Staff & Board

President | Grand Valley Trails

John Howe represents our Grand Valley Canyons (GVC) and has served as a board member since 2016. In addition to his time on the board, John has also volunteered on trail work days for many years, been involved in the Grand Valley Canyons chapter committee since 2013, and served as the committee chair for the last 3 years.

John bought his first mountain bike in 1985 and moved to the Grand Valley in 1991 because of mountain biking and the access to trails and public lands. As for why he chooses to serve as a board member, he says that volunteering for COPMOBA is his way of giving back to the community to continue to improve what he has enjoyed for many years.

John enjoys riding Lunch Loops the most often because of its proximity to his home, but he says he enjoys every trail system in the Grand Valley. When not riding, you can often find John serving as Crew Leader on the many trail work days that the GVC chapter hosts to continue improving the trails in the area.

Vice President | Grand Valley Trails

Adam Kinsey has a passion for western Colorado and the community support of mountain biking, and he joined the COPMOBA board in 2021. Adam started mountain biking in the late 80s with no suspension on the pockmarked horse trails of Cincinnati.

His family moved to the Grand Valley in the mid 90s and mountain biked the local loops. Moving back to the Grand Valley, his interest in mountain biking was rekindled and he appreciated the diversity of the trail systems. This led him to start Handlebar Tap House near the trailhead to Lunch Loops with a mountain bike and craft beer theme.

As owner of Handlebar, he’s seen first hand the awesome impact of the COPMOBA’s work on both recreation and the local economy. He feels he never rides as much as he should because the western Slope weather is also perfect for golf and skiing.

Secretary | Grand Valley Trails

Scott Winans began volunteering for trail building and maintenance in 1995 and joined the COPMOBA board in 2009. When asked why he chooses to serve on our board, Scott states, “To donate effort toward an organization and a direction that is clearly a substantial and homegrown benefit to our communities and neighbors. To help support, guide, and grow the organization and its impacts.” Scott purchased first mountain bike in 1984 and has been riding constantly since then.

He has toured in a number of countries around the world (Europe, North & South America, Mexico) and is particularly partial to desert riding. Scott’s passion for bikes extends to his work life as well; he is co-owner of Rapid Creek Cycles in Palisade and serves as VP of Engineering for Mountain Racing Products where he helps develop & manufacture high-end mountain bike suspension, drivetrain components, and multiple other categories of products for the mountain bike market.

Scott feels strongly that it’s important to contribute to your community and feels that everyone has something to contribute and should be involved.

Board Member | Grand Valley Trails

Katie Catanzarite has been involved with MUT and GVC for many years and joined the COPMOBA Board of Directors in 2020. Katie is active in the mountain biking community – she is an enduro racer, co-founder of Dirt Mermaids, an org dedicated to connecting and empowering RAD women on and off the bike, and formerly a coach on the Montrose High School MTB team.

Katie enjoys living in the Grand Valley – the cycling community is the place to make lifelong friends. When out of the saddle, you can find her exploring the trails with her two dogs and tasting craft beer at local breweries.

Board Member | Montrose Uncompahgre Trails

Tyler Smith joined the COPMOBA board in 2023 after volunteering with the MUT chapter since 2021. He currently calls Montrose home and enjoys the variety of mountain and desert terrain available within a short drive. He has been involved with volunteering and community service through multiple organizations for most of his life. Tyler has enjoyed getting involved with the mountain biking community in Montrose at a time when it is experiencing a surge in growth.

He looks forward to continuing to advocate for new trails in the area, as well as finding new ways to bring mountain bikers together in Montrose. If he isn’t busy mountain biking, you will likely find him skiing, camping, or hiking around Colorado and Utah with his wife and two dogs.

Board Member | Grand Valley Trails

Don Potter spent over 20 years living in the Salt Lake City and Denver areas and found that during weekends and vacations he was constantly drawn to the Grand Valley.

In 2018 Don and his family decided the Western Slope should be their full-time home. He joined COPMOBA in 2020 to meet others who were passionate about mountain biking and to help maintain the trails he was spending so much time riding. Don enjoys introducing new riders to the sport and the numerous trail systems throughout the valley.

Board Member | Montrose Uncompahgre Trails

Nick Jacobson joined the COPMOBA board in 2024 after volunteering with the MUT chapter since 2022. Raised in the flatlands of Iowa, he’s had a habit of finding his way westward to ride, run, and fly fish as long as he’s known about the wonders of topographic diversity. Arriving in Montrose in 2022, Nick has found that the passionate community of outdoor recreationists, especially mountain bikers, makes it a great place to call home.

During most of his waking hours, he’s working on private-public conservation projects among the Western Slope’s iconic landscapes for Colorado West Land Trust. When he’s not doing his job, he’s often on a bike, or looking at maps and thinking about being on a bike.

Board Member | Grand Valley Trails

Mel Stockwell joined COPMOBA in 2023 after retiring from Copper Mountain Ski Resort and relocating to the Western Slope to be with family. Mel’s passion for mountain biking and trail advocacy started in 1986 when he traded in his surfboard for a mountain bike to ride the mighty hills of Ocala, Florida.

Since then, Mel has been a member of several trail clubs, building trails and supporting trail advocacy. Mel joined the COPMOBA board in 2024 driven by a desire to give back to the community and support the sport that has brought him immense joy and forged lasting friendships. When he’s not riding, Mel loves to ski, hike, and travel with his family and dogs.

Board Member | Grand Valley Trails

Michael Faithe joined the COPMOBA board in 2024 to become more involved in the mountain bike community and give back to the organization and trails. He relocated his family from Denver to Grand Junction in 2017 because of the numerous outdoor recreation opportunities.

Michael’s first mountain bike was his dad’s fully rigid Raleigh 26” hand-me-down. He took it up to the mountains in Taos, NM and was hooked. His mountain biking friends call him “The Flying Funguy” because of his love for searching for edible mushrooms while out on the trail.

Michael works remotely as a pharmacist in the medical affairs department for a global pharmaceutical company. He is passionate about building community through mountain biking and introducing others to the sport. He looks forward to helping build a more diverse and engaged membership and becoming more involved in trail building and maintenance. Ultimately, he plans to help COPMOBA continue to grow into the premier mountain bike organization in the country.

While not on the bike you will find Michael playing, practicing yoga, golfing, camping, hunting, cross-country skiing, playing the guitar, and spending time with his wife and two kids.

Board Member | Ridgway Area Trails

Andy Persio joined the COPMOBA board in 2024 after volunteering with the RAT Chapter since 2018. Andy started mountain biking in the late 80s in his home state of Pennsylvania. He moved out west in 1991 and his love of mountain biking and mountain travel has only grown since then.

Working in outdoor gear shops and bike shops off and on since his time in PA, Andy is now co-owner of Ridgway Adventure Sports (an outdoor gear, full-service bike shop and backcountry ski shop located in Ridgway Colorado). Andy chose to join the COPMOBA board to give back to a community and lifestyle that has given him so much. He also hopes to enhance the local riding options in an area that he feels has world class potential.

When he’s not working at the shop or riding his bike(s) Andy enjoys skiing, hiking, and spending time outside with his family.

Board Emeritus | Grand Valley Trails

Dan Antonelli first started working with COPMOBA in 1997 doing trail maintenance with Bill Harris on the Uncompahgre Plateau. He recalls that Moore Fun trail building was his first volunteer day with COPMOBA here in the Valley.

Dan joined our board in 2000 because many of the singletrack trails on the north end of the Uncompahgre Plateau were being closed to mountain bike use and he wanted to do what he could to get back some access to those trails and also to expand mountain biking opportunities on the Grand Mesa. He then spent nearly a decade advocating for, designing, and running trail projects to build the Flowing Park, Indian Point and Mesa Top trails.

Dan and his wife started mountain biking in 1989 and enjoy riding the technical trails here locally, hitting the high Forest trails in the summer, and exploring the trails in Utah’s San Rafael Swell, specifically the Five Miles of Hell trail.

Board Emeritus | Grand Valley Trails

Chris Muhr has been involved with COPMOBA since 1996 and has served several terms on the board since first joining in 1997. Chris’s original focus in joining COPMOBA was to help foster strong relationships between COPMOBA and our local public lands partners.

His working history with BLM and strong focus on collaborative partnerships proved to be very beneficial then and in the years since. Chris has been riding bikes in the Grand Valley since he was a kid, and his favorite area to ride is still the Lunch Loop trail system.

On the rare occasion that you catch Chris not on his mountain bike, you may find him hiking, skiing, or riding his motorcycle in the backcountry…looking for places to ride his bike.