The Coaching Team
We want to be the best, so we hire the best. Our coaches are the most experienced and certified group of professionals in the country. The vast majority are former Freeriderz athletes themselves, with experience as deep as it is diverse. Current and former national team coaches, World Cup coaches and athletes, Alberta team athletes and coaches - you name it, they’ve been there.
We invest heavily in their coaching education, which means we have more Air Doubles coaches than any club in Canada, and fast track any new coaches to earning their Air 4 certifications as soon as possible.
Don’t let the serious credentials of this crew intimidate you - they all live for skiing and personally understand that the only way you improve is by loving what you. They foster an environment of fun, hard work, and mateship among all the athletes they work with. Often like big kids themselves, our coaches can really ‘connect’ with our athletes, which can make the training often more fun than hard. It is amazing what you can learn when you are having fun.
Patrick Walsh
Patrick Walsh is CFRZ’s Head Coach and Program Director. Patrick has an extensive background in high performance Park & Pipe skiing across Canada and internationally. Recently returned to Calgary from working as the Head Coach of the Australian Park & Pipe Team for Freeski and Snowboard, his coaching resume includes working as the technical coach for the Chinese National Slopestyle team, Head Coach of the Academy Performance team at Winsport, five years as Head Coach of the Ontario Park & Pipe team, and running the Silver Star Freestyle Ski Club as its Head Coach & Club Director, where he worked for four years. He has coached at almost every level of competition in our sport, from World Championships, World Cups and Dew Tour, right down to local club events, with a wealth of experience at the Nor-Am Cup.
Alongside these coaching roles, Patrick has worked as a consultant for Ernst & Young’s Vancouver strategy advisory practice, specializing in performance improvement. He has been engaged as a sport consultant in freestyle skiing across Canada, advising numerous PSOs and clubs on performance and planning excellence. His is accredited as a coach developer for several of Freestyle Canada’s coaching certifications at the Competition Introduction and Competition Development levels. Patrick holds a Master’s degree in High Performance Coaching & Technical Leadership from UBC.
Dave Stevenson
“Coach Dave” is our Technical Coach bringing a wealth of experience to our program and athletes. Dave has his CFSA Competition Development for slope and pipe, Air Doubles, and is a TSM 2 turn coach. Taking podium in slope and pipe competitions himself, plus 15+ years of coaching experience, Dave brings his talent and passion for developing young athletes to their potential.
Austin Coll
Austin has been riding the slopes of COP and Lake Louise since he was 4 years old. He did not begin freeskiing until he was 16, when he started competing with the Calgary Freeriderz from 2011 until 2014. He has competed in a variety of disciplines from big air, to slopestyle, to big mountain events. Specializing in slopestyle, he travelled with the club all over North America from Ontario Nationals, to The Whistler North Face Park and Pipe Open Series, to The Aspen Freeskiing Open. He has 9+ years of experience coaching along with an impressive resume of courses, including his Air Doubles certification. He is on track to becoming one of a handful of Competition Development - Slopestyle Certified coaches in Canada. Other interests include cinematography, hip-hop music, mountain biking and all things to do with extreme sports.
Matt Couillard
Coach Matt or "Matty C" as the athletes know him, is going into his 10th year as a coach for the Freeriderz. Matt trained with the Calgary Freeriderz from 2011 till 2014, and has been coaching ever since! For those three years he was a competitive big air and slopestyle freestyler. He's been skiing since the day he could walk and loves every second of it! Matt was born and raised on a farm west of Calgary and has been riding horses for as long as he's been on skis. Matt is totally into any sport that will give an adrenaline rush! Football and rugby were his other sports of choice during high school. Matt has long held his Air 4 certification, and is working hard to complete his Air Doubles certification this season. Coach Matty C forever lives by his motto …GO BIG or GO HOME!
Colin Hendrickson
Colin has been riding the slopes since he was 3 years old, and has been with the Calgary Freeriderz since day one. He was one of the original six athletes who started with the club back in 2008. He has been skiing since he could walk and has competed in big air, slopestyle, big mountain and moguls as a member of the Freeriderz. Colin has many interests other than skiing, such as skateboarding, biking, and playing guitar. He is also a seasoned traveller, having visited Australia for 6 months in the first half of 2015. Currently, Colin is completing his bachelors of business administration at Mount Royal University. We are stoked to have him!
Paul Harrop
Paul has been skiing at Lake Louise for as long as he can remember. He joined the Calgary Freeriderz in 2013 as an athlete, training and competing with us until 2019. Paul competed mostly in slopestyle and big mountain, but dabbled in half-pipe and moguls as well. Last winter he spent 5 months living in Japan, embracing all the deep snow they had to offer. When not on the slopes he enjoys hot tubs and mountain biking, and is starting a degree in earth sciences at the University of Calgary. Paul is a PMBI certified bike coach, has 3 years of youth mountain bike coaching experience, and is always excited to work with kids who are equally as stoked as he is.
Megan Gunning
Megan has been skiing for 18 years. Her passion for freeskiing began when she moved to Alberta in 2004. As a young adult, Megan’s love of freeskiing drove her to compete at the highest level. Megan was a member of the original Canadian Halfpipe Team, where she earned medals in many high-level competitions. Most notably she’s earned two X-Games medals and pioneered several new tricks to women’s halfpipe skiing. This will be her fifth season coaching in the Bow Valley. She’s excited to spread her excitement for all avenues of freeskiing with the members of Calgary Freeriderz.
Spencer Saltys
Spencer joined the Calgary Freeriderz early on in his skiing career at 14 years old. The atmosphere of the team, parents and coaches is what made him fall in love with the sport. After 3 years on the Calgary Freeriderz he went on to join team Alberta to start competing at a higher level and travelling around the world. This will be Spencer’s second year coaching but first on the Calgary Freeriderz and he feels so privileged to be in the position with all these amazing people that he looks up to. When Spencer isn’t coaching or filming his skiing, he likes to spend most of his time being with family and friends, staying active in the gym, on the golf course or anything to give him the same kind of rush that skiing does! Spencer has been working with the same Irrigation company for 5 years in the spring, summer and fall months to make time for his skiing in the winter! He’s so stoked to be apart of the team again!
Brayden Tritter
Brayden is an original Calgary Freeriderz member who started as an athlete with the team 15 years ago during its inception. After many fun years with the Freeriderz he moved on to compete with the Alberta Slopestyle and Halfpipe team, traveling and competing around the globe. Brayden is a current coach for the Canadian Halfpipe Team (NextGen), traveling and coaching the World cup circuit. Off the hill, Brayden is a graphic designer and sport enthusiast, from golf, to puck, to mountain biking he enjoys anything that gets the pals together for good time. Brayden is the Lead Coach for our Halfpipe program, and holds his Air Doubles certification. GO FLAMES!