Coaching and Manager Working Group Meets

Despite the current ‘cost of living challenges’ facing all community events, Bike Manawatu is 100% committed to ensuring the 51st year of the Novice Tour – once again provides a safe, fun, competitive cycle racing event.

We will adopt a high-quality assured approach in implementing the Local Roading Authority’s/Cycling New Zealand’s ‘Safe Traffic Management System’ (STMS) standards which ensure best practices and rider and spectator safety.

If the level of community funding secured is not sufficient to contract in external road management service providers with the ability to stop/go traffic, the Novice Tour will proceed on a ‘local club racing’ model, whereby our team of trained/experienced road marshals will, where necessary, pause racing in order to give way to traffic and ensure rider safety.

Although funding external road management services with the ability to stop/go traffic is ideal, if this is not feasible – we are confident that the event’s ‘Safe Traffic Management System’ (STMS) will provide a competitive, fair, enjoyable and importantly safe racing environment.

Irrespective of which model of traffic management/racing is finalised, as with all CNZ/Bike Manawatu events, normal road rules will apply and a full rider briefing confirming the event rules will be provided to all riders prior to the start of each race.

The pathway to developing some coaching capacity gathered momentum when the Coaching Working Group met for a second time to discuss its organisational structure and terms of reference on 12 August.

However, it was quickly realised that the working group needed to expand beyond its original mandate of focusing solely on developing coaching to include managers as well. According to Steve Stannard, it was important to include a team manager capability because nowhere else in Bike Manawatu was this issue being addressed. “Managers go hand in glove with coaching so it made a lot of sense to incorporate them”, he said.

There is certainly lots of enthusiasm out there from a number of members who have expressed a desire to coach. The difficulty Bike Manawatu will experience in attempting to increase its capacity, will be providing the technical training to provide aspiring coaches and managers with the skills they need. Bike NZ courses are oversubscribed and their frequency of course delivery is too slow to meet Bike Manawatu’s immediate needs.

While the working group comes to grip with the situation, it would appear the most pragmatic way forward is to organise and deliver some in house training to aspiring coaches suggests Mike McRedmond. “The working group feels there is sufficient technical expertise amongst the members for Bike Manawatu to at least make an initial positive start to maintain the enthusiasm of those who wish to coach but importantly to get runs on the board”, said Oiroa Kaihau.

At the same time there is a plan to develop some indicative training programmes for those who might wish to ride the 160km recreational events that are offered in the future. This information, along with other resources can be posted to the Bike Manawatu web once the information has been developed sufficiently.

Lastly, the working group also saw the need to canvas the membership for feedback (through an online survey) in response to their needs and desires. The working group expects the feedback will help shape the way forward.