Cycling BC HopOn school and summer coach Paige Letham joined our instructor team in 2022 through a University of Victoria COOP work term. As a varsity rower, Paige’s energy and passion for sport helped her connect with riders are all abilities.
During the summer, Paige also helped lead the U15 group at Cycling BC’s YVCE camp, a week-long camp for aspiring racers.
Continue reading to learn about the highlights and learning moments of Paige’s season with Cycling BC’s HopOn program.
August 2022
Hello Readers,
I’ve learned so much at HopOn.
- People learn through doing! So when teaching, keep the riders constantly moving.
- Kids, like most people, have a hard time learning and retaining information if all they do is listen. Ask questions!
- Helping people improve quickly also requires challenges slightly beyond their ability.
- Giving each rider personalized challenges specific to their abilities is crucial for ensuring that they stay focused and make decisions.
- I have also learned that proper communication between instructors and coaches is essential for the learners’ success.
- Instructors need to be clear on what their goals and motives are.
- They must work as a team to execute activities with a specific intention and prioritize the learning of the riders.
- I have learned how to better provide kind, thoughtful, and constructive feedback to riders and other instructors.
Strengths of Hop-On:
- It’s unique because no other program offers in-school visits to conduct bike skills lessons while providing all the necessary equipment to the participants.
- It is a fun and rewarding job to work with kids in cycling and to help them improve and develop their skills while doing fun activities on bikes.
- The West Shore camps that ran were a unique opportunity for the participants to explore various cycling environments (trails, roads, gravel, BMX track, velodrome, etc.) and have an introduction to exploring different cycling disciplines.
- There was plenty of flexibility for the instructors to incorporate whichever parts of the curriculum they felt most comfortable with into the lesson plans (for both in-school and summer camps).
Opportunities for HopOn:
- I believe there could be a better way to include school participants without experience riding a bike.
- Perhaps hiring 3rd instructors would go a long way to ensure those students get the most out of our visit!
- Additional funding from the local government could help us achieve this goal and keep the program’s cost low for schools.
Season Highlights:
- There were many learning opportunities!
- I gained experience in various roles and in completing diverse tasks (Head instructor, assistant instructor, Ride leader, admin work, driving truck and trailer, etc.).
- In addition, I had the opportunity to work with various colleagues and diverse groups of participants (varying age ranges and skill levels).
Paige Letham
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Learn more about becoming a HopOn instructor at cyclingbc.net/hopon