The Kalmyk
Well-Known Member
I haven’t looked into it but it would be nice if youtube had an algorithm option like Instagram offers.
Bike industry failing?
- Thread starter rick81721
- Start date
I haven’t looked into it but it would be nice if youtube had an algorithm option like Instagram offers.
Steve Vai
Endurance Guy: Tolerates most of us.
This was pretty apparent coaching in Highland Park where the most expensive team bike was a Chisel HT, and selling bikes in Madison/Summit where the lowest end team bike is an Epic Pro. There is one kid racing a Chisel FS which I think is the perfect NICA bike at $2,500 before the NICA Deal. Saying that, bike racing is a small investment compared to other school activities. We paid more for my kid's Violin to play in Orchestra than his MTB. And my younger son just raced my old bike because we knew he wasn't interested. Anywho, neither of them ride anymore because college girls are more fun
one piece crank
1pc Cranky
Do you think this has changed (from 1980’s-1990’s)? I know this forum is a skewed cross-section…
John the Plumber
Well-Known Member
ESPN already has the Video Game League.
one piece crank
1pc Cranky
And YT is full of videos to watch, of other people playing video games.
The Kalmyk
Well-Known Member
They have college scholarships for video games as well. High schools are using state and federal money to set up rooms for esports. 🤦🏼
Steve Vai
Endurance Guy: Tolerates most of us.
It sort of hits the same I feel. I know lots of dudes that talk about riding/racing BMX as kids and are now looking to get back into bikes. Say up to 18/19 and then coming back in their 40s/50s?
The Kalmyk
Well-Known Member
rjr44
Well-Known Member
It's definitely all relative. When my son joined NICA (already having a bike) and folks seemed to be tiptoeing around the team and league dues, I laughed. Compared to hockey equipment and travel team annual dues this was a freakin' massive bargain.
That said, there are also WAY cheaper activities to get involved in.
Yes, this is an expensive sport and the bike is a barrier of entry. Thanks to sponsors and donors, we have nearly 70 bikes loaned out this year, with average retail price north of $1k. Our standard is hydro disc, air fork and 1x.
The perception of needing an expensive ride to participate is an industry issue, but I feel we are making strides in breaking down barriers.
NICA has quickly become the center of my daughter's universe. Her closest friends are from her team and not from her school. She is looking forward to her second season and she has personally been working to recruit new riders who might not otherwise come to the sport w/o her support.
It's a blast to watch and of course I am a proud dad.
It's a blast to watch and of course I am a proud dad.
The Kalmyk
Well-Known Member
Thats great to hear Ken and a solid effort. Hoping it grows because i understand it’s expensive. Nica cant be responsible for personal perception but it also cant control it either which is why its a great opportunity for some parents to teach their kids perspective.
Right on. Coaches play a big part in this too; youth development though cycling. It's a huge part of why I do it.
It was mentioned earlier in the thread that we'll need 20 years to crunch numbers/define impact, and I agree. Maybe more. We're still in NICA's infancy. One fairly undeniable fact though is that NICA is a growth segment in cycling. Swing by a local series race and peep the size of the juniors classes.
There aren't many other growth segments in the industry these days. Ebikes, and what else?
Maybe I see this topic through rose colored glasses, but if more kids are riding bikes, more adults will certainly ride. NICA kids are getting their parents on (or back on) bikes too! There will also come a day when an advocate strikes up a conversation with a land manager, and they will both know mtb from their school days and NICA. This is a foundational reason I am involved.
JPark
Well-Known Member
your list basically sums up my life... except I never really got that fat.
But the sports I do now are what I did in my teens and there is that gap from age 20-30.
I was just having this conversation with @The Kalmyk , you have that control over your kids through middle school to try a bunch a different things and at least one of your kids is likely put into things that you enjoy, partially because they want to be like mom or dad.
And then you get to 9th grade and they still do it but maybe start to be iffy on it and then 10th grade it explodes.
I experienced this with my son and have seen other parents I know from riding have a similar experience.
After 5 years with NICA and 4 years as a head coach, I found that NICA is for middle schoolers or beginners. All of the basic stuff is great, the skills, the framework for teams, team building, the adventure stuff and the races.
For the kids that start as 6th graders (and now 5th), it is easy to keep them engaged for a few years since there is a huge amount of strength gained in middle school and there is still a lot of skill to be gained / expanded on / adding technical terrain etc. Also, you have coaches that are at a level where they can 1. keep up with 95% of the kids, 2. teach kids the skills. 3. The middle school racing is just all about riding fast and finishing, so anyone can do it.
But here is the gap:
1. Kids become faster than all but the few coaches that actually ride. On my team, I lead the fast group (SPICY🙄) and the other coaches used to draw straws on who would help with this group as they would always get dropped. It was me and 2 other coaches that could actually keep up with the 10 fast kids and maybe only me that could challenge them to hold my wheel. Typically the two coaches that could keep up are needed to lead other groups. So you end up having an issue with keeping the fast kids engaged. This is amplified by the fact that NICA provides zero means for any training guidance. Middle school is ride more makes you faster. Varsity? That stops working.
2. The majority of coaches aren't skilled enough on the bike to teach kids outside of the basics. On-trail training is a must and most coaches can't do it, let alone teach it.
3. The no jumping thing. Liability, yes, I get it, and I know jumping is more accepted and y'all have the jumping area that @Mountain Bike Mike founded, but it needs to be more normalized and encouraged to keep the older kids engaged.
4. Most NICA courses don't prepare kids for actual racing outside of NICA. The basics are the same but the courses are often dumbed down so much, racing outside of NICA can be a shock to the system. PA NICA has legit pushed the boundaries on this with some technical courses, its good to see. We had a coach that had a complete Karen moment at MASS bear creek race because the course was too hard and there weren't enough marshals.
In all honestly, if we get 1 out of 10 to be a life long cyclist, that is a win.
Ian F
Well-Known Member
I only have some light association with NICA. One of my friends' daughter did a lot of NICA races and has stuck with it into college. One of the reasons she chose her college (Vermont, I think) is because they have a well-established mtn bike racing program. I believe she also does XC running. Granted, it probably helps she has natural talent at both. When I first met her some 6 years or so ago, I could drop her on climbs. Now - forget it.
We do a big group ride every week. We've got some heavy hitters here as everyone on the rides basically moves here for the mountain biking.
When the NICA kids show up to the "A" ride half the "A" riders drop to the "B" ride so they don't die. It's a running joke how fast the NICA kids are.
The college MTB team is another level from there. It's pretty common to be on a long climb around here and have kid in a college team jersey fly past.
Steve Vai
Endurance Guy: Tolerates most of us.
My Oldest made the Jump from NICA to H2H as NICA got boring, or unchallenging, should we say? Still about the same timeline though, by Senior year he was onto different things. My younger son was bored almost immediately, had way more fun at practice than race day. Which I get. Race day is long AF to be sitting around in a grass field. Practice was 2 hours max a mile from the house. Looking back I wish I spent more time doing those shorter rides with him because he probably would’ve done it longer?
There are either race nica race teams or adventure teams, and they can both be successful, however, you do need to have both aspects on every team to engage the kids that care about racing and the kids that can really give a crap. After you done the different races, a couple years in a row, if you’re not on the podium, how long can you keep coming in 10th ? not to mention it ends up being an entire day or weekend to race for 40min to an hour and a half it’s tough to keep the stoke going for kids that don’t care about racing.