In Britain, the racing season is always preceded by a slew of reliability trials. These are timed group or individual rides on a predetermined course with checkpoints to keep the participants honest. They are similar to the "populaire" events organised by the Randonneurs. Riders can select one of a number of times in which they expect to complete the ride and awards are often given for those competitors who finish nearest to their stated time.  the route often passes cafes or coffee bars during the ride. Checkpoints are located at strategic points and may involve each cyclist getting a signature or picking up a coupon to be presented at the finish.

The chosen route can be easy or include some tough climbing, depending on the location. In many trials, there is an option for less fit, older, or inexperienced riders to do a  half  distance ride. The video and photos here emphasise steady riding  and staying together but participants who choose the shortest time frame will ride more aggressively.

On Sunday, March 24th., MIVA is organising a reliability trial around the Nanaimo Region. Distances will be approximately 120 kilometres and 65 kilometres. Participants will register and start from the Longwood Brew Pub, one of the club's main sponsors . The course heads north through Lantzville  and via North Bay Road to Parksville.  Then riders will return via a circuitous route  to Nanaimo and then down to Cedar and back towards the finish via Hammond Bay. Full course details and start times will be published shortly. Entry fee will be $10.

There are many references on the web to bicycle roller racing but to many, the term is a mystery. Roller racing is a competition among two, three or more riders on stationary bikes. These can be on sets of rollers, where the riders must balance their machines and ride as fast as possible at the same time, sometimes, with the aid of holders who keep them from falling. A second option is to use the same rollers with fork stands and a third, increasingly popular option is the use of home trainers.

In each case, competitors and spectators can see the progress of a contest, usually a 500 metre or one kilometre  "sprint",  but sometimes longer, on a large dial or digital readout on a screen set up behind the contestants.The equipment is set up at a club room o, more often in a mall or shopping centre  and is used as as an attraction in connection with a membership or sponsorship drive. Participants may be from the cycling community or may be 'walk-ons" from the spectators. Interest is sparked by a board showing best time of day or session.

In days of yore and, more infrequently now,  the large dial with from two to four pointers, had the information on contestants' progress fed to the pointers via flexible cable drives, rather like speedometer cables, connected to worm gears behind the dials. The pointers, usually of different colours, moved as the riders pedalled. The dial, marked in metres from zero to five hundred, was painted on plywood backings which were supported on tripod stands,  rather like an archery target. This equipment was cumbersome, prone to frequent breakdowns and needed a good storage place and a willing club member with a half ton.

The latest equipment, however, is much more portable and reliable. It's electronic and consists of speed sensors on each bike transmitting the necessary information to a laptop and thence to a projector that shows the riders' progress on a virtual dial on a large screen.

Whatever the equipment, roller racing is s sure-fire way to publicise a club. Complete the set up with a good sound system, some loud music and a good commentator and public awareness of your organisation and its activities is guaranteed!

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It has long been recognised that mental fitness in an athlete is just as important as physical fitness but, until comparatively recently, there was no formal strategy to help athletes in this area. We reprint the following article for readers' consideration. Canadian Sport for Life is excited to add "Mental Fitness for Long-Term Athlete Development" to its growing list of pan-sport resources. The document, written by a team of experts led by Karen MacNeill, Ph.D., explains that mental fitness is just as necessary for success in sport as physical fitness or technical comprehension. The messages and activities highlighted in the article align with Long-Term Athlete Development (LTAD) and address how athletes, coaches, and parents can aid the mental development of athletes at each stage of LTAD.

Success in sport requires athletes to push their physical limits of endurance, power, speed, and strength. Athletes must be technically sound and tactically aware in order to achieve best results. As determined in "Mental Fitness for Long-Term Athlete Development", so too must these athletes train and push themselves in the areas of focus, composure, and determination. The article states that 40 to 90 percent of success in high-performance sports is accounted for by mental factors, and that these mental factors must be trained and tested throughout an athlete’s career.

The resource outlines expected outcomes of mental training, which has many facets: stress management, self-talk, goal-setting, and focusing distraction control among others. "Mental Fitness for Long-Term Athlete Development" frames the various mental fitness activities athletes should practice for each LTAD stage, clearly stating whether the activity targets the pre-performance, performance, or post-performance phase."Mental Fitness for Long-Term Athlete Development" is available electronically for download at canadiansportforlife.ca.

Canadian Sport for Life is a movement to improve the quality of sport and physical activity in Canada. CS4L links sport, education, recreation, and health and aligns community, provincial, and national programming. Long-Term Athlete Development is a seven-stage training, competition and recovery pathway guiding an individual’s experience in sport and physical activity from infancy through all phases of adulthood. CS4L, with LTAD, represents a paradigm shift in the way Canadians lead and deliver sport and physical activity in Canada.

Reprinted from Canadian Cyclist

Gabriola Cycle and Kayak  has organised some great cycling tours over the years. To see their offerings for 2013 go here. They still have spaces on their group tours.  Any of their trips outside \Canada are tax free.

Many of our readers either come to or have friends who visit  the Nanaimo Region on holiday or business. Some of the more scenic riding is on Gabriola Island, the road routes caressing the shore and the mountain bike trails rising to the highest points on the island. A new B & B and bike rental is set up to cater to Gabriola visitors, whether or not they bring their bikes. For information on The Garden B & B, go here