Over the weekend of the 17/18^th December five Officer Cadets and the 1^st Lt at Typhoon Sqn set out to complete their Trail Cycle Leader Assessment. The weather for the weekend was bleak with freezing cold temperatures and some heavy rain however we started our Saturday morning inside with a hot brew. Once everyone had warmed up we have a quick introduction with the leader and two other men on the course who were gaining the qualification for jobs adventure training centres. The course was split into three sections the first being classroom based where we looked at the set up of a bike, teaching techniques, bike safety check and also some basic navigation. The afternoon was then spend going through some typical warm ups you could do with a group before a ride. These warm ups included aspects of using the bikes gear and brakes which is essential as many new riders may not know how to operate the gears correctly and once on the trail it is important to change gears correctly in order to ensure the ride flows. We then went through some skills such as the track stand, bunny hop and front wheel lift, all skills needed on trails in order to get over obstacles.

Sunday was another cold morning which made everyone reluctant to get changed and onto the bikes. However once we started riding the mood changed as we began to attempt a number of technically challenging routes. Along the route the leader stopped us and explained the format of the assessment which will be carried out in the near future. The weekend was very informative and I believe everyone who attended left the weekend knowing more about leading groups of riders.