Experienced Professional Guides
Chris Coney Co-owner/Lead Guide
I have been mountain biking for 32 years and started racing again at the age of 41. I am having more fun biking now than I ever did in my twenties and I know it is partly due to the incredible riding in and around Asheville, North Carolina and surrounding Pisgah National Forest. The biking scene is incredible here and the people are very friendly and supportive. Southern hospitality is alive and well in Pisgah.
As I have gotten older, I have realized that I love sharing experiences with people and hence helped start Pisgah Mountain Bike Adventures in order to pursue my passion of leading mountain bike trips in beautiful Western North Carolina. Come experience the wonders of cycling with us and explore your own possibilities on a guided trip where you are guaranteed to have fun and learn a thing or two about your own life as well.
Feel free to check out my adventure blog as well at: Voice Of The Blue Ridge
Bill Papin Co-owner/Lead guide
In 1984, my college advisor asked me what I wanted to do with my life. Since I had no idea, I took his advice and pursued a BS in computer science because he told me he thought computers were “going to be a thing someday” (we were still recording data on Radio Shack cassettes at that time). 5 years later, I discovered computers just weren’t for me. It took another 25 years before I finally discovered what I want to do with my life, but I finally figured it out. I get tremendous joy from introducing people to the best sport in the world in the best place in world. Equally enjoyable is helping seasoned mountain bikers maximize their fun when they visit our neck of the woods. Thank you to everyone that has entrusted me with your precious vacation time. I can’t tell you how much joy you have brought to my life. New for 2022, I am a Level 1 PMBIA(Professional Mountain Bike Instructor Association) certified coach. This certification will complement any guided trip I lead with valuable skills coaching. Happy Trails!
Mike Gaffney/Lead Guide
In 2011 when I turned 50, after leading a more or less sedantary lifestyle, I decided to pursue a more active lifestyle which started with a Walmart road bike. A friend of mine took pity on me and loaned me his back up professional road bike. I ended up riding in many metric and full centuries in the area. This lead to many long distance trips, including riding down the river Rhine in Germany, from Zurich Switzerland to Lake Como Italy over the Alps twice, from Ho Chi Minh City to Da Nang (China Beach) in Vietnam. In the middle of all of this another friend introduced me to mountain biking with my first ride being done on a Walmart “mountain bike”. This turned out to be the most expensive ride of my life, as after that I went straight to the local mountain bike store and told them to “hook me up!” I have been to Croatia, Solvinia, Italy, Whistler, Squamish, Moab, Hurricane, St. George, etc. One of the neatest aspects of all of this is the people that I meet from around the world. I ride about 450 hours a year. I’m not the fastest, but always seem to get it done. I love to talk about my past travels riding and love to help new riders experience the joy I have from riding our amazing trails. Come share the trails with me on a guided mountain bike tour in Pisgah.
Some of PMBA's Experienced Professional Guides
- Let our local experienced professional guides show you the best routes Pisgah and Dupont have to offer
- Our guides will take you on a route customized to what you like in a ride
- All trips are private. We will not put you in with another group
- Satisfaction guaranteed
- We guarantee that you will not get lost and that you will be back in time
- We are expert mountain bike mechanics capable of fixing almost any mechanical problem
- Riding with us saves you valuable time and energy
- Great complement to parties: bachelor, wedding, birthday’s, etc
- We specialize in skills training
- Team building for employees and families
- Preride race routes and training opportunities
