A few months ago Mons Royale hosted a women’s progression camp in Queenstown, New Zealand. The Future Ground Progression camp brought some of New Zealand’s top female freeriders together. Catch up on what went down in the highlights video as well as a short documentary from the event.
I don’t think that we girls get together enough, but it is kinda hard because half of us probably live in Queenstown and the rest in the North Island and around the country. And there are just so many guys compared to girls riding, so you end up riding with guys. And don’t get me wrong, they help you and push you but it’s different when you are with girls. I feel like when you see a girl doing it, you are like, ‘yeah I can do that.’ I mean guys have naturally more muscle, so when we see them doing tricks, it’s easy to think I can’t do that. But here we are learning we can by watching each other and building a community. Everyone has been pushing their limits for sure.
Local Queenstown rider, Emma Olofsson.
Riders:
- Louise Ferguson: Queenstown based (Scotland) – @louise_anna__ (She/Her)
- Vinny Armstrong: Queenstown based (Auckland) – @vinnysarmstrong (She/Her)
- RobinGoomes: Rotorua – @robin_riding_hood (She/Her)
- Kalani Muirhead: Wānaka – @kalani_muirhead (She/Her)
- Ellie Chew: Kapiti Coast – @ellie_chew (She/Her)
- Charlie Lester-Rosson: Rotorua -@charlie_lesterrosson (She/Her)
- Kathy Morris: Queenstown – @kathy4654 (She/Her)
- KelseyTimpany: Queenstown -@3kels (She/Her)
- Emma Olofsson: Queenstown – @mmurmaider (She/Her)
- Jess Blewitt: Queenstown/Christchurch – @Jessblewitt_ (She/Her)
Related Stories:
Video: Samantha Soriano’s Road to Red Bull Formation – Episode Three
Dirt Sisters of Shred: Encouraging Young Women to Ride
The first event was hosted over four days, with riders pushing their limits and progressing together. Unsurprisingly, a big part of the event was Katie Holden, someone who is behind the likes of Red Bull Formation and doing amazing things for women’s freeride. Together with Mons Royale and a number of coaches and mentors, the invited riders worked together to push their limits.
Future Ground is Coming to Europe
After the success of the first event, Mons Royale want to bring Future Ground to Europe. The brand are keen to invite riders who are interested as well as brands and resorts who want to work together. “We want to help women’s progression in freeriding but we can’t do it alone,” says Co-Founder Hannah Acland. “Whether you are a brand or an advocate we welcome you. This is about getting more women riding at a higher level and bridging that gap. Come join the movement.”
For the moment updates on events will be posted on their social channels.
The future of women’s freeride is looking pretty good right now.
Singletrack Merch
Singletrack Sponsored Features
Featured Premier Partner
Join our mailing list to receive Singletrack editorial wisdom directly in your inbox.
Each newsletter is headed up by an exclusive editorial from our team and includes stories and news you don’t want to miss.