Off-road Leader Award (Fundamentals)
This British Cycling Off-road Leader Award is ideal for anyone who wants to lead groups using mixed road and off-road environments.
The course combines online learning (2 to 3 hours) with face-to-face (16 hours) training and assessment to give you all the skills you need to lead off-road rides. Though you might already be a regular on group or club rides off-road (and therefore wondering where this award fits in), there are a few important elements to the qualification that will both empower and protect you for future activity:
- Learn leadership principles and skills from the most experienced off-road tutors in the country.
- Get the most out of your route planning with a dedicated module.
- Keep rolling with the knowledge to fix simple trailside repairs.
- Be prepared with plans to manage accidents and emergencies – plus you’ll undergo first aid training in order to qualify.
- Get protected with leader insurance.
Your remit would be to lead on terrain that ranges from the urban fringe and gravel tracks through to open countryside, woodland and most trail centre blue routes.
SOLD is the only provider in the Southeast of England. This course location is ideal for anyone living in London and the surrounding areas, including Surrey, East Sussex, West Sussex, Kent, Hampshire, Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Herefordshire and Isle of Wight. Perched on the beautiful Surrey Hills, High Ashurst offers the ideal learning and riding environment.
What you will need to register and achieve the award
You will need to:
- be a minimum age 17 years old. Note, you will only be able to lead independently once aged 18.
- be able to ride a mountain bike (or another appropriate bike for the terrain) comfortably on roads with some traffic, off-road and mountain bike trails up to blue grade, be regularly riding and have an appropriate level of fitness.
- complete a logbook to evidence your recent rides. We recommend a minimum of ten rides of at least 1 hour and five roads of at least 2.5 hours duration over the last 6 months. The Mountain Bike leadership logbook provided by British Cycling can be used.
- attend and evidence a two-day outdoor first aid course
- Undergo and evidence safeguard training appropriate to the country you are leading in. This can occur after your Off-Road Leader Award Course.
In order to benefit from British Cycling's Insurance for Coaches, Leaders and Instructors, in addition to the above you are required to be a current British Cycling Member.