About Us

Justin Ibarra

Operations Director/Lead Guide/AIARE Course Leader

Raised in Colorado, Justin has been a guide and outdoor educator for nearly 20 years. He attended Colorado Mountain College for Outdoor Recreation Leadership and along with being Ops Director/Co-Owner Justin leads AIARE Avalanche Education and ACA Swiftwater Rescue Courses, and is a year round Lead Guide and guide trainer for CAG. Justin is medically certified as a Wilderness First Responder and has various other certifications and training’s including High Angle Rescue, Bike Instructor Certification Program, Pro 3 Avalanche, AIARE Course Leader, and AMGA Ski Guide Course Completion. His passion, tactfulness, and overall stoke for being in the mountains is contagious and he loves to share these experiences with others.

Kyle Ervin

AIARE Instructor / Senior Splitboard, Raft, Peak Ascent, MTB Guide

Born and raised in a small town in South Jersey Kyle made the move out west to Colorado and discovered what he had been missing out on. In the past 5 years he has had a strong appetite for learning and progression that has led him to gain education through the Wilderness Medicine Institute, Desert Mountain Medicine, Colorado Mountain College, Silverton Avalanche School, and the American Institute for Avalanche Research and Education. Kyle enjoys whitewater kayaking/rafting, mountain biking, splitboarding, skateboarding, hiking and is currently expanding his skills for ice and rock climbing.

Paul Schmidt

Lead Ski Guide / AIARE Instructor

Growing up on the East Coast, Paul often skipped school to go hiking on whatever trails he could find nearby. He fell in love with the mountains while visiting family in the Alps as a boy and moved to Colorado shortly after graduating from college. He currently works as an Avalanche Technician at a local ski area in Summit County.  He has ski patrolled and guided in New Zealand, Alaska, and Japan and is a certified AMGA Ski Guide.  He also holds AIARE Level 3, Course Leader, Emergency Medical Technician certifications.

Mike Restivo

Office Manager

Michael was born far from the mountains in Miami Florida but after a six-month volunteer opportunity in Nepal, he developed a passion for climbing and mountaineering. After graduating from FIU, he switched coasts and landed in Seattle where he learned to climb in the North Cascades and grew a new love for skiing. He then moved to Boulder where he fell in love with the backcountry ski community, which brought him to Summit County. When he’s not outside you can find him spending hours in his kitchen. Michael is extremely passionate about providing the best experiences for Colorado Adventure Guides’ guests.

Mikey Alosio

AIARE Instructor/ Ski & Splitboard Guide

Raised in San Clemente, CA, Mikey had thirst for adventure which lured him into the mountains after high school. Landing in Crested Butte, CO he immediately began splitboarding in his local mountains. Racing dirt bikes and MTB through college, splitboarding became a way for him to keep excitement through winter months. Being consumed by snow covered peaks and the solitude of untouched lines, the backcountry experience quickly evolved into his lifestyle. More than 10 years later, he has found a spot on the team at CAG working as an AIARE avalanche instructor and guide.

Abe Pacharz

Lead Guide and AIARE Instructor

Abe grew up in the Adirondack Mountains of northern New York. Growing up in such a beautifully wild place played a large role in developing his love for the outdoors and a passion for exploring. After getting his start as a guide for the University of Vermont outing club, he spent almost 10 years traveling the western states, guiding French adventurers through our beautiful National Parks. His passion for guiding and outdoor education has inspired him to pursue training from the IMBA, AIARE, Wilderness Medicine Institute, and continues to pursue other guide certifications.

Katie MacKnight

AIARE Course Leader / Senior Guide

Katie got her start learning to ski in Crested Butte, CO along with her first backcountry hut trip to the nearby 10th Mountain Division Friend‘s Hut. Upon returning to Fort Collins to complete a degree in Restoration Ecology and graduate studies in Forestry/Fire Science, she began familiarizing herself with the Medicine Bow and Never Summer Ranges. She is certified as an EMT-B and then Wilderness First Responder since 2008, Katie has safely enjoyed a decade and a half of navigating Colorado’s big backyard by way of mountain bike, cataraft, and skis and enjoys sharing that passion with others. We are stoked to have Katie on our team!

Clint Decker

AIARE Instructor

Clint moved to Colorado in 2004 to be in the mountains and snowboard. After a few years of in-bounds riding and starting to feel restricted by the resort’s boundaries, he started getting educated and into the backcountry. After climbing and splitboarding some classic routes around Colorado, Wyoming, and Washington State, and two expeditions to the Central Alaska Range, Clint decided to get into formal education and guiding. He is an AIARE Instructor and AMGA Apprentice Alpine Guide. He’s learning to ski but still loves splitboarding equally. Clint lives in Silverthorne with his wife, who also loves backcountry skiing, and his dog, Stark.

Brittany Konsella

AIARE Instructor/Senior Ski Guide

Brittany’s passion for skiing started on the tiny slopes of Boston Mills, Ohio. Her love for skiing drove her to attend college at CU Boulder majoring in Chemistry while also competing in Freestyle skiing, followed by 5 years of coaching at Winter Park ski resort. In 2006, Brittany set a goal to ski all of Colorado’s 14,000-ft peaks and in 2011 she became the 2nd woman to do so. Since then, she has sought to inspire others to venture into the backcountry. As a former secondary math and science teacher, Brittany is also a life-long educator and now extends those skills to her true passion, skiing, by teaching recreation-level avalanche courses. She also co-authored Backcountry Ski & Snowboard Routes: Colorado with her husband, Frank Konsella. Aside from skiing, Brittany also enjoys mountain biking, rock climbing, and just about anything that involves long days in the mountains.

Justin Studt

AIARE Course Leader / Lead Ski Guide

Tanner Thompson

Demo Center Manager/River Guide

Tanner left his southern roots in Arkansas to discover his passion for the mountains and rivers of Colorado at the early age of 15. He works as a Lead Whitewater Guide in the summers, and in the winters manages the Demo Center for CAG’s gear rental program as well as snowshoe guides while expanding his skill sets within the splitboarding and Peak Ascents disciplines. Tanner is adept at crafting comfort out of very little thing in the mountains. He spent a collective 10 years working as a wildland firefighter, Search and Rescue Technician, and acquiring whitewater boating skills on the western slope of Colorado.

Todd Ipsen

AIARE Instructor

Todd grew up in Colorado’s front range, where he was exposed to adventuring in the Rocky Mountains at a young age. He went to the University of Colorado in 2007 to run track & field while studying engineering, but further fell in love with backcountry skiing, climbing, and whitewater activities. Although working as a Professional Engineer, Todd’s true passions are backcountry adventuring and empowering others to do so safely. His lifelong love for mountains, safety, and science have led him on a path of mountain adventure education, where he is now an AIARE avalanche instructor, Wilderness First Responder, Swift Water Rescue Level IV trained, and holds a Pro 1 certification.

Tammy Clark

Snowshoe/Nordic and Lead River Guide

Tammy grew up in Colorado where she developed her passion for the mountains and outdoor recreation. She studied nature therapy and loves to be outside with her dog Sunny. Tammy has been a guide for 10  years in Utah, Colorado and Alaska. Tammy is WFR certified and she works as a Lead Whitewater guide in the summers, and guides snowshoeing and nordic skiing in the winter. She is mentoring with an awesome group of women at CAG to expand her backcountry and avalanche knowledge this winter. We are super stoked to have Tammy on the team!

Tico Gangulee

AIARE Course Leader/ IFMGA Guide

Tico got his start as a rock guide in the Gunks in the mid 90’s, and continued on to work in every western state and 5 continents as a rock, alpine, and ski guide.  He has a couple degrees from the University of Pennsylvania, is an IFMGA ski and mountain guide, an AIARE course leader, and a Wilderness First Responder (for over 25 years, but still doesn’t use it much).  His favorite hobbies include visiting new bouldering gyms and breweries, first descent expeditions, and powerlifting competitions.

Zach Herwehe

AIARE Instructor / Senior Ski Guide

Zach was fortunate enough to grow up in beautiful Breckenridge Colorado. While he spent some time in other places he had always gravitated back to Summit Country. Skiing has always been a major part of his life and over the past ten years the back country has captured my interest. Zach holds his AIARE Instructor, AAA Pro 1 and a AMGA Ski Guide Course completion. When he is not out skiing Zach works full-time as a Firefighter in Fort Collins.

Sam Streletsky

Lead Mountain Bike Guide / Instructor

Sam is a BICP Level 2 MTB coach who lives in Silverthorne, now in her third summer of guiding with CAG. She grew up in the Boston area before moving to Vermont, where she was a teacher and volunteer firefighter/EMT.

Sam runs a Bike Match Program for the Cycle Effect, fixing donation bikes and matching them with members of the community. She also oversees the Team Summit Ski Racing Development team in the winter. Sam loves teaching clinics, getting more people on bikes, and enjoys racing in the Summit Mountain Challenge series.

Nicholas Bollen

AIARE Instructor