Pinkbike Academy Season 2 - Meet the Contestants
Meet Alaina Henderson
Age: 28
Country: USA
Currently living in Encinitas, California, Elaina is a pilates instructor by trade, and a BMX biker by training. She jumped on a mountain bike a few years ago and hasn't looked back. What is she bringing to Pinkbike Academy for Season 2? "Coming from a BMX background is a strength in its self, giving me a well rounded base and understanding of bike control, including pumping, jumping and powerful pedals."
Find Alaina on Instagram @alaina_henderson
Meet Bradley Harris
Age: 19
Country: New Zealand
This New Zealander works as a full-time apprentice builder in Queenstown when he's not on the trails. With 7 years of mountain biking under his belt, this rider spent more time preparing mentally for the Academy than physically. "I think I watched Season 1 of the Academy 2 or 3 times before we started just to really get myself in the head space to be ready for anything, because you never know what challenges are coming at you. During the Academy, I made sure I got a solid sleep in every night to really promote my recovery and keep my mind feeling fresh."
Find Bradley on Instagram @bradley.harris
Meet Florencia Espineira
Age: 28
Country: Chile
Florencia Espineira has been riding bikes in her home country of Chile since she was just 10 years old. Mountain biker by day, dishwasher by night, this avid rider says she has "managed to make mountain biking the main activity of my life."
Find Florencia on Instagram @floespineira
Meet Cameron Ross
Age: 28
Country: Scotland
Originally from Scotland, Cameron has been living in Vancouver for the past 7 years and works as a Industrial Rope Access Supervisor/Instructor. He's travelled all over the world flexing his mountain biking skills, even completing a sports diploma in downhill mountain biking after high school, but his love for the sport started well before that. "I’ve been mountain biking since I was 12 years old. I loved riding my bike around as a kid, jumping it off things and riding it down steep hills. I didn’t even know it was a sport until I saw it in a magazine and my passion for mountain biking snowballed from there."
Find Cameron on Instagram @chumbaross
Meet Kyra Wilson
Age: 25
Country: Canada
Kyra knows the BC landscape well, growing up in Qualicum Bay and currently living in Nanaimo. She works in bike sales, and has been mountain biking for the past 2.5 years. You'll see her on the trails shouting "just send it” and “rubber side down boys."
Find Kyra on Instagram @kyra_lwilson
Meet Cody Johnson
Age: 29
Country: USA
This California native has been mountain biking since he was in Grade 6 – and while he said he fell about 20 times that first time he rode, he was stoked. His worst crash ever? "Big Bear High jump. Inside of my foot touched my shin." We're sure there's a good, but gruesome, story there.
Find Cody on Instagram @rutbanger
Meet Laura Zeitschel
Age: 30
Hometown: Barsinghausen, Germany
Working as an officer in the German army, Laura says on of her strengths is mental perspective. Her weakness? "I know that I was bad in mechanical stuff. So improved myself in this area. I trained harder and more focused. The most important thing for me was: to give the best as possible and have a good time." And she must have, because she says Pinkbike Academy was the highlight of 2021!
Find Laura on Instagram @laurazeitschel
Meet Emmett Hancock
Age: 19
Country: Canada
While he may be the youngest of the competitors, Emmett Hancock, he likely has the most experience on the trails at Bike Big White as he grew up in Kelowna and currently lives in Squamish! Working as a trail builder and a mountain bike coach, Emmett has been working up to pro riding even before this opportunity with Pinkbike Academy. "Already pushing to be a professional athlete the Academy was usual pre-season prep. I train 20 hours a week doing intervals, strength and skills while working the social media with reels and posts almost daily."
Find Emmett on Instagram @emmett_hancock
Meet Tori Wood
Age: 29
Country: Canada
When she's not studying a Masters in Counselling Psychology, Tori is on her bike crushing the trails around Squamish, BC. On top of picking the brains of her mechanic friends, Tori trained for the Academy by "doing “mock enduros”, spending long days on the bike and riding different trails at race speed. Also a lot of interval workouts."
Find Tori on Instagram @torgallore
Meet Israel Carrillo
Age: 27
Country: Mexico
Israel has been mountain biking for a decade, and to prepare for the Academy, "started to replicate all kinds of challenges, from timing myself assembling bikes from scratch, editing short videos and learning a thing or two about photography." Even though he's earned a spot on the national DH team and has been invited to some of the biggest Freeride events in Mexico, Israel says being a father is what makes him most proud!
Find Israel on Instagram @pulsar_outdoors
