ABOUT

 The Classical Academy MTB Team is a fun group of student-athletes ranging from grades 6-12, all attending Classical Academy High School and middle schools, including Coastal Academy and the Personalized Learning campus.  We ride and race cross-country mountain bikes on varied terrain with an emphasis on fun, skills, competition, and safety. Our season is progressive, building in duration and challenge over six months. Our season runs from December – May, with registration beginning in early October. Team events, coach rides, and skills classes occur in Oct/November.  Not sure you want to join?  Get on our interest list and attend one of our "Try it Out" rides before committing to the team.  (Interest list form on Home page)

Our season includes six races, which begin in February (racing is optional but encouraged). We practice Tuesdays/Thursdays after school for 60-90 minutes and Saturdays at 10 am (2-3 hours). During our 2025 season, our team had 62 registered riders with around 35% taking part in races.  Our coaches are experienced riders and strong community leaders who believe in our core values of teamwork, sportsmanship, and respect.  

Launching in 2025/2026 is our "Little Shredders" program for the younger siblings of our student-athletes who wish to ride mountain bikes together during the team practice. This will be organized by parent volunteers.

 Mountain biking has inherent risk, just like most athletic endeavors.  The coaching staff makes every effort to prepare, caution, and advise athletes on how to ride safely.  Individuals are encouraged to ride only what they feel comfortable with or what we call "Challenge by Choice."  Mountain biking takes place on public trails in open space parks. We may encounter unpredictable weather situations, animals, other trail users, changing trail conditions and unforeseen challenges; however, we aim to educate our athletes on ALL aspects of being a safe and aware trail rider.  Our goal is to prepare them for a lifelong love of mountain biking.

Team Goals

• Teach all riders proper mountain bike skills; build fitness

• Explore various ways to enjoy cycling; encourage a life-long love of riding!

• Work hard, set personal goals, and help create a culture of respect and encouragement for anyone that wants to try mountain biking

Team at a Glance

• Students grades 6-12th from all Classical Academy schools including Coastal Academy and the Personalized Learning Campus.

• We are a cross-country mountain bike team. We ride up the hills and earn our fun descents! We do not organize or compete in enduro (downhill) riding, but can help you connect with races and resources in that area if interested.

• Classical Academy holds practices Tuesdays/Thursdays after school for 60-90 minutes and Saturdays 10am (2-3 hours) (details on next page)

• For most practices, we split up into groups based on fitness and riding experience.

• All levels of riders welcome! For our more competitive riders, coaches can help athletes with a training plan to help them reach their goals at the races. Collectively, your coaches have many years of experience in all areas of cycling, including racing.

• All of our team coaches are required to have background checks, risk management and skills training, and many of our coaches are trained in first aid and CPR. Typically, we have 8 student-athletes with 2 coaches; one of those coaches is required to have first aid/CPR training.

• Parents! We can’t do it without your help both on and off the trail. There are many ways to get involved…even a tiny bit of help keeps this team going! We all pitch in to make the Caiman MTB team AMAZING. Help coach, offer help at races, set up for events, and help us fix bikes!