BOBbies Mentoring Program

Take a new cyclist under your wing.

This year's BOBbies In Training (BIT) program was a big success, thanks to the many dedicated and generous BOBbies who gave their Sunday afternoons to work with new riders. As a result, we expect to see many enthusiastic new BOBbies on our rides. While the BIT program provides a good introduction to the sport, it requires a lot of planning and commitment. It will remain an annual winter/spring training program for now. But we’d like to implement a new system that will be more flexible for volunteers and new riders.

Here's how it works:

An experienced rider will pair up with a new rider whose needs, schedule and skill level match her teaching abilities and schedule.

For example:

an experienced rider can exchange emails and be a contact for equipment, riding or nutrition questions from a new rider;

a BOBbie who is training on hills might mentor a new rider who wants to improve climbing skills;

a strong solo rider might pair up with an experienced rider who will help her develop paceline skills in fast group rides;

an experienced BOBbie might mentor a newbie and offer her a steady wheel to draft, show her the hand signals, escort her to a group ride and fall back with her if she gets dropped.

It's up to you how you choose to mentor a new rider.

We receive daily requests from new riders looking for beginner programs. If you are interested in mentoring another rider, please contact Mary Shanklin.