Since 2017, the Gunnison Outdoor (GO) Initiative has been transforming lives through mountain biking, creating a space where local girls develop technical skills, confidence and lasting community connections.

Founded by Sarah Stubbe, the GO Initiative emerged from a simple observation: there was no programming specific to girls in the valley’s male-dominated outdoor sports culture. What started as a free after-school program in Crested Butte has grown into a robust Gunnison-based summer program.

Fostering a Love of Outside  

The GO Girls program runs for nine weeks each summer, meeting twice a week with participants aged seven to fourteen.

The bike is important, but “it’s not all about the bike. You’ve got the rest of your life to be about the bike. The bike is just an avenue to get to everywhere else,” Stubbe said.

The focus stays on having fun, said Program Director Taylor Grauer.

Coaches and participants run drills and practice technical skills—but they also make time to jump in the Gunnison River or Long Lake after ripping singletrack.

“A lot of other mountain bike teams are trying to train kids to be ‘the next best,’ versus Go Girls is trying to get kids to form a love of outdoors and connect with other cool girls in biking,” coach Atalaya Hausdoerffer said.

It’s a positive, silly environment, according to participant Sadie Swift, 11.

“But also you ride fun and hard things,” her teammate Camille Estrada said. 

Creating an enjoyable, safe space for girls to learn resulted in campers who were stoked to return every day, coach Sophie Trunnell said. At the end of the summer, girls were begging to go down the infamous Rattlesnake trail at Hartman Rocks.

“Not only did they do it, they were cheering for each other, they were taking pictures and having so much fun,” Trunnel said.

Building Leadership Through Mentorship

Perhaps the most powerful aspect of the GO Initiative is its mentorship model. Former GO Girls participants return as paid mentors, creating a pipeline of leadership development.

These mentors, typically around 15 years old, serve a unique role between coach and peer.

“It’s definitely more of like a friend role compared to the coach, but it’s kind of cool cause the girls definitely look up to them and it’s almost like a big sister type relationship,” Grauer said. “The younger participants see mentors in their school hallways and think, ‘I just saw her ride over this rock, and I want to be like her.’”

This intergenerational relationship building is particularly crucial for girls navigating the challenging middle school years.

“That age is hard. It can be competitive, or it can be lonely,” Grauer said. “Giving them that avenue to learn a fun activity with their friends and then also have this support from these really rad older girls is super awesome.”

Annual surveys consistently highlight the relationships between coaches, mentors and participants as the program’s most valued element.

Skills That Transfer Beyond the Trail

The program’s focus on skill progression creates tangible confidence gains. Grauer said she witnessed girls transform from hesitant beginners to confident riders.

This summer confidence carries into the school year, better equipped to handle whatever challenges await them.

“What I love about Go Girls is that they kind of come in timid and then leave with having had so much fun that they just adore the sport, regardless of who they’re with,” Trunnell said. “They’re not worried about expectations and they’re confident.”