Green Arrow Go-Ride Games proved to be an exciting introduction to cycling for a group of hardy young riders at The Sele School, Hertford on the 15th August 2012.
Starting with some basic checks on bikes, clothing and helmets the evening then progressed to some riding exercises to assess the current skills of the participants before they headed off into the deep, dark woods (a small copse) on the mountain bike trail.
Expert rider-led groups spent some time familiarising themselves with the course and developing the skills to take it on at speed before a fun handicap race set off based on school year. Jaimie Rowe came through to finish first followed by Bradley Clark, Joseph Greaves and Kitty Murphy.
Following the mountain biking and after a well earned rest for some light refreshments, which were kindly provided by Peter Lisher, riders tried out track skills. After testing out the track and practising cornering skills the riders then progressed to the Olympic discipline of Team Sprint, with five teams each comprising of two youth riders, an expert rider and an experienced member of Green Arrow to assist.
Team One comprised Laurence Lisher, Charlotte Fletcher-Mason and Oscar Webster and finished with a time of 1.02.50, Team Two; Richard Webster, Kitty Murphy and Marissa Fletcher-Mason completed in 1.01.22, while Team Three Simon Layfield, Callum Akers and Thomas Chambers did 52.57. Taking a mere 46.31 to complete were David Clifford, Jaimie Rowe and Shannon Drummey but fastest team on the night were Bradley Clark, Joseph Greaves and Ryan Drummey in a time of 45.75.
Needless to say the strong winds made the going particularly tough for the younger riders but did provide a good incentive to learn the skill of sitting on a wheel in double quick time. Riders had an enjoyable evening and were appreciative of the tee-shirts, wrist bands, bottles and certificates provided by British Cycling. Several of the riders have since attended our standard Go-Ride sessions and we hope that this will allow them to further develop their cycling skills.
Thanks are due to Peter Lisher for the refreshments, Suzanne and Phoebe Lisher for signing-on and preparing the certificates, David Clifford, Simon Layfield and Richard Webster who acted as expert riders and Tom Gosbee who acted as rider’s marshal. Thanks also go to Mark Wyer, BC Eastern Go-Ride Coach, who brought along several bikes, helped with preparation and track design and acted as a marshal in the MTB section of the evening.
For more information on all available Go-Ride activities, please visit the Go-Ride homepage.
