Stoked—More Outride Athlete Ambassadors!

Specialized Ambassadors Haley Batten and Christopher Blevins Hanging Out.

Let’s salute our new racing champions and riders who will serve as our Outride Athlete Ambassadors in 2020. These nine riders will carry on the legacy of the 20 riders who joined us last year to help mentor, motivate and inspire our Riding for Focus students and a young generation of new riders.

Each unique in their riding style they all believe that bicycles not only have the ability to improve the health of our children but also to empower middle school students to take chances, try new things, and see the world in new ways. Bicycles have the power to make lives better, beyond winning races. They can bring people together, motivate others to be better human beings and take advantage of what the world has to offer.

And—they are champions and past winners all around the world— including the U23 World Cup, Tour of California, Team USA Relay World Championships, U23 Pan American Continental Champion, World Tour riders and more have signed on to support Outride.

2020 New Outride Ambassadors

Cody Kaiser, Eldorado Hill, CA, Gravel/CX, Specialized Racing

Blake Steinecke, San Marcos, CA, Enduro, Specialized Ambassador

Catherine Pendrel, Canada, XCO, Team Clif

Dante Young, SoCal/LA, Crit/Road, Team L39ion

Haley Batten, Santa Cruz, XCO, Specialized Racing

Henry Nadell, Durango. XCO, Team CZ

Katie Hall, Saratoga, Road, Team Boels Dolmans

Thomas Revard, Carmel IN, Crit/Road, Team L39ion

Tyler Williams, Santa Rosa, CA, Crit/Road, Team L39ion

Christopher Blevins balancing riding, life, school, and music with time to focus on making the Tokyo Summer Olympics and mentoring young riders.

Christopher Blevins was one of the first athletes to officially sign on as an Outride Athlete Ambassador in 2019. A cross-discipline superstar hails from the mountain bike mecca in Durango, Colorado (neighbors with Ned Overend!) and has scored national championships in mountain biking, BMX, and cyclo-cross, and won major professional races on the road. Blevins won a silver medal at the cross-country mountain bike world championships in the U23 division and is all now all eyes on Tokyo to qualify for the Summer Olympic Games.

Get ready—Introducing a few of our 2020 ambassadors from our full roster riding strong today. What will you Outride?

Haley Batten is a new Specialized XC rider & Outride Ambassador—a U23 World Cup winner and two World Cup podiums in 2019, Haley was part of Team USA in the relay at World Championships where the USA earned silver and was the 2019 U23 Pan American Continental Champion and in 2017 the U23 National Champion.

I OUTRIDE to find freedom in a world full of chaos and stressors.

—Haley Batten—

Throughout my life biking has provided me with the opportunity to find freedom in a world full of chaos and stressors. This gave me a positive outlook on life and an appreciation for my body and mind, as well as a connection to the outdoors. I have become increasingly passionate about what an important tool the bike can be for children and am so thrilled to work with Outride on this mission.

Meet Katie Hall—World Tour Women’s Continental Team Boels—Dolmans rider and Winner of the 2018 Tour of CA and 2019 a 2nd Place Podium Finish. Katie took up cycling while pursuing a Ph.D. in molecular biology at UC Berkeley. Attribute her victories to strong legs and a strong mind and wicked speed as she wins by mere seconds sometimes to the stand on the podium most times!

I OUTRIDE to change lives.

—Katie Hall—

I am excited to work with Outride because I believe bikes have the power to change lives. Cycling has added so much richness to my life. It's been a wonderful community that I have really connected to and a way for me to clear my head, get some fresh air, and improve my physical and mental health. I want to share this with others!

Blake Steinecke mountain biking in Poway, CA in 2017. Photo credit: Quintin Bethge

Blake Steinecke is a junior at San Marcos High School and is one truly special Specialized Ambassador with a story that will rock your world. Blake is legally blind being diagnosed in 2015 with a rare genetic disorder known as LHON — Leber’s Hereditary Optic Neuropathy. No treatment. No cure. But today Steinecke, 19, mountain bikes with a guide-rider who barks “JUMP” through a Bluetooth connection illustrates a different sense of vision. Blake recently dropped in to visit Double Peak School, our Riding for Focus school in San Marcos, California to ride with the students and inspire them to take on challenges on the trail and in life.

I Outride my blindness.

—Blake Steinecke—

I am stoked to be a part of Outride to show people that it doesn’t take perfect sight to see. My mountain bike has helped me overcome life’s challenges and has been a powerful outlet in my life throughout becoming legally blind from a genetic condition. Outride shows the positive impact a bike can have when dealing with difficulties and empowering kids and people of all ages in life no matter your level of ability, or even your disability. I Outride my blindness.

Watch Blake’s video—Mountain Biking Legally Blind—The Comeback and be inspired on how he has overcome his life challenges and rides today.

Mountain Bike Legend Ned Overend. His best advice, “Learn some skills before you increase your speed”.

Hailing from the mountain bike mecca Durango, Colorado, Ned is the ultimate model for the next generation of racers. When you think of pioneers in the mountain bike world Ned was the first to take the world podium taking the first-ever cross-county world champion winning the UCI Mountain Bike World Championship. Ned was inducted into the Mountain Bike Hall of Fame, 1990 and US Bicycling Hall of Fame, 2001.

We ask every year, ‘When will Ned ever slow down?’ But we say—don’t ever count him out. Overend has a lot to show the other younger racers who are competing and that he still has plenty left in his tank. He didn’t get the nickname “The Lung” for nothing. Read more in Outride News.

I OUTRIDE MY NERVOUS ENERGY AND TO CALM MY WOUND-UP MIND.

—Ned Overend—

Ambassadors make visits to schools, write letters, post blog news and share their riding and training secrets on how to be the best they can be, on and off the bike—even when the trail gets rocky. Ned will make visits to local schools in Durango and around Colorado this spring to share his riding skills and expertise.

Our Outride Cycling Industry Partnerships— Solid, Strong and Steadfast.

You will see these one of kind athletes and teams world-wide cycling around the globe sharing our Outride and Riding for Focus mission. Our Specialized Factory XC Mountain Bike Team will sporting our Outride racing kits during the UCI World Cup pre-rides in 2020. The World Tour Teams will proudly wear Riding for Focus branded helmets all year ‘round and the men’s teams Quickstep and Bora will again have the “Riding for Focus” disc wheels for TT races for the 2020 season.

Meet Team 31: Outride! Two mountain bike legends and Cape Epic riders Annika Langvad and Jenny Rissveds will be Team 31: Outride. Team 31 has crossover purpose with Outride as they want to inspire youth to live a more active life taking the 31st article out of the UN’s Convention on the rights of the child as their leading star—“recognizing the right of the child to rest and leisure, to engage in play and recreational activities and to participate freely in cultural life and the arts”.

Outride brings meaning into my purpose as an athlete, so much more than just winning bike races, I believe that the approach of the Outride program is of tremendous value to young people and kids. For the kids to have a healthy and supportive environment cannot be underestimated.—Annika Langvad—

Team 31 has similarities to Outride, in that we want to inspire the youth to live a more active life. Outride was one of the deciding factors when deciding what bike to ride once I decided to come back about year and a half ago. Outride and our initiative Team 31 are very much aligned on the positives of getting our youth to be more active. —Jenny Rissveds—

Read more here about how this dynamic duo will bring a bigger purpose to racing.