ABOUT US

Gianni Cycling Association was founded in 1991 by Tom Gonnella (a.k.a. Snap) out of a bike shop in downtown Occidental. Gianni Cyclery was a full-service shop and purveyor of local hand-built bikes, including Ibis, Salsa, and Bruce Gordon.

Over time, Gianni started a mountain bike race team and then eventually started putting on races of their own. One race became a cult classic called the “Ring of Fire” — tough and grueling considering the terrain. In the winter months, Gianni put on cyclocross races known as the “West Pole” cyclocross series, another grueling favorite.

As the years went on, more and more customers became friends and riding partners, always looking for places to ride legally. Over 30 years ago, Gianni approached Louisiana Pacific (LP), to build and maintain a sustainable trail system on their property. Over the years of our ongoing lease agreement with LP and then Mendocino Redwood Company (MRC), we have built a mountain bike community of nearly 300 members and constructed and maintained a trail system that promotes sustainable and responsible mountain biking and hiking experiences.

The bike shop closed its doors in 1998, but the Gianni Cycling Association has continued to steward the MRC land and build a community of like-minded mountain bikers and outdoor enthusiasts and partner with other land managers to advocate, plan, build, and maintain a network of sustainable trails in western Sonoma County, California.