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It is an exciting time to be a cycling supporter in any capacity – as a rider, spectator, coach, or promoter. In Virginia, there are two big things that we have to look forward to. The first is that Virginia will host the best professional road riders in the world when the World Championships are held in Richmond in September 2015. The second is that Virginia is in the midst of developing a new junior interscholastic cycling program.
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This new interscholastic cycling series will debut this fall under the NICA (National Interscholastic Cycling Association) banner and will include four races. For the last few years, the Virginia High school Mountain Bike Series has been a growing success, but our partnership with NICA brings interscholastic cycling to a whole new level. Each of these NICA races is a major production including everything from pits and banners to podiums and leaders jersey. Each NICA race has the look and feel of a World Cup MTB event, and the aim is for kids to have a good time before, during, and after each race. Imagine the feeling and excitement of homecoming at a high school cycling event. That “Friday Night Lights” feeling is finally arriving in Virginia for middle school and high school mountain bikers!
Mountain biking is a great sport. It is a sport where no one sits on the bench, gets cut, or gets put in with two minutes left. It is a sport that requires effort and grit from the start of the race all the way to the finish. Within a single race, there are many small victories, from clearing a particularly challenging obstacle to making it up a technical climb.
In addition, mountain biking is a great lifetime hobby that continually challenges and inspires. We have found that, on average, each junior interscholastic participant buys two bikes during his or her high school career, and at least one family member usually joins the fun as well. In other words, youth cycling leagues are a real win-win for both the cycling industry and for local bike shops. Many of these children become life-long cyclist, and therefore life-long, healthy customers.
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I am contacting you because we are in the early stages of developing our Virginia NICA league. We really need help getting the word out so please post a link on your web site/social media, forward it to your local cycling clubs and schools. You can also become a member of the founder’s society with a donation for as little as $25 we will list your business/org on our website see our website for details our goal is $15,000 before our first race in September. These funds will make the league sustainable for the long haul. Keep in mind that we are a 501(c) (3) entity and every donation is tax-deductible.
Please consider donating and joining us in the venture to introduce cycling to an entire new generation of youth, creating live long active cyclist and citizens,
NICA’s 5 Core Principles (Equality, Inclusivity, Strong Body, Strong Mind, Strong Character)
Peter Hufnagel, League Director — peter@virginiamtb.org
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