Mississippi Cyclocross Festival: Week 2, 9/30 update and more

Parents/Supporters,

Hello. Many thanks to those who dropped off items for the, “Central Mississippi Unites for Puerto Rico”. I truly appreciate your support.

Also, what a great group we had today! Thank you to all parents, kids and ambassadors who were able to join us today for the 2nd session of our Mississippi Cyclocross Project. Our focus today was working on getting on and off the bike or red light/green light. This drill requires practice, so please remind the kiddos as it will be part of all remaining practices.

To accommodate our group size,staring next week we will set three stations. These stations will cover different skills with smaller groups. These groups will rotate every 10-15 minutes so that they can experience each station. The last part of the session we will go through all stations as a group. Our goal is to allow the kiddos to experience the station in a smaller setting and be observed by the ambassadors, which he/she will provide feedback/tips.

Finally, please make sure your kiddos get to ride their bike around the neighborhood or park at least 1-2 times this week as home work. Perhaps this can be a family event after school! Thank you for your support and see you next week.

Week 2 Session Re-cap: 

  • Warm Up for 10-15 minutes around the park or designated practice area.
  • Break: Hydration and discussion of drills. 5-10 minutes:
  • Drills: 20-25 minutes
    • Cone Cornering: Tight cornering requires that you lean the bike over a bit. To help the kids practice, have him/her weave through a line of four or five safety cones or similar objects, each spaced about 8 feet apart. As his/her skill improves, encourage her to go faster, or move the cones out of a straight line so that they are staggered, and she has to turn more to get around each cone.
    • Getting on and off the bike or red light/green light. This skill breaks down getting on and off the bike from both; from the left and right side. We started walking (red light) and we gradually moved into a faster trot/jog.
    • Follow the Leader: This is a fun, easy way to get things going following our peers and ride the entire park. The idea here is not speed but dexterity. Impose a maximum speed limit and focus on supporting each teammate via a long train line.

Important Notes:

  • Pre-Order the Mississippi Cyclocross Project cycling kits (gear):
    • We have designed a cool jersey for our program in partnership with RideBike Alliance. This is not required, however if you wish to purchase them, please visit the club store via our partner RideBiker Alliance, where you can register and shop our on-line store. Please allow 3-5 weeks for the gear to be produced and shipped to you.
    • Program T-shirts: We will be ordering t-shirts for participants.  The cost for the shirts for the kiddos is ~$6.25-$7.00.  Our goal is to find a sponsor(s) which could partially subsidize the kids shirts and in return we will highlight on the back of the shirt with, “T-shirt provided by…”. Please let me know if you know of a local company who might be willing to can help us with this fund raising campaign. Our goal is to have a pre-order form by the week of October 9th. Adults will also have a chance to get a t-shirt!
  • Ridgeland Cyclocross festival, Program Celebration/Graduation:  We will celebrate the culmination of our program with a Cyclocross race. This will be an opportunity for the participants to showcase the newly learned skills. The celebration, Ridgeland Cyclocross Festival, will take place on Saturday, November 18th, at Freedom Ridge Park. You can register your kiddos and if you would like, you can also participate as we will have adult categories.  The registration and event details are available at www.RidgelandCyclocrossFestival.com. If you are interested in being part of our Ridgeland Cyclocross Festival planning committee, please reach Coach Rolando at rolando@mscxproject.org.
  • Bike Shop Partner Discounts. Present the program coupon at any of our partner bike shops; The Bike Crossing, Indian Cycle, Bicycle Revolution and The Bike Rack. Your kiddos will receive 10% off your purchase, and an additional 10% will be donated to the Mississippi Cyclocross Project! Please shop locally and support our brick & mortar shops! Access coupon at http://mscxproject.org/partner-benefits/.
  • Our Hydration Sponsor. Nuun will provide us product that will be available at all training sessions and a discount code for parent to purchase their product at a special Mississippi Cyclocross Project rate. Discount code details below:

Healthy Regards,

Mississippi Cyclocross Project Ambassadors
www.mscxproject.org

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