As some of you know, I have been working as a Bikeability Instructor, Sky Ride Leader and Off Endorsement Leader during the last 3 years for several companies around Greater Manchester. I am not considered myself the perfect instructor and possibly, I have some mistakes while I am delivering my cycling training sessions. However, and from my point of view, during this time I have seen some big errors or mistakes made by some of my colleagues or even me. Therefore, I would like to use this post to show you all the mistakes that I have been witness, since also from the errors you can learn.
A) Common mistakes before the session:
- Instructors do not check all the consent forms the first day of the course.
- Instructors do not check the medical information in the consent form the first day of the course.
- Cycle trainers do not make the register every single day during the course.
- Instructors do not carry out a dynamic risk assessment of the playground and the road training location every day.
- Cycle trainer do not choose a proper training location (i.e. too much traffic, extremely quiet, near work road, downhill or uphill).
- Instructors take more trainees than the allowed ratio (i.e. 1/6 or 1/8 depending on the company).
B) Common mistakes occurred during Level 1 sessions:
- Cycle trainers do not follow the National Standard for Cycling Training in the correct order of progression during the session.
- Trainees do not wear helmet during the session.
- Instructors do not bring bike.
- Cycle trainers do not wear helmet while doing the demonstrations.
- Instructors do not explain the gears.
C) Level 2 errors observed:
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| Instructor leading a ride without helmet. |
- Due to not checking the consent forms, trainees without the consent form are taken out the school to perform the course.
- Cycle trainers and trainees do not perform the M-check (bike check) before starting the session.
- Either the instructors or the trainees do not wear high visibility jackets.
- Instructors move the group from the school to the training location riding in the first day on the road. Therefore the first experience in the road is a ride as a group.
- A clycle trainer leads a ride on their own (1 instructor with 6-8 children).
- Instructors do not work within communicating distance of each other (at least two cycle trainers should be working on one site).
- Instructors do not bring bike.
- Instructors do not wear helmet while doing the demonstrations or leading a ride.
- Cycle trainers do not follow the National Standard for Cycling Training in the correct order of progression during the session.
- Instructors do not make difference between “Give way” and “Stop”.
- Instructors are giving instructions and feedback on the road instead of being in the pavement while trainees are practicing.
- In the turn right from a major to a minor road, if there is traffic oncoming, the instructors tell the trainees to stop along the white lines in the middle of the road instead of stopping at primary position to block the lane.
D) Level 3 mistakes:
- Instructors choose a road not appropriate to the trainees’ level.
- Cycle trainers do not know the trainees’ level, because they do not perform a pre-level assessment.
- Instructors do not follow any kind of progression during the session.
E) Common mistakes after the session:
- Instructors do not record the outcomes achieved by every single trainee in the Bikeability Record Sheet.
To sum up, if you want to know all the correct answers to the above mistakes you can follow the next links to the National Standard for Cycling Training where you will find information about several aspects such as:
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