About the training sessions

aboc Cycle Coaching is proud to be providing the Deakin University Cycling Club with 10 one-hour bunch and race skills sessions at the Blackburn Velodrome on Tuesday mornings from 8 'til 9am on dates to be confirmed.

These sessions will start out focusing on bunch riding skills, in particular how to roll turns smoothly and safely and ride together as a cohesive unit.  As the group progresses these will become more advanced.

Each session will also have a race tactical component where we will work on skills such as using a leadout, how to sprint past a rider safely and effectively, some tactical game-play and some racing.

These sessions will be run in such a way that all attending riders are on an equal footing, stronger riders will be handicapped by having gear restrictions such that they cannot just ride away using strength and fitness, the emphasis is on skill development and tactical awareness, not strength and speed.

All riders attending are required to have a drop-bar conventional road bicycle with working brakes front and rear and gears (ie: not a fixed gear or track bike).  Although this session is run on the Blackburn velodrome it is for road bicycles.  The Blackburn track is concrete and gently banked at each end so there's no risk of sliding off the corner or striking pedals at low speeds.  Also, all riders must be licenced with a Cycling Australia affiliated club.  At present this is probably best done by joining Blackburn as Deakin Uni CC has an arrangement with Blackburn as an affiliate.  The required paperwork will be at Blackburn but please arrive 20 minutes early if you need to be licenced so we don't eat into our track time. 

Licencing is $55 for a Ride licence and you can bring cash to the sessions or join online here with a credit card : https://members.cycling.org.au/source/LCMembership/index.cfm?Section=New_Member_Signup
To Join, select 'Blackburn' and Ride Junior ($40) if you're under 19 for all of 2009, or Ride Senior ($55) if you're older.  If you do join online please bring a printout of the licence receipt to the first session you attend.

Riders can come at any time throughout the 10 session, there's no need to attend all sessions, however the best gains will be had by those who come to all sessions.

If it's raining the outdoor session will not run, but we can run a theory session indoors at the track if the attendees want to do so.

As these sessions are being run over winter, it is recommended that riders bring warm clothes, a significant part of the session will be spent watching others and being briefed etc and a warm jacket is a valuable item.  The sessions are not fitness training sessions but they will be intense at times.  The fitness requirements are not difficult, these sessions are inclusive and are scaled to suit the riders attending. Everyone will get a solid workout.

The track will be closed to other riders during these sessions and this has been confirmed with the Blackburn Cycling Club.