Practices

Tuesday and Thursdays from 6:00-8:00 pm (Blankets Creek Trails off Sixes Road in Woodstock or Taylor Randahl Memorial Park Rope Mill Trails in Woodstock)

Sundays from 2:30pm-5:00 pm (Same as above locations)

(Directions will be provided on TeamSnap once you join and plans are finalized)

Cost

$125 annual team fee (Will include a Team practice shirt and jersey)
$175 NICA fee, paid online
$150 race fee for High School students ($125 for Middle School)

Students who are not sure if they will race or do not want to race may pay only the Team and League Registration fees. If those riders choose to race, they may pay the Race Series Fee up until the September 13th deadline.

Registration: Opens April 1st, 2019. Online registration will be available after you receive your registration invite sent to you once you request to join the team.

Overview: Fun youth development program geared toward learning how to ride and race cross country mountain bikes. Riders will learn basic to advanced skills of braking, shifting, body position, cornering, ascending, descending, and obstacles. Riders will learn these skills through various on-bike skill courses. They will also learn about trail maintenance, bike maintenance, proper nutrition, and strength training. We also incorporate character development into practices.

Coaching: We encourage parents to help as coaches, ride leaders or sweepers (on trail rides). The teams have a maintained ratio of 1 coach to 6 riders, so the kids are well supervised, yet feel the freedom of getting out and riding on the trails. Contact us if you are interested, no experience is needed, just a willingness to learn and have fun riding with kids. The League does require that coaches have a one-time background check ($22), a $25.00 coach fee and watch training videos on concussion and risk management.

Required Equipment

Cross country mountain bike – Minimum wheel size = 26 inch. No bar ends or kick stand. The bike should have at least 10 gears, shift well, and have good brakes. We would caution you to stay away from department store bikes (ie: Target/Walmart) as they are very heavy and tend to break easily causing stress on the rider and coaches.
Helmet - make sure it fits and is not too big or small. We will show the riders how to adjust their helmets for proper fit.
Good Shoes - please no sandals or open toe shoes. Clip in pedals are not required.
Water Bottle or camelback, 1 tube and 1 hand held pump/CO2
Team Jersey for races- parents need to order this through the team store. We will let you know when it’s time to order.

Recommended Equipment

Safety Glasses – clear or yellow lens are best, sunglasses are ok - however they can make it harder to see in the woods
Bike Gloves - highly recommended for kids who get sweaty hands when exercising
Bike shorts – padded shorts highly recommended, tights not required, mountain bike specific shorts with built in padded liner are good. Basketball shorts not recommended as they are too baggy get caught on the seat.

Team structure

Race team - Anyone can be on a race team that is in 6th - 12th grade. See race schedule for the dates of the races. We will attend 5 race weekends and riders will accrue points for themselves as well as for the team. Top 5 in each category will receive medals at the races and the top 3 teams. All new riders will be assessed by the coaches to determine their eligibility for racing.
Recreational - Any rider that does not want to race can still ride and train with the team.

Races