Cycling
Get the wheels turning and join the Cycling Section at Gordon’s.
- We ride our MTB’s (mountain bikes) on Saturday mornings, weather permitting, throughout the winter, mainly in Lightwater Country Park, the trails around Deepcut and Swinley Forest.
- We also train indoors in our cycling studio on Zwift on the Kickr smart trainers on Tuesdays and Thursdays during P7.
- We have a number of school road bikes and MTBs.
- When the days get longer and the weather improves, we also head outside for P7’s on Tuesdays and Thursdays either on the road or on the MTBs.
- We have set up an affiliate school membership to Palmer Park Velo Cycle Club in Reading. The club meets on Saturday mornings and some of those signed up for Saturdays will be heading to the velodrome for coaching and trying out fixed wheel. The school pays the club membership and those that join receive their first year's membership of British Cycling free.
- The plan is to organise race meetings at the velodrome, and MTB race meetings locally, with other schools with cycling sections.
- We will continue to develop the skills and handling ability, and confidence, with further visits to Swinley, Highlands Farm, Tunnel Hill and Porridgepot.
- The aim is to deliver to the students a range of cycling discipline experiences in a structured and fun manner.
- Obviously cycling has its element of risk, as do all sports and we have been delivering coaching advice and road awareness advice whilst out on the road sections.
- We have covered pre-riding checks of bikes, clothes and equipment and preparation, to minimise the risks and improve performance.
- We have covered necessary elements of the bike check, the importance of clean bikes, the highway code, riding in a group and riding etiquette.
Below are some links to a number of Global Cycling Network (GCN ) videos on YouTube that are worth watching if you haven’t already. They reinforce the information and the advice that we have been trying to share.
Pre ride bike check
Setting saddle height and position
Bike clean
Riding in a group
Group riding etiquette
Road positioning
There are many other interesting and informative cycling videos by GCN to watch on YouTube.
And finally, the Gordon’s School Cycle Tour is back in 2023!
This year we are staying in the UK and heading off on our MTB’s for the hills, trails and beaches of Studland and we will be staying at Brenscombe Outdoor Centre.
https://www.brenscombeoutdoor.co.uk/our-activities-and-playground
Four days of cycling with a couple of activities thrown in. The Centre will be organising a team building exercise for us, and we will be stopping off on one ride to zip wire from the end of Bournemouth Pier to the beach.
https://rockreef.co.uk/pierzip/
Watch this space for information on the 2024 tour.
Let’s ride.