Eric Ross | Owner | Educator
Eric Ross is the founder and primary trainer at Sierra Mechanica. Eric is a Colorado native and grew up exploring the Rocky Mountains on foot, learning navigation and survival skills from back-country savvy family and friends, including a retired Army Ranger and experienced alpine climber. That evolved to sometimes-competitive mountain biking, and eventually in 4WD.
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For the last 35+ years Eric has explored 4WD trails in Colorado, New Mexico, Utah, and California, and for the last 15+ years has guided hundreds of trails. Eric was a POST certified law enforcement driving instructor for over a decade and has also received hundreds of hours of driving and recovery training from a variety of professional trainers.
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Eric is also a Master Tread Lightly! Trainer and one of the organizers, trail leaders, and trainers for the Rocky Mountain Toyota Roundup.
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For the past 8+ years Eric has been a volunteer and trainer with Colorado 4x4 Rescue & Recovery – an all-volunteer nonprofit organization that rescues and recovers people and vehicles on 4WD roads all over Colorado. Eric has spent thousands of hours leading and participating in 200+ vehicle recoveries and SAR missions – some simple, many complex – in both the mountains and on the plains of Colorado. He also served as President and Director of the Search & Rescue Emergency Support (SAR-ES) and Emergency Response Team (ERT).
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Eric brings diverse teaching experience from 10+ years in law enforcement as a Field Training Officer and POST certified firearms and driving instructor; 7+ years as an adjunct university professor teaching urban studies, planning, mapping, and computer cartography; and 8+ years as an off-highway driving and recovery trainer.
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Eric holds a BA in Geography – Urban Studies, minor in Criminal Justice, Masters in Urban and Regional Planning, and a GIS Certificate. In addition to Sierra Mechanica, Eric has a consulting company – Five Points Geoplanning LLC – providing professional geospatial and planning services to the nonprofit, commercial, and government sectors.
Training
Expertise
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Driving Skills
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Seating position & sight lines
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Steering & hand position
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Safe driving practices
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Trail Etiquette
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Spotting techniques and communication
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Vehicle dynamics & mechanical sympathy
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Traversing terrain & obstacles
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4WD vehicle capabilities
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Recovery Skills
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Gear evaluation, selection, and maintenance
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Scene safety, vehicle stabilization, stuck assessment
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Winch best practices and rigging techniques
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Hi Lift best practices and techniques
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Load calculations and mechanical advantage
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Back Country Preparedness
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Trip planning
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Navigation, maps, mapping technology
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Communication and devices
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Environmental hazards
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Survival gear
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Land Navigation
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Map Basics & Map Elements
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Topographic Map Symbology & Interpretation
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Compass Elements
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Coordinates and Calculations
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Route Planning
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Field Navigation
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Digital Maps and Tools
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2020, 2022
80+ hours of I4WDTA training
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2021
Tread Lightly! Master Tread Trainer
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2020
8+ hour of Enhanced Recovery Skills w/
Chris Cole, I4WDTA Founder and Master Trainer
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2018, 2019, 2020
60+ hours of Basic & Advanced Recovery Skills w/
Matt Balazs, I4WDTA Master Trainer
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2008
3-day Dirty Toy School w/
Bill Burke, I4WDTA Founder and Master Trainer
Chris Nelson, I4WDTA Master Trainer​
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2000
Bridgestone Winter Driving School
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1999
POST Certified Law Enforcement Driving Instructor
Education
2012​
Master of Urban and Regional Planning (MURP)
University of Colorado Denver
2010
GIS Certificate
University of Colorado Denver
2010
​Bachelor of Arts - Geography (Urban Studies)
University of Colorado Denver
MORE ABOUT ME
I have the privilege of a varied past. My first career began in high school working in restaurants and over a decade I worked my way from scraping floors in a bakery to running a million-dollar business with 50 employees.
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My second career moved me to the Central Rockies and the Aspen Police Department where I started as a patrol officer, became a certified law enforcement driving instructor and firearms instructor, was a field training officer, and spent the last of ten years as a criminal investigator.
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My third and academic career started at age 38 when I returned study at the University of Colorado at Denver and over the course of 5 years acquired a bachelors degree in geography, and masters in urban and regional planning, and a GIS certificate. I also started my next and current career there as a professional research assistant implementing GIS across multiple disciplines – geography, urban studies, planning, public health, among others. I spent a year at the Denver Regional Council of Governments as a planner and GIS analyst before being called back to UCD to teach GIS, cartography, mapping, and urban studies.
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In 2015 started my first consulting company Five Points Geoplanning and continue to provide mapping, GIS, planning, and policy services.
I've been exploring the back country since I was a kid and my parents regularly took me backpacking, camping, and climbing in the Central Rockies. For the last 40 years I've been tramping, cycling, and driving in Colorado, Utah, New Mexico, and all over the US and overseas. One of my parents was a retired Army Ranger and passed along a variety of skills and perspectives that I have carried and adapted throughout my diverse careers. I bought my first 4WD vehicle in 1992 - a 1987 Toyota 4Runner - and was really excited when I made the jump to huge 31x10.50s!! Ever since I've had the buy and build bug and did so with a series of 4Runners, an FJ Cruiser, and the latest is a 100-series Land Cruiser.
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It was the FJ Cruiser that really brought out my desire to learn off-highway driving and recovery skills and for the 15 years I owned it I learned how to DIY modifications and received my first off-highway training from the legend Bill Burke and Chris Nelson in Grand Junction, CO. Active in several clubs I became a regular trail leader and organized off-road events and have had the privilege of riding hundreds of trails and pushing the limits of both my skills and my vehicle's capabilities. During that time I recognized how many people would benefit from the skills I had acquired and began mentoring folks.
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In 2017 I was introduced to Colorado 4x4 Rescue & Recovery and became an active part-time search and rescue volunteer, have participated in 200+ recoveries, helped develop training and an emergency response team, and served a term as President. I am now an off-highway driving, recovery, and preparedness trainer.
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I am also a part-time house husband for a very tolerant and supportive wife who works as a Public Interest Attorney.