98 NMBP Instructor Training a big success

IMBA Trail News
Volume 11, Number 5
November 1998

by Jon Alegranti

Imagine spending three perfect autumn days at a big lodge on a lake in the beautiful North Woods of Wisconsin, learning about volunteer mountain bike patrol programs from members of some of the most successful mountain bike patrols in North America. Sound good? Now imagine that the presentations, panel discussions and round-robin style stations are balanced with two things Wisconsin is traditionally known for - beer and bratwurst - and something the state is quickly garnering a reputation for - big-grin mountain biking.

That's exactly what 50 mountain bikers from across the United States, Ontario, Canada, and even Frankfurt, Germany experienced at the National Mountain Bike Patrol Instructor Training Conference on October 23-25 at Lakewoods Lodge in the tiny town of Cable, Wisconsin. The NMBP Instructor Training Conference is an annual event that brings together seasoned patrollers with mountain bikers who want to start volunteer patrol programs in their home riding areas. Conference attendees learn the skills of volunteer mountain bike patrolling as well as how to put on a patrol training. The NMBP is developing a network of patrol instructors across the country and abroad.

Although Cable is only a couple of latitude degrees south of Fargo, North Dakota, the local hospitality is enough to make you think you're in the deep South. Mountain bikers are welcome visitors to the Cable area, and according to an economic study conducted in 1997, cyclists contribute major dollars to the local economy. As the site of two of the biggest annual trail events of the year, the American Birkebiener Cross Country Ski Race and the Chequamegon Fat Tire Festival, Cable knows a thing or two about hosting out-of-town trail junkies. Visiting nordic skiers and mountain bikers reap the benefits of a hyper-active IMBA-affiliate, the Chequamegon Area Mountain Bike Association.

CAMBA has done an incredible job of signing and mapping the area's seemingly endless network of trails, most of which utilize logging routes in the Chequamegon National Forest which envelopes Cable. The Rock Lake trail system, or cluster as it's known in the local area, is located adjacent to Lakewoods and was utilized by NMBP Instructor trainees throughout the weekend.

Saturday afternoon's ride was one to remember. Riders cruised leaf-blanketed trails and enjoyed the final sunny hours of Daylight Savings Time, led by Chequamegon Fat Tire Festival promoter and race director Gary Crandall, CAMBA honcho Ron Bergin, and a few members of the North-Central Mountain Bike Patrol, a regional NMBP affiliate. For the NMBP Instructors and trainees who flew to the conference without their bikes, Trek Bicycles, NMBP's official sponsor, came to the rescue. Trek, and its line of bike repair tools, Wrench Force, sent two trucks, four friendly reps, and 40 high end 1999 Trek, Fisher, and Klein bikes!

After a Friday evening keynote address by IMBA Executive Director Tim Blumenthal, the conference shifted into high gear Saturday morning with presentations on such topics as "Why Start a Patrol?" "Attracting and Keeping Members," and "Keeping the Ball Rolling."

Working closely with local land managers is an integral part of the NMBP philosophy. A panel discussion on "The Land Management Component" featured Dave Nelson of the Chequamegon National Forest, Paul Stone of the Bayfield County Forest Administration, retired Bureau of Land Management Colorado State Director, Bob Moore, and Kevin Foote of the Grand Valley Mountain Bike Patrol in Grand Junction, CO.

In the afternoon session, participants rotated through seven different stations, each of which taught a different "core competency" area. As the name implies, core competencies are the skills that are common to all patrollers and form the basis of mountain bike patrol training. These skills include Trail & Environmental Issues and Minimum Impact Riding, Trailside Bike Repair Skills, First Aid/Emergency Care Guidelines, Communication Skills (Radio/cell phone), Trail-User Interaction - Making Contact on the Trail, Riding Skills and Map Reading and Orienteering.

On Sunday morning New England Mountain Bike Patrol member and practicing attorney David Watson explained the basics of liability laws. Then breakout sessions covered topics such as "Urban Parks Patrols," "Backcountry Medical Situations," and "Why Women Make Great Mountain Bike Patrollers and How to Encourage Them to Join." The morning wrapped up with a short discussion of patroller certification, local patrol membership, and NMBP membership.

The newly trained NMBP Instructors were awarded certificates recognizing their successful completion of the NMBP Instructor Training Conference. As they climbed into the shuttle vans bound for the Minneapolis/St. Paul Airport, or threw a leg over the saddle of their bike for one last ride on the famed CAMBA trail system, each new NMBP Instructor knew they were now an integral part of a valuable, exciting and growing program.

The 1999 NMBP Instructor Training Conference will be held November 5-7 at the Nantahala Outdoor Center in the mountains of western North Carolina. For more information on the National Mountain Bike Patrol, email or call 303/545-9011.

The NMBP wishes to recognize and thank several sponsors, organizations and individuals whose support and assistance made the 1998 NMBP Instructor Training Conference an overwhelming success:, The National Off-Road Bicycle Association (NORBA), IMBA, Trek Bicycles, Wrench Force Bike Repair Tools, CAMBA, Ron Bergin, Gary Crandall, Lakewoods Lodge, IMBA Minnesota State Rep Gary Sjoquist, Quality Bicycle Products, Wisconsin Off-Road Bicycle Association, members of the North-Central Mountain Bike Patrol, and conference facilitator Bob Moore.