Are you interested in forming a Georgia Cycling team in your community? Most mountain bike teams start small and grow quickly. It is a tremendous challenge but highly rewarding. Anyone can start a team - parents, teachers, or cycling enthusiasts. No experience is necessary, we provide the training and education needed. Plus, we have a top-notch team of Coach Supporters who provide continuous guidance.
WHAT ARE THE DIFFERENT TYPES OF TEAMS?
We have two different types of cycling teams: school-based and composite. A school-based team is a group of riders within the same high school and middle school students who feed into that high school. Meanwhile, a composite team covers a specific geographic area with members from multiple schools. A composite team is considered an initial step to growing into a larger school-based team.
Teams are broken into Division 1 and Division 2 categories based on the type of team, not the size of the team. Division 1 is for the school-based teams and Division 2 is for the composite teams. While there is no limit to the size for school-based teams, composite teams may have no more than 11 high school racers before splitting into smaller teams.
who can start a team?
Administrators, teachers, parents, students, and/or community members can start a youth cycling team. It is not necessary that the person who initiates a school-based team be a school “insider” (teacher or administrator), although that can be very useful. A teacher, administrator or school volunteer within the school possesses certain advantages, such as knowledge of the school community, bureaucratic systems and channels, and how to access potential cyclists.
Extensive cycling experience is not necessary. One should simply have the desire to introduce kids to the sport of mountain biking. Once you have decided to create a team, the Georgia Cycling staff will educate you and provide you with all the tools necessary to be an excellent coach.
what is my first step in starting a Georgia cycling team?
Your first step is to contact Georgia Cycling Programs Director Lisa Hayes. Email Lisa and express your desire to develop a cycling team in your area.
The next step would be to register the team with Georgia Cycling so the team is covered by our insurance. GCA teams are limited in the number of weeks of pre-season practice. Teams are not insured to practice outside of these limits:
Teams can commence limited pre-season activities on April 1st. Between April 1 and June 30, Georgia Cycling teams are allowed to host the following:
Three (3) pre-approved informational meetings. These meetings are designed to provide parents and students with information about the local team. No activities are permitted during these information-only events.
Six (6) pre-approved pre-season activities. Allowable pre-season activities are bike checks, fun rides, mechanical workshops, or skills clinics.
Regular training practice (3-4 times a week) can commence on July 1st. Teams must be fully registered by July 1st in order to participate in the season.
All team rides or other training activities must end within two weeks of the final race of the season.
are there any requirements to coach a team?
As stated earlier, the only pre-qualification you need is to have a desire to share the joy of cycling with students. After that, you will need to become a licensed coach. You can view all of the coaching licensing requirements here.