Long-Standing Instructors

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by IPMBA

Shortly after IPMBA’s official formation in 1992, founding members Allan Howard and Kirby Beck assembled a team of bike officers from around the country to create the first standardized training program for police cyclists. That program, which would become known as the IPMBA Police Cyclist (PC) Course, was launched at the 1993 Police on Bikes Conference in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

The authors of the program were designated as Police Cyclist Instructors (PCIs) and were assigned PCI numbers 1-10, following the method used by the League’s Effective Cycling program. Those pioneering instructors – Allan Howard, Kirby Beck, Stuart Bracken, Gary Gallinot, Gary McLaughlin, Joseph Martin, Gene Miller, Scott Virdun, Brad Welton, and Tom Woods – probably never imagined that 28 years later, IPMBA would have issued nearly 2,000 PCI numbers, 500 EMSCI numbers, and 50 SCI numbers.

Every so often a long-standing instructor, mindful of the fact that his or her instructor number is comparatively low, will enquire about how many other instructors have stood the test of time in a profession when instructor certifications tend to follow changes in rank, assignment, and area of responsibility. Here is the answer to that question.

As of last count (a count that constantly changes), out of 650 active PCIs, seven have numbers lower than 100; 34 have numbers between 100 and 499, and 54 have numbers between 500 and 999. EMSCI numbers did not arrive on the scene until 1996, when Jim Bowell and Ed Brown lobbied hard and successfully for an EMS-specific course. It is hardly a fair comparison as there are far fewer EMS bike teams than there are police ones, but out of 80 active EMSCIs, two have numbers lower than 100, and the remaining 78 naturally have numbers lower than 500. Finally, in the SCI category, added in 2004, all 22 active SCIs of course have numbers lower than 50.

While all of our instructors are worthy of recognition for their service and support, below are listed all those instructors whose numbers, though they all begin with zero, a convention that was adopted as the numbers exceeded double-digits, are lower than 100 in their instructor category (lower than 10 for security). Please note that some instructors are dual-certified and have more than one number, and the category used reflects their primary public safety category of police, EMS, or security.

Police Cyclist Instructors

Kirby J. Beck, #002T, Coon Rapids (MN) Police Department, retired
Gary McLaughlin, #005T, Sacramento (CA) Police Department, retired
Kathleen Vonk, #042T, Nevada Highway Patrol
Jeffrey Glaude, #047, Farmington (CT) Police Department
John Koelsch, #068, Lyon County (KS) Sheriff's Office
Chad McDaniel, #070T, Seminole County (FL) Sheriff’s Office
Daniel Ganzel, #097-B, Palm Beach County (FL) Sheriff's Office, retired

EMS Cyclist Instructors

Edward F. Brown, #002T, Orange County (FL) Fire & Rescue, retired
Thomas Harris, #030T-B, East Baton Rouge (FL) EMS

Security Cyclist Instructors

Kelly Goebel, #004 Las Vegas (NV) CVA Security Department
Bill Mack, #006, Pierce Transit (WA) Department of Public Safety
Brandon Brown, #008, Choctaw Tribal (OK) Security

Photo: Richmond 2011: IPMBA Instructor-Trainers David Hildebrand, Dwight Edwards, Mike Wear, Mitch Trujillo, Ed Brown, Kirby Beck. Courtesy Brian Talty.

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