Missoula, MT (October 3, 2019) — Following an extensive national search, Adventure Cycling Association has named Scott Pankratz as its new Executive Director. Pankratz takes the reins of the country’s largest cycling membership organization from Jim Sayer, who served as Executive Director since 2005.
“My passion and enthusiasm as the incoming Executive Director at Adventure Cycling come directly from transformative moments in the saddle from Alaska to Mexico,” Pankratz said. “I look forward to expanding our community to give everyone with a bike the confidence, community, and gratitude that is at the heart of the Adventure Cycling experience.”
Pankratz comes to Adventure Cycling from Ecology Project International (EPI), a nonprofit ecology education organization he founded with his wife, Julie Osborn, in 2001. EPI is also based in Missoula with more than 100 staff across five countries, a $5M annual budget, and unique partnerships such as being the only nonprofit partner with Galapagos National Park Service in Ecuador.
“Scott is the right person to lead Adventure Cycling because he brings a solid history of founding and growing a nonprofit combined with a long-term passion for bike travel,” said Adventure Cycling Board President Joyce Casey. “The Board is excited to work with Scott to continue to grow and connect the bicycle travel community.”
Pankratz’s association with Adventure Cycling goes back to when the organization was still called Bikecentennial. In 1991, he stepped off a plane in San Francisco with a bike and a Bikecentennial map to lead him down the Pacific Coast. He’s also embarked on bike trips through Mexico and from Alaska to Montana.
In addition to EPI, Pankratz has served as a nonprofit leader in Western Montana, a guest lecturer at the University of Montana, and a leader in the preservation of the historic Swift building that houses EPI along the Clark Fork River.
“With this change in leadership, the Board wants to acknowledge the strong work by outgoing Executive Director Jim Sayer,” Casey said. “Jim has left us in solid shape so our new leader has a strong base to build on.”
Pankratz will join the Adventure Cycling staff full time on January 6, 2020.
