Mountain Bike Skills Course
Tollymore National Outdoor Centre now has a purpose designed Mountain Bike Skills Course, which has been designed to allow bikers to develop their skills on a wide range of features.
This Skills Course has approximately 1.5km of singletrack trail with a wide range of features, including rollers, berms, drop offs, table tops, rock sections, northshore, and log rolls.
The Skills Course is open seven days a week, year round, from 9.30am - 5.00pm. From May - September, it is also open on Tuesday - Friday evenings until 9.00pm.
Download the Mountain Bike Skills Course Rules for Use (PDF 57.4KB)
Download the Mountain Bike Skills Course Guidelines for Use (PDF 57.8KB)
Download Using the Mountain Bike Skills Course (PDF 50.4KB)
Download the Mountain Bike Skills Course Parental Consent Form (PDF 35.4KB)
Leadership Awards
The core leadership awards (Trail Cycle Leader, Mountain Bike Leader) cover a wide range of important issues including biking skills, equipment, group management and leadership, navigation and route planning, nutrition, trailside repairs, and emergency procedures The SMBLA Trail Cycle Leader Award (TCL) is the first level of the scheme, and consists of a two day training course followed by a one day assessment.
The qualification is aimed at leaders working with groups within a specific terrain remit:
- On public highways, way marked routes and legal rights of way on which cycles are permitted.
- On routes with low to medium technical demands.
- In terrain no more than 30 minutes walk away from shelter and communications and no more than 600 metres above sea-level.
The TCL award is a prerequisite for the 2nd level of the scheme
The SMBLA Mountain Bike Leader Award (MBL) consists of an additional two days training plus a one day assessment. The qualification is aimed at leaders working with groups in more remote terrain, with a higher technical level.
- On public highways, way marked routes and legal rights of way on which cycles are permitted.
- On routes with considerable technical demands.
- In terrain more than 30 minutes walk away from shelter and communications and all levels above sea-level.
- On multi-day trips where the group does not require to be self-sufficient.
Endorsements
In addition to the core awards, there are a number of tag-on endorsements which may be held in conjunction with either level of the scheme. These enable leaders to widen their remit in specific areas of interest. Currently, Tollymore provides training and assessment in the night biking module. Other modules are available, such as expedition module and winter module.
The SMBLA Night-Biking Module is an additional module for qualified Trail Cycle Leaders and Mountain Bike Leaders to enable them to work in conditions outside the 'daytime only' remit of their award. The course deals with equipment choices and the extra demands in terms of group management, safety and navigation in this exciting area of off-road riding. The training consists of a 7 hour course spread over two nights or an afternoon and evening. For the Module to be valid the candidate must then pass a 3 hour Assessment.
