16 Jan 2024
Saturday morning youth sport doesn’t just involve kicking balls around a pitch!
St Albans Cycle Hub hosts Verulam Cycle Club’s youth training sessions every Saturday morning. Professionally qualified instructors Davinder and Rachael train youth members in the bike skills involved in cyclocross, an off-road circuit racing event involving riding on grass, mud and gravel over courses which include tight turns, steep sections and obstacles like as steps and hurdles.
Cyclo-cross bicycles roughly resemble the racing bicycles used in road racing. The major differences between the two are the frame geometry, and the wider clearances that cyclo-cross bikes have for their larger tires and mud and other debris that they accumulate. Competitions use cyclocross bikes, but club youth training and fun races like the Muddy Monsters series allow mountain bikes to widen the appeal.
This week’s session taught lift and carry techniques used when the ground is so muddy or steep that carrying a bike is quicker than riding. Training was structured, building up from basic techniques of dismounting and mounting the bike to more advanced cornering techniques and handling steep banking. Each part finished with a race, with a grand finale race covering all the techniques learned across the two hour session.
Parents can watch from the sidelines, keeping warm with a coffee from the hub’s café or can leave their children in the capable hands of the instructors while they go and do something else off-site for a couple of hours.
Afterwards, the café is open for hot drinks and food with cyclocross videos playing to learn more skills – and marvel at the sheer amount of mud and difficult courses the professionals ride over.
Children need to be members of Verulam Cycle Club to take part – a bargain at £5 annually.
Verulam Cycle Club members receive a 10% discount on parts at the Cycle Hub bike shop.
See more about Verulam Cycle Club at their website https://www.verulamcc.org.uk/ and see what’s on offer at the St Albans Cycle Hub https://www.stalbanscyclehub.co.uk/.
