When Anita Naidu started working as a mountain bike coach nearly a decade and a half ago, you could say she led somewhat of a double life.
As the first-ever pro freerider of East Indian descent, the Whistlerite known to her Instagram followers as @abrownpanther is often found whipping down trails while repping brands like Cannondale, Shimano, Fox and MEC.
But off her bike, the humanitarian, electrical and environmental engineer has also earned a long list of accolades for her work combatting the global refugee crisis and human slavery, as well as developing environmental impact strategies. These days, she dedicates much of her time to the anti-racism work she started in 2017, helping brands address diversity, equity and inclusion within their organizations and wider industries. (She’s also an aspiring astronaut, for the record.)
“I just always found such a disconnect between my life in Whistler and my life overseas and the work I was doing, and I always thought, ‘If people understood better the problems that we’re facing, I’m certain that they would want to do something. And if they understood how they could be impactful, I’m sure they would act on that,’” she explained.
Naidu decided to combine her areas of expertise, launching her own anti-racism mountain biking clinics, dubbed the Bike Fest Series, a few years ago. The goal? Teach bikers to be not only better riders, but better humans.
Today, individuals registering for Naidu’s clinics (or adding their names to the waitlist for the perpetually sold-out events) can expect to learn more than just new skills. “They walk away completely different riders, but we teach them how to combat institutional racism, and what decolonization is all about, and climate justice,” Naidu explained.
After all, when it comes to the outdoors industry in general, “being a dark-skinned person in white spaces feels like an extreme sport in itself,” Naidu said.
The two-day events are designed for all levels of riders, from beginner to expert. A robust scholarship program is also available, offering subsidies to anyone who needs one and free registration for participants like single moms, people of colour and riders over 60.
Naidu works with mountain bike coaches before clinics officially get underway to make sure everyone’s on the same page when it comes to the language, practices and structures required to foster an anti-racist space. Once the crowd of 50 participants arrive, they’re grouped by experience to kick off the clinic with a skills session, working on basics like braking, cornering or even dialing new tricks. Dinner follows an afternoon trail ride, before the night ends with an in-depth discussion. “We’re giving people tangible, concrete things they can do in their everyday life, to fight racism,” Naidu explained. “And then we do it all again the next day.”
Naidu has coached both in Canada and far-flung locations around the globe, but her clinics took arguably their biggest step yet when she recently brought them across the American border for the first time.
In partnership with the International Mountain Bike Association and her sponsors, Naidu visited Omaha, Nebraska earlier this year. Her calendar features a return to Cumberland on Vancouver Island for a pair of clinics from Aug. 18 to 20, before she packs up and heads to Bentonville, Arkansas in September. That coaching gig in the Ozarks coincides with The Women of OZ Sunset Summit, where Naidu will speak to all 500 participants about anti-racism in the mountain bike industry.
“It’s just really exciting to be able to go specifically to places that are more conservative and might be more resistant, and be able to make those inroads in those communities and in their outdoor culture—it’s been quite significant,” she said.
Naidu expects to roll out events in more locations across the continent next summer. One market her anti-racism clinics haven’t necessarily been able to crack just yet? Her own hometown’s.
Naidu served as head coach at the Liv Women’s Only A-Line Session at Crankworx Whistler last month, leading hundreds of women through the Whistler Mountain Bike Park’s iconic jump line. The good vibes were powerful, but still, Naidu felt something was missing.
“Particularly as a woman of colour, I’m always thinking, ‘OK we get all these women out, it’s a great sport, freeride, but we really don’t teach them how to be more inclusive—we’re really not teaching people what steps [to take]. We’re sort of using diversity as optics, rather than truly teaching people how they can create diverse communities.
“I’ve definitely realized it’s now time to pitch to Crankworx they need to have diversity and inclusion equity as a priority, because it’s the world’s biggest mountain biking festival, it’s 10 days long, and it’s glaringly obvious that despite it being super fun, it’s very monolithic,” she added.
So what can mountain bikers do in the meantime, if they’re not able to land a spot in one of Naidu’s clinics? “People think [anti-racism work] is really complicated, but all it is is a commitment to fighting it whenever it shows up, especially in yourself,” she said. “So I always tell people, start with yourself. Where does bias and racism pop up in your life? Because everyone has it ... When are you ever witnessing a situation where you can see that there’s bias? Those are the times you need to act and do something.”
