Balance Cycling Ride Leaders

Ryan Huffman

he/him/his
Balance Cycling Founder

After years of riding and racing with area clubs, Ryan created a community of cyclists unlike any he'd experienced. In 2005, he founded Balance Cycling and the Minneapolis cyclists finally had access to a club of dedicated riders who put group dynamics before personal gain. As a true team player, Ryan enjoys leading out teammates for town signs, besting his PRs on segments and attracting riders who want to have fun, score some points and do it with just the right mix of self-confidence and selflessness. As the club evolves, Ryan loves welcoming new riders, rolling with old friends, creating new routes, and practicing optimal bike fashion. Ryan is a former Cat 2 road racer.

Bikes

• LaMere custom carbon road bike with Sram Red eTap 12-speed, and Zipp 404 NSW wheel set

• LaMere custom carbon road bike with Sram Red 11-speed, and HED wheel set

• Evil Following v3 full-suspension mountain bike with Sram Eagle X01 1x12 and LaMere carbon wheel set

• Three Stars custom steel single speed

• Giant Revolt gravel

Lisa Martens

she/her/hers

Lisa has been spending time on and off her bike with the Balance cycling community since 2009. She has always enjoyed being on 2 wheels, but since riding with Balance her love has grown tenfold! Whether commuting, road racing, shredding the mountain bike or fat bike in the winter months… she loves meeting and connecting with cyclists who share a passion for the sport. Lisa co-leads the Thursday evening Ladies Ride and thinks there is no better feeling than a paceline of strong women calling out "On your left"! She lives in Longfellow with her husband Bruce, son Torsten and daughter Eira. She loves her work off the bike as an orthopedic physical therapist. Lisa is founder of the dopest mountain bike club in the Twin cities: Stoke MTB.

Bikes

• LaMere Seasonal Selection

  • Shoulder Season: Gravel

  • Summer Season: Road

  • Winter Season: Fat

• Shitty winter commuter willing to sacrifice to the Salt Gods

• Yeti SB 115 mountain bike

• BMC Alpenchallenge AMP City eBike for commuting

Kelly Trom Nygren

she/her/hers

Heyo, my name is Kelly but many call me Trom.

By day, I’m a registered dietitian and by night, I am an athlete to the core.

I don’t know where I’d be without the Thursday ladies ride and community that is Balance Cycling. A member for ~10 years and have created AMAZING friends both on and off the bike! I love seeing new faces come try out the club and I love pushing my limits with fellow riders up Smith bridge just for the hell of it. Balance adds balance to my life and I am forever grateful.

Minneapolis is a phenomenal, bike friendly city with Balance located in the heart of it all. My husband, Karl and I live in Bryn Mawr with access to so many great trails, paths and roads to ride. We recently welcomed a new little addition and can’t wait to get Boden out riding.

Hope to see you out there or at least for an afterparty at Sea Salt for a beer. Cheers!

Bikes

• ‘Prince’ is my pompous purple Trek Madone for all things Balance road riding.

• ‘Tall dark and Handsome’ (TDH) is my black sexy Trek Speed Concept for all things not Balance road riding.

• ‘Neil’ is my teal Trek Top Fuel for all things off-roading through the woods.

• My trusty teenage commuter for all things that could get stolen downtown.

Kirsten “Kiki” Hoogenakker

she/her/hers

After ten years of chasing hard miles and even harder friendships, the club has become as much a part of my weekly rhythm as the rides themselves. I came in through road racing, looking for weekend training partners, and stayed for the community that kept showing up. The Thursday ladies ride is a non-negotiable, and last year I launched a women's ride designed to turn up the heat. There's nothing better than watching someone discover what they're capable of on a bike; I'm always open to running clinics, helping with style choices, and building confidence in the club. My ride leading journey started with the intermediate Wednesday rides, which was honestly terrifying, but putting myself out there was a game changer. From there, Carlos and I kicked off the Saturday Speedium rides, where I locked in my ride-lead philosophy: rides should be fast, social, and if you aren't having a good time, you came in with the wrong attitude. 

Fresh white shoes, clean fast bike, and always looking for the next wheel to chase... ideally ending somewhere with beverages.

Bikes

• Ridley Fenix

• Ridley X-Fire

• All-City Thunderdome

• Kona Hei Hei Trail

• Salsa Casseroll

Sonja Crain

I was in search of a ladies road cycling club in spring 2021 and found the Balance Thursday ladies ride. For me, road cycling improves exponentially the more riders on the ride; more people to chit chat with and the faster, farther and safer the group can go together. I’m passionate about bringing more people into the sport by leading group rides focused on group riding skills, drafting and lead rider rotation. Join me on the Wednesday EZ Does It ride if you want to check out the Balance club Maybe you’ll go on to join other rides that Balance offers - or EZ Does It becomes your regular ride. Whatever your jam, let’s get out there and ride and have fun!

Bikes

• Cervelo Caledonia “Sparkles”

• Cannondale SuperSix Evo (retired)

• Salsa fat tire “Fattie”

• Lemond Tourmalet “Indoor bike”

Amber Quito

she/her/hers

I started riding with Balance in 2012 and learned everything I know about group riding here! I’ve never raced, but I love being outdoors and meeting new riders who appreciate similar interests. Riding with a group helps me push my boundaries. I enjoy working as an orthopedic physical therapist, traveling, hiking and riding MTB with my husband, Javier and our energetic dog.

Bikes

• Fuji Altamira (road)

• Yeti Betti (MTB)

• Marin Juniper (winter/commuter/run the dog bike)

Jeff Kirkwold

he/him/his

I am Jeff, and I only recently found the joy of cycling.  Until relatively recently my sports of interest were racquet sports—racquetball and then squash—and, occasionally, running.  A group at the squash club rode together on Sundays, and so I got a bike and joined them.  I fell in love with it.  Most of my rides, other than that Sunday ride, were solo as I knew very little about the cycling community here in Minneapolis.  Looking to push myself more, be more social, and learn from experienced riders I researched cycling groups and found Balance just prior to the 2025 season (and even roped my wife into it).  To say my first ride with the group was humbling is an understatement—from both an intensity and a group dynamics standpoint.  What kept me coming back was the support and encouragement from other members, something I hope to be able to share with other cyclists.  The result?  I bought more bikes!  It is a terrific way to see outside.  And when I am really suffering, I remind myself this is something I get to do vs. have to do.

Bikes

·      Trek Domane—road

·      Trek Checkpoint—gravel

·      Trek Farley 9.6—fat tire

Chelsea Jenson Dunkel

she/her/hers

I’m Chelsea and I found my way to Balance in 2014. After 18 years of competitive swimming and a decade of strictly riding a bike to train for triathlons, Balance helped me discover the amazing world of group road riding. Though I still race triathlon, Thursday night Ladies Rides are by far my favorite athletic activity. It’s hard to beat riding around the city on an endless summer night with an incredible community of cyclists—and then, of course, sharing beer and laughter at Sea Salt. When not on the bike I work as an Organizational Development psychologist and live in Minneapolis with my husband Damon and our two young boys. 

Bikes

• Pinarello Gan S—for all things road

• Cervelo P3 TT—for racing and going fast

• Raleigh RX 2.0—for momming around on two wheels either towing or chasing kids

• Liv Lust Advanced—for collecting dust in the garage… someday it’ll be back in the dirt

Sara Suppan

she/her/hers

Sara is new to Balance but not new to biking! She joined in 2025 with over ten years’ experience commuting all over the city and on trails. Sara has never, ever owned a car! She started as a scrappy art student riding a 1980s steel Diamondback that was two sizes too big and had gummy handlebars, which she totalled on some winter ice. Since then she has found joy in nicer bikes and long solo rides on Minnesota’s sprawling trail network, through woods and marshes and into the far-flung suburbs. Her favorite things about riding are being out in the green, thinking thoughts, and now, with Balance—the discipline of group riding and the community it brings. 

Sara is an artist, and when not on wheels, spends almost all of her time painting in the studio with her two cats

Bikes:

• 2019 Soma Wolverine 

• 2014 Trek Domane 5.9

Jason Beck

he/him/his

Jason came to cycling through triathlon. Starting in 2012 as a way to lose weight, he started competing in sprint distance triathlons. Racing tri's up to a full ironman in 2018, he found that his runs would suffer as he never wanted to train for the run! Starting in 2016 Jason also started racing criteriums and cyclocross. Podiums and race wins in both disciplines are where he developed his riding skills. Heavily involved in the cycling community as a ride leader, board member, race promoter and coach, Jason continues to ride as a way to develop fitness for his passion for mountaineering. His favorite balance ride is the Saturday Speedium! Fast, Fun but a no drop ride with a great community! 

Bikes

• 2020 Trek Madone

• 2024 Trek Supercaliber

• 2024 Trek Checkpoint

• 2016 Trek Boone Singlespeed 

Jordan Jessen

He/him/his

I’ve been riding consistently since 2016, but really dove in when all of the sudden I had a bunch of extra time on my hands during the pandemic.  I joined Balance in 2021 and have been riding with them ever since. I love the freedom of biking, exploring where I live, and getting to know it better.  Other things I love in no particular order are:

-          Suffering

-          Other people suffering

-          Getting multiple baked goods at the café stop

-          Any kind of gummy candy

-          A good lager

-          Traveling

Outside of work, I am a civil engineer and advocate for cycling infrastructure at any opportunity I am afforded.  I live in Kingfield with my girlfriend (you wouldn’t know her, she goes to a different school) and one very spoiled dog, a Chiweenie.

Bikes

• Cervelo R3

• Santa Cruz Tallboy

• Cervelo P3

• Specialized Tricross

Peter Olejniczak

he/him/his

I joined my first cycling team in 2011 after my Cross Country Ski friends encouraged me.  I found a sense of team and belonging that seemed to often be missing from endurance sports. Thats been the BEST part about Balance Cycling. I found a steady and constant cycling community that challenges me in new ways… all while making new friends! I attribute strong mentorship and skill development to a successful professional racing career, so you can expect me to always put the cohesiveness of the group first! Balance Cycling gets me excited about my future cycling journey! 

Bikes (to name a few)

• Look Blade 795 RS

• Cervelo ZFS-5

• Twin Six Rando

• Trek Boone

Alison Ryncarz

Bikes

Weiwen Ng

he/his/him

Bikes

Shannon McKeegan

she/her/hers

Words about Shannon.

Jenny Beckman

she/her/hers

I joined the cycling club at Saint Cloud State to support my NCAA cross country ski training, expecting it to be offseason fitness builder. Instead, it became a lifelong love of two wheels and endurance sport. 13 Birkie’s later, I am still chasing that edge.

I identify as a mountain biker when it comes to racing. But the fitness? That is built on the road, with this community. You will find me helping Kiki lead our spicy Tuesday ladies ride, pushing the pace in the Saturday Fast peloton, and enjoying the connection of our Thursday Ladies ride. I love going fast with friends, but what really fires me up is watching someone unlock a new level of confidence on the bike.

Endurance sport is both my passion and my profession. I have built my career in the outdoor industry and am a proud alumni of Salomon, Gear West, and ERIK’S Bike Shop, and I currently serve as Marketing Manager for REI and SCHEELS at HOKA. Helping people of all ages and abilities find joy outside is the thread that ties it all together.

Always up for a ride. See you out there!

Bikes:

• Road: Felt AR Advanced

• Mountain: Specialized Epic 8 Pro

• Gravel/CX: Felt FX3

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