Association. With the right to ride on public lands comes a responsibility to preserve those lands for future generations. You can hold up your end of the bargain by joining IMBA. Once you are an IMBA member, your bike flies for free on selected airlines.

 Photo Thanks 

We have nothing but praise and admiration for the incredible photographers who have contributed to this web site. We are constantly awed by their talent. Our profound thanks to:
Anne Keller www.annekellerphotography.com
Whit Richardson www.whitrichardson.com
Chris Giles www.chrisgilesphoto.com
Stephen Trimble www.stephentrimble.net
John Humphries, Chris Gardner, Glenn Oakley, Piper Watson, Gary Colet, Marc Weinstein, Clint Bogard, Stephanie Hager, Greg Frozley, Russ Aubertine, John Minor, Larry Baldwin, Jeff Troutman, Carl Nasr, Nancy Whyte, Erik Proano, JC Coughlin, John Thomson, Ashley Sevenoff, and Mark Sevenoff.

Permits

Western Spirit Cycling, Inc. operates under special use permits from the USDA Forest Service in the Boise, Coronado, Dixie, Grand Mesa, Gunnison, Kaibab, Manti La Sal (Moab and Monticello Ranger Districts), San Juan, Sawtooth, Sierra Vista, Uncompahgre, Challis, Clearwater, Beaverhead-Deerlodge, Caribou-Targhee, Black Hills, Mount Hood, Umpqua, Nantahala, White Mountain, Monongahela, and Pisgah National Forests and by Dakota Prairie Grasslands. As well as under permits issued by the Bureau of Land Management in the San Juan Resource Area; Henry Mountain Field Station; Moab, Arizona Strip and Grand Junction Field Offices; Grand Staircase National Monument; and by Bryce, Zion, Capitol Reef, Grand Canyon, Crater Lake and Blue Ridge Parkway National Parks. Western Spirit is a concessionaire in Canyonlands National Park.

USDA Non Discrimination Statement
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits discrimination in its programs on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, religion, age, disability, political beliefs, sexual orientation, or marital or family status. (Not all prohibited bases apply to all programs.) Persons with disabilities who require alternative means for communication of program information (Braille, large print, audiotape, etc.) should contact USDA's TARGET Center at 202-720-2600 (voice and TDD). To file a complaint of discrimination, write USDA, Director, Office of Civil Rights, Room 326-W, Whitten Building, 1400 Independence Avenue SW, Washington, DC 20250-9410, or call 202-720-5964 (voice or TDD). USDA Forest Service is an equal opportunity provider and employer.

Western Spirit Cycling - The Best Cycling Tour Company In The United States