Having spent the last 15 winters on the ground in Kyrgyzstan, Ryan has a unique first-hand perspective on Central Asia and the potential for sustainable tourism development in the region. Ryan first encountered the Tien Shan Mountains in 1999, living with nomadic families in yurts near the China/Kyrgyzstan border as a student on a summer program with Where There Be Dragons. After graduating with a joint degree in Mandarin Chinese and Studio Art from Vermont’s Middlebury College in 2003, he went on to lead courses for Dragons in China and Tibet. He eventually joined the Dragons office staff as Executive Program Director (2006-09), during which time he traveled extensively, deepening his interest in the mountains and mountain cultures of Asia. Inspired to combine his passion for splitboarding with his passion for travel, Ryan designed and carried out two separate winter expeditions with friends—first to Tibet in the winter of 2006-07 and then to Kyrgyzstan in the winter of 2008-09. In Kyrgyzstan, Ryan found the perfect mixture of local enthusiasm for tourism development, native resources, and endless backcountry potential, thus inspiring him to found 40 Tribes in 2010. A native of Colorado, Ryan still calls his incredible home state home, and spends his off-seasons fly fishing, perfecting his high-elevation growing techniques in his front yard farm, and dreaming up new directions for 40 Tribes. Ryan is also a talented photographer and 40 Tribes’ Chief Operating Photographer—his work seen across the website and in the @40tribes feed. As a father of a 5.5 and 4-year-old, he's no longer offered the privilege of spending entire winters in Kyrgyzstan and tagging along on every expedition, but for 2024 he is 100% committed and STOKED for our Mystery Trip and will see if he can pull strings to spend at least a week at the yurts in Kyrgyzstan.