Coach Chris


With over 20 years of coaching experience, a recent National Marathon Championship, and extensive experience with the eSports world of cycling, Chris brings a unique perspective to the coaching staff at Mtbfitness. A majority of Chris's training over the last several years has been indoors and has become a very accomplished eSports racer in the process.  He has leveraged his indoor training experience to raise his fitness level, and FTP,  to a lifetime high at the age of 46. When Chris isn't riding the rocks of the mid-atlantic region, he is in his basement riding his bike. Chris's training is predominantly done indoors on his Saris H3 trainer and his TruTrainer rollers. Working full-time and raising  two children while using more traditional training methods presented a significant challenge (and increased risk). It also led to mediocre results. After setting his sights on the 2017 XC MTB Nationals, Chris committed to training indoors on Zwift, and a year later he won the US Nationals Masters XC. 

In 2018, Chris started racing seriously on Zwift, and was invited to join one of the first eSports teams. He created a training plan for himself to prepare for both indoor and outdoor events, honed his skills, and saw his fitness  level skyrocket. Simultaneously, he was able to spend more time with his family, more time on this career and discovered how training indoors could lead to career longevity, fewer injuries, higher levels of fitness, community engagement, and fun. Chris currently races on the Saris | NoPinz (formerly Indoor Specialist and Saris + The Pro’s Closet) which was key in setting him up for his second national championships win in 2021. His experience using Zwift as a training tool is something he passes on to his athletes, many of whom attend school or work full time, have families, but still want to train hard and smart. But don't assume that all of Chris's indoor training prevents him from enjoying the amazing single track or great roads in his home state of Maryland. Chris still races road and cyclocross as a Category 1 and is fully focused on his coaching. He has found the right balance to excel in many genres of bike racing and as a successful cycling coach with 20+ years of experience. We can all learn from Chris.

Chris's Coaching philosophy

There are two ways to reach your athletic goals. You can be fitter and stronger than everyone else, or you can achieve your goals by utilizing a greater portion of your physical capacity by training and racing the right way, under the guidance of an experienced athlete and coach. 

More than a cycling coach and racer, I'm also a dad, and a scientist. I advocate for life balance and overall health. Consistent training and racing helps me find that balance. It makes me better in other aspects of my life. This became clear very early on in my career, so I continued to train hard into middle age. At 41, I won a National Championship in XC MTB at Snowshoe, WV in 2017. I won the Stars and Stripes Jersey !!!  A lifetime goal for me. But pride in my accomplishment and curiosity to see if I could win again prompted me to target the XC MTB marathon distance. In 2021 while training almost exclusively indoors, I won another US championship jersey. I'm the current masters US national champion in the marathon distance.  

What are your training and racing goals ? I can help. How bad do you want it?

Qualifications and Accomplishments

  • 20+ years coaching including MTB, Road, Cyclocross athletes - Coached multiple National Champions 
  • 2017 US National Champion - XC MTB
  • 2021 US National Champion - Marathon MTB 
  • Category 1 - USA Cycling Cyclocross/Road 
  • Top 100 world ranking in Zwift - racing for Saris NoPinz (1000+ races completed)
  • 500 KOMs on Strava 
  • 2:42 Marathon PR - Baltimore 26.2