Mountain bike tuition recommendations please?

[missing the VR6]

I've been riding regularly for around 18 months now, have progressed from a Sepcialized Hardrock to a full sus Ghost and have been really enjoying the change and the added performance of the bike. I've ridden Whites Level, Cwmcarn (not the DH) and The Wall in Wales, I've done the Surrey hills 4/5 times and usually come off on Leith Hill every time at least once! I generally ride Bedgebury Forrest as it's 1 mile from my house and have done Friston Forest once.

I'd say I'm average at best, but would really like to improve my skills, such as drop off's, steps, cornering and some mild air.

Can anyone recommend someone ideally withing Kent, East Sussex, Surrey who can help me improve?

Thanks in advance.

Aaron

[anonymous-user]

cant help with recommendations but whoever you choose, make sure they are SMBLA qualified. SMBLA is the benchmark qualification for mtb tuition and well recognised in the trade.

[missing the VR6]

pablo said:

cant help with recommendations but whoever you choose, make sure they are SMBLA qualified. SMBLA is the benchmark qualification for mtb tuition and well recognised in the trade.

Great advice thanks.

[robpearson]

Just a quick note, SMBLA is now MBLA. Name changed due to being recognised pretty much everywhere now. I did the trail leaders course at Snow Bikers in Dolgellau, but have yet to go back for assessment. I would wholeheartedly recommend Graham as a superb instructor. Details at http://www.snowbikers.com/

Enjoy :-)

[robpearson]

I know this thread passed on some time ago, but I've been talking to some guys about mountain bike instruction, and they mentioned MIAS as an alternative to MBLA. apparently they are recognised throughout Europe, so qualified instructors can lead in the Alps etc. Has anyone else heard anything about them, good or bad?

website is:
http://www.mountainbikeinstructor.com/

[paulrockliffe]

This guy:

http://www.ukbikeskills.co.uk/

A lot of people on Singletrackworld.co.uk have used him, there are loads of threads on there about him. Universally positive, seems to really know his stuff and is an excellent rider as well as teacher. He's where i would be spending my money.

[anonymous-user]

robpearson said:

I know this thread passed on some time ago, but I've been talking to some guys about mountain bike instruction, and they mentioned MIAS as an alternative to MBLA. apparently they are recognised throughout Europe, so qualified instructors can lead in the Alps etc. Has anyone else heard anything about them, good or bad?

website is:
http://www.mountainbikeinstructor.com/

some useful info here: http://www.singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/mias-v...

When i looked into it, and i still plan to do it one day soon.....everyone i spoke to said that SMBLA (now MBLA) is by far the better course. they require you to have a logbook completed before signing up and personally i think that says a lot. you can get the MIAS certificate from doing the course and dont need as much experience. yes you can make up the log book, but unless you have some years experience, yuo will get found out...

finally, as many on that thread state, MBLA is recognised by British Cycling which is one hell of an endorsement as BC dont mess about.

[theboymoon]

Not in your part of the country but I cannot recommend these guys highly enough...

Massive thumbs up.

http://www.cyclewise.co.uk/

[theboymoon]

pablo said:

robpearson said:

I know this thread passed on some time ago, but I've been talking to some guys about mountain bike instruction, and they mentioned MIAS as an alternative to MBLA. apparently they are recognised throughout Europe, so qualified instructors can lead in the Alps etc. Has anyone else heard anything about them, good or bad?

website is:
http://www.mountainbikeinstructor.com/

some useful info here: http://www.singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/mias-v...

When i looked into it, and i still plan to do it one day soon.....everyone i spoke to said that SMBLA (now MBLA) is by far the better course. they require you to have a logbook completed before signing up and personally i think that says a lot. you can get the MIAS certificate from doing the course and dont need as much experience. yes you can make up the log book, but unless you have some years experience, yuo will get found out...

finally, as many on that thread state, MBLA is recognised by British Cycling which is one hell of an endorsement as BC dont mess about.

but if you're talking French Alps if you want to get into the depths of the law none of these are gonna make you fully legal *if* the st hit the fan.

[robpearson]

theboymoon said:

pablo said:

robpearson said:

I know this thread passed on some time ago, but I've been talking to some guys about mountain bike instruction, and they mentioned MIAS as an alternative to MBLA. apparently they are recognised throughout Europe, so qualified instructors can lead in the Alps etc. Has anyone else heard anything about them, good or bad?

website is:
http://www.mountainbikeinstructor.com/

some useful info here: http://www.singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/mias-v...

When i looked into it, and i still plan to do it one day soon.....everyone i spoke to said that SMBLA (now MBLA) is by far the better course. they require you to have a logbook completed before signing up and personally i think that says a lot. you can get the MIAS certificate from doing the course and dont need as much experience. yes you can make up the log book, but unless you have some years experience, yuo will get found out...

finally, as many on that thread state, MBLA is recognised by British Cycling which is one hell of an endorsement as BC dont mess about.

but if you're talking French Alps if you want to get into the depths of the law none of these are gonna make you fully legal *if* the st hit the fan.

So what qualification would be legally accepted for leading in the Alps?

[theboymoon]

robpearson said:

theboymoon said:

pablo said:

robpearson said:

I know this thread passed on some time ago, but I've been talking to some guys about mountain bike instruction, and they mentioned MIAS as an alternative to MBLA. apparently they are recognised throughout Europe, so qualified instructors can lead in the Alps etc. Has anyone else heard anything about them, good or bad?

website is:
http://www.mountainbikeinstructor.com/

some useful info here: http://www.singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/mias-v...

When i looked into it, and i still plan to do it one day soon.....everyone i spoke to said that SMBLA (now MBLA) is by far the better course. they require you to have a logbook completed before signing up and personally i think that says a lot. you can get the MIAS certificate from doing the course and dont need as much experience. yes you can make up the log book, but unless you have some years experience, yuo will get found out...

finally, as many on that thread state, MBLA is recognised by British Cycling which is one hell of an endorsement as BC dont mess about.

but if you're talking French Alps if you want to get into the depths of the law none of these are gonna make you fully legal *if* the st hit the fan.

So what qualification would be legally accepted for leading in the Alps?

To be clear, talking about France in particular.

It's my understanding, that the only qualification to lead a group of any sort (on foot or on bike) at the kind of altitudes above sea level that the majority of the trails are, are French recognised accompagnateur moyenne montagne qualifications or above.

What do the French recognise in terms of accompagnateur? Their own (unsuprisingly) and the international mountain leaders accompagnateur. I think some other accompagnateur quali's in other neighbouring countries are reciprocally recognised but not 100% sure.

(happy to be corrected, but spoken with people in the trade at length about this and used to guide myself in the Alps - in retrospect arguably not entirely legally)

This is the route problem of some of the hassles there has been in Morzine in the last few years. And if you look across the web alot of the bike companies now have people on their books with accompagnateur qualifications.

Here's the rub tho. Most of the French native accompagnateurs are walkers or mountain guides in training. They are not bikers at heart. Hey, this is a broad brush I don't mean every single one. This means that its not like there are loads of French accompagnateurs sitting in the guides bureau's all summer long who are out of work while brits doing a season do the guiding for less Euro per hour. It just isn't the case that its putting people out of work.

Infact, when it kicked off a couple of years ago there then weren't enough people to do the guiding in the busy places. So this is partly why the status quo resumes and lots of brits take chalet jobs in the summer and are officially contracted as drivers or dishwashers but take the guests out 'for a ride with them' but are not actually guiding

How's it all gonna end? Don't know.

It costs a lot of money and time to be an accompagnateur, more than you earn doing some bike guiding for a British chalet company in France!



2p

[anonymous-user]

also, no disrespect to anyone but if you are leading in the alps you had better be bloody good, whatever qualification you have after your name i would be expecting 10 years plus of off road riding and a good knowledge of european trails not just a few laps of afan or cannock chase.

[robpearson]

Pablo, couldnt agree more. still If I'm going to start going down the qualification route, i'd like to be on the right path to well recognised qualifications, and ideally those that cover the areas of the world I want to be living in.