Night Rides with the Team

Though the NICA racing season is over, it has not slowed us down at all. Our riders pushed hard through the season and are now continuing that stoke into the off-season. Since we can’t start practice until 4:00 (when school lets out) and it gets dark at 5:00 these days, we have to rely on lights to ride for this part of the year. If you haven’t done it before, mountain biking at night is like riding a whole new trail system - we love it!

A night ride around the top of Belle Isle

We welcomed four new youth riders this season, all competing in their first mtb race in the past two months, their confidence and desire to spend time on the bike has only grown.

Cycling is not easy, especially trying to compete with those who have been riding longer or that have more access to resources that support it. Now that the season is over, we’ve added another six new riders to the squad! The nights, and practice may be cold and long, but our youth show up determined and ready to get after it.

2nd Quarter of the Year with AJC

Earlier this month, we began our second quarter with Anna Julia Cooper School for their middle school PE curriculum with a new crop of riders! A few of them had some experience and skills on the bike so we are excited to see where the next few weeks go. We work with their students for over 40 weeks a year!. It’s wonderful to see how these students grow and progress in confidence on the bike! Many of these children have never experienced hiking on the James, let alone ride a bike on one. The experience of riding a bike in their cities’ greenspaces instills confidence and a feeling of ownership in the spaces around them.

“I don’t go outside like that” - One AJC youth on why they like cycling class with RCC.

Some of us can take for granted the nature that surrounds us. But for youth living in public housing, some of those things are much harder to come by. The outlet of nature and physical activity or a community are all why we exist. And the reason many of you support our mission.

Some of the most confident riders were able to hit jumps on the bmx track not long after getting on the bike. Other students need a bit more coaching until they feel confident to ride the course.

The AJC crew lines up at the start of the Gillies Creek BMX Track

We are frequently looking for cyclists in our community to volunteer with our AJC practices. If that is something you are interested in, please reach out!

Bike Raffle

We have teamed up with some of our very talented friends at Haute Bicycle Co to create this very special bike raffle.

Formerly an RCC program bike, this Kona Unit has been meticulously updated by Richmond’s Haute Bicycle Co. with internal dropper post routing, mounts for racks, more bottles, and gear. The handlebars are custom Haute one-of-a-kind mid-sweep comfy shred bars. A fresh paint job and decals seal the deal.

Enter now for a chance to own this customized Kona "Legacy” Unit and pedal towards a meaningful cause! We’re raffling off this sleek ride to support the Richmond Cycling Corps in its mission to educate and empower the youth of Richmond’s East End. Every ticket purchased not only brings you closer to this unique ride, but also contributes to our programming.

Enter Raffle here

Jack & Jill of America, Richmond Chapter

Last weekend, we were able to help out a local chapter of Jack & Jill of America. Jack & Jill of America is an organization that focuses on nurturing future African-American leaders while advocating for all children. They were doing a lock-in on leadership that weekend in Charles City and their planned event for the next day fell through due to the organizers of that event all coming down with COVID-19. The leadership at J&J initially reached out to The Kickstand to see if they could rent bikes to do a ride, but we had a better idea - meet us at Gillies Creek BMX Track!

The program ran similarly to our group cycling program with AJC - the parents met us at the track and we arrived with the bikes and equipment necessary. The goal of this program was to help riders of all ages progress toward learning the fundamentals of riding on two wheels in a safe, judgment free environment. Riders who needed a little extra help started by practicing balance on their own, moving on to turning and then finally, pedaling on their own. Overall a great experience and turn out. The president of the organization came. A few kids were able to complete the bmx course and their first lap, some others needed a few repetitions before they felt comfortable. All the moms also took a turn riding the track! Overall a great experience and turnout. About 16 kids showed up with nine girls and six boys. A few kids mentioned overcoming their fears to ride the track and get air on a bike. We are thankful for opportunities to work alongside organizations making a difference in the lives of youth by educating and ultimately empowering them through cycling and physical activity.

WeeWheel Event

On Sunday the 12th, WeeWheel hosted a Learn to Ride a Bike Day benefitting the Richmond Cycling Corps in Forest Hill Park. We collaborated with WeeWheel to put on a class to help parents help their children make the leap from striders to pedal bikes and raise money for our programs. We met the parents in Forest Hill Park and they came with their trainer bikes. Several families came to participate. Two of our youth riders Knowledge and Kamari came to help out. A few kids got it immediately, others needed some extra help balancing and repetition before it stuck.

With perfect fall weather, the class went really well. Six kids came, two boys and four girls. We are very appreciative of opportunities to help the community, give volunteer opportunities to youth in our programs while also raising funds to benefit our mission. The parents loved it. Many people assume training wheels teach the skill of balancing, but in reality it’s the opposite - a child may lean on them for support too much. Taking the training wheels off can become a time of fear and essentially starting from scratch. Most parents know what they experienced themselves: training wheels. The (often painful) memories of this rite of passage tend to stick with us. But a new generation of riders who are starting out on balance bikes and skipping the training wheels entirely, are learning to pedal at a much younger age. This young age and the ease of the experience has led to what we think is a pretty cool phenomenon: a generation of kids who won’t remember a time in their lives when they couldn’t ride a bike.

More info on why Training Wheels can be detrimental to learning to ride

Tour de Fall Line VIII

The eighth iteration of the Tour De Fall line took place this weekend on Saturday. TdFL is a local trails fundraiser race put on by rvaMORE. This year, the race started and finished at our very own Kickstand parking lot! With course options of 14, 28, and 50 miles, riders were able to choose their own adventure. About 150 riders showed up Saturday morning to ride our beloved park system, with beers and Lee’s Chicken provided at the finish. We’re looking forward to next year!