ADULT COACHING

BFCC remains committed to providing sport education and skill development for all our members. The Committee continues to invest and review our coach’s development in order to support the demands of our membership. The Club is rightly proud that we are recognised as an all-inclusive Club and welcome all riders of all abilities.

The Clubs overall Vision Statement is: To inspire and nurture all riders of all abilities and ages to participate in off-road cycling at Bedgebury Forest.

Our Mission Statement is: To be an inclusive MTB Club invested in supporting, encouraging and promoting social rides, grass-root racing, trail building and coaching for all.

These visions aim to make off-road cycling exciting and to encourage you to develop your newly learnt skills through regular riding. Our qualified and highly experienced coaches are committed to passing on the techniques that look so easy & yet can prove so difficult to execute. The dedicated coaching area continually evolves and provides a safe & friendly environment in which all riders can achieve new skills and confidence.

There will be various opportunities with BFCC throughout the year that will support riding improvements and skill development. Our aim is to achieve this through flexible offers from the informal social rides and outrides that are led by two coaches that can offer guidance and support during the ride. In addition, more dedicated group or 1:1 personal coaching can be booked with club coaches.

Adult Coaching (Aged 18 or above) – 1:1 or Group sessions

An addition to our social ride sessions would be to consider booking either a personal bespoke 1:1 coaching session or, if you have a group of friends, a private group session. These sessions run between 2-3 hours and are subject to availability of an appropriately qualified coach. Please email the Head Coach gscot1@btinternet.com to express an interest in booking a 1:1 or group coaching session. Coaching for trail skills at Bedgebury is also available from club coach Jeremy Brown. More information and bookings are available on Jeremy’s Rides website. Charges and contract for service delivery will be agreed between rider and the individual coach/es identified to meet your needs.

NEW Adult Coaching (Aged 18 or above) – informal sessions

As a new alternative option this year, we are opening our Advance Junior coaching sessions to Club adult members to join and participate in. These sessions are a mix of riding and coaching out on the Red Route trails, aimed to develop the skills and techniques. Although the sessions are Junior focused, rest assure our Advance Juniors ride at a high level of ability that can challenge any rider. Members can choose to dip in & out of these sessions, selecting the sessions you wish to develop. Please read the Advance Junior webpage for details, including the Advance Junior Schedule list to identify coaching session aims and dates.

Social rides, including Outrides and events

BFCC will continue to focus on developing the members Club rides & social events, where people can just turn-up and ride or support fellow members on a friendly relax ride on the red route or support the development of cycling at Bedgebury. These social rides and events, including some outrides (see details below), will run throughout the season. Please download the schedule of event dates here for more details. Social gatherings at Bedgebury meet at the new visitor’s centre/bike meeting point for 9.45am and a prompt 10am start. These rides and events will last approx. 2 hours, followed by an opportunity to join-in post-ride chats with friends, with coffee & cake at the Café.

The ride events will be led and accompanied by two BFCC coaches, who can offer friendly advice and first aid support, so every rider can participate, learn and enjoy. The pace is set by the group and allows for all abilities. This may, on occasions, mean dividing the group on the day into two groups – relaxed and not-so-relaxed! However, we all aim to gather at the café at the end.

Club Outrides

During the year, the Club will be offering opportunities to members to explore other riding locations by running a number of outrides to other MTB riding centres, forests and general local cross-country ventures. These will be Saturday mornings and open to all members, including our Advance Juniors. Riders will need to be competent MTB riders, self-sufficient and have a reasonable level of fitness, as these rides will be between 3 – 4 hours, including lunch stops. Two BFCC coaches with qualified first aid support will always be on hand, with friendly advice that supports your confidence in exploring new cycling locations and challenges.