Judy Tincher doesn't know exactly what she'll do next. But she knows the path that led to her role as one of Flagstaff's most welcoming outdoorswomen — and that wherever she's headed is even more expansive.
Whether ripping down trails on her mountain bike during northern Arizona's widening summers or patrolling on skis through the high country's vanishing winters, the fearless coach and community leader covers many miles on a weekly basis. She does it all with a smile she admits some may find aggressively positive.
Tincher first experienced Arizona in Tucson while on a cross-country bike tour in her early twenties. She loved the Sonoran Desert so much she was ready to stop the westward trek right there among the saguaros and saffron sunsets. Months
later, when she actually did relocate from North Carolina in 2008 for a position with AmeriCorps building trails in Flagstaff, she was shocked to discover the state's diversity of topography and climates.
"Like most of the country, I thought Arizona was all cactus and rattlesnakes," she laughed from the seat of her mountain bike while leading a breezy springtime ride from Flagstaff's Schultz Creek Trailhead.
But she bought a winter jacket and made the most of it.
Now, nearly 20 years later, snow has become a big part of Tincher's life. She recently completed professional level one avalanche training in Reno, an achievement she views as significant for both her and the public safety of Flagstaff's isolated mountain region, which can see hundreds of off-resort, backcountry users on skis, split boards, snowmobiles, snowshoes and even on foot when the snow falls.
Her first high altitude rescue, a night mission on Mount Humphreys in 2014, convinced her that winter recreation dangers are no joke. But it didn't deter her from exploring or from encouraging others to safely venture out.
This year, Tincher co-led the Kachina Peaks Avalanche Center's first-ever all-women's rec-level avalanche course. And she helped as the center taught basic snow safety concepts to 40 more students, 17 of whom received scholarship waivers that covered course fees.
Standing on a snowy peak in her forest-green ski jacket and black ski helmet and goggles, Tincher's smiling face and outstretched arms welcomed course applicants.
The snapshot captures just one recent scene from her lifelong quest to make the outdoors more accessible and inclusive for non-traditional recreators — especially women, femme, trans and gender-expansive people who Tincher says often don't automatically feel like they belong.
"The outdoors can provide a backdrop for people to have unique insights into their own hearts and minds, and that can be far more expansive than we give it credit for," Tincher told The Arizona Republic over coffee in Flagstaff a few miles from the ski resort where she's worked as a lift operator, bartender or patroller since arriving in town.
"I'm a doer, I love to stay busy. I always feel like I'm in a space of transition," she continued. "So, it's important for me to slow down and get in touch with the inner landscape, which shows up in our habits and how we spend our time. I've been with people as they made major life transitions, asking the right questions that lead to more insights. It's such an honor to provide a judgement-free space and sounding board."
The positive reverberations of Tincher's sounding board are apparent. Throw a pinecone in Flagstaff and you'll hit a female biker or skier eager to sing her praises.
"Judy just makes you feel like she is 110% there with you, and that is so rare these days," said Amaryth Gass, owner and co-founder of the Sedona Mountain Bike Academy who is also a powerhouse in northern Arizona's outdoor scene.
Gass and Tincher met when Tincher signed up as a client with SMBA, hoping to improve her own skills so she could more effectively push herself and help shepherd friends into the sport. It wasn't long before Gass asked Tincher to bring her infectious, confidence-boosting enthusiasm to the organization as a part-time coach.
"She is truly a student of life, and she's an emotional intelligence genius," Gass told The Republic. "Judy lives in a way that is juicy and rich. She strives to challenge herself not only on things she's an expert in but where she's a beginner."
This idea is backed by Tincher's approach to career pivots. After leading trail crews for the Arizona Conservation Corps for more than a decade while also working at the ski resort, the pandemic reshuffled the cards for her as it did for so many others. She worked through a frustrating employment experience with a mindset coach who helped her focus on rechanneling disappointments into empathy, understanding and personal growth.
Tincher responded by pursuing her own master's program in leadership and coaching, and becoming a mindset coach to help others through internal and external conflicts.
"I googled 'businesses you can start for under $5,000,' and then I just followed my interests in fitness, positive mindsets and habit coaching into a new role," Tincher said.
Life as a mindset coaching entrepreneur, and with the Flagstaff training firm Lancaster Leadership, kept Tincher busy for the next few years. But not too busy to join a book club and a popular local band, Thee Deores, that writes and performs mountain-bike themed songs, including one called "Chain Slap" and another named "Dropper Post."
A page on bandcamp.com calls Thee Deores "Mountain biking's #1 Dirtbag Rock and Roll band!" Tincher plays the keyboard, sometimes while sporting a mop-like wig at the end of a broomstick hovering over her head to accentuate her signature curly locks.
Despite this juggling act, Tincher is mindful to make time for new friendships. Two of these in recent years, with mountain bikers Mallory Staloch and Laura Smith, led to the 2022 formation of the "Flagstaff Lady Shredders." The trio of founders describes the unstaffed, grassroots effort as "an empowering and inclusive community in Flagstaff & Northern AZ for those who identify as women to mountain bike together."
"We love the entire mountain bike community, including the men, but riding with women hits different," the group's website reads. A post on the Facebook page from 2024 celebrates the turnout for a ride led by a member newly back on the bike after a breast cancer diagnosis. Twenty beaming, helmeted faces huddle for a photo in a trailhead parking lot to mark the occasion.
Staloch recalled a FLS group ride for International Female Ride Day that she was set to lead. When an unexpected turnout of nearly 50 women showed up, Staloch "froze" when it came to announcing the plan.
"Judy took over and got it going, then turned back control to me and the experience really empowered me," she said.
On another excursion — to the Rezduro, an Indigenous-led event on the Navajo Nation near Hardrock, Arizona — Staloch said Tincher's generous and outgoing spirit shone through even more.
"Judy got me to sign up for this race and she brought a couple of high schoolers with her, who I don't think had ever raced before," Staloch laughed. "Judy knew the lines and coached us through them and then we were all able to race the next day. I would not have done that race otherwise, it's very specialized. Judy just has this magnetic, positive personality and it's very encouraging."
At a May 2026 FLS event attended by The Republic, Tincher made the rounds at the trailhead to greet nearly 30 women who had showed up to ride the Bean Peaks trails near Prescott. The group's excited chatter fell silent when Tincher started to explain that the pack would break into multiple groups to accommodate all ability levels before meeting back in the parking lot for refreshments and a raffle for prizes. She then pushed off on her pedals to lead the advanced group through two loops of jumps, rocks and smiles.
"I think 'expansive' is an accurate way to describe her," said Gass at the close of the event. "Because the other side of the idea of 'expansive' is 'vulnerable, not protected.' And Judy just has this incredible curious bravery."
Joan Meiners is the climate news and storytelling reporter at The Arizona Republic and azcentral.com. Her journalism for various outlets has won national awards for investigative reveals, feature writing, business reporting and innovative climate coverage. Before becoming a journalist, she completed a doctorate in ecology with a focus on native bees. Send tips or questions to joan.meiners@arizonarepublic.com or follow her work on Instagram at @joan_bikes_arizona.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Judy Tincher is '110% there,' expanding women's community outdoors
