Instructions Directions

Expect your child to come home dirty. Mountain Biking is an outdoor sport, and sometimes it gets muddy out there. Pack (or better yet, teach your child to pack) the following:

• Water (750 ml is recommended) in either water bottles or a camelback. NOTE: we recommend water bottles packed in a backpack or on in a water bottle cage on the participant's bicycle as opposed to Camelbacks. The reason is that a Camelback can be prone to spilling and the backpack component of a Camelback is typically not large enough to hold other items (i.e. lunch, bathing suit and towel for summer camps). Also (and trust us, we are parents too) Camelbacks are a pain to fill!
• Appropriate clothing (shorts and a T shirt is generally what they will need; if it's a colder day, then long pants a fleece jacket would be suitable).
• A backpack for summer camps (to carry lunch etc. if needed --- see above).
• For our after-school and weekend programs, pack a snack.
• For summer camps, pack a lunch.
• Closed-toed/heel shoes.
• A properly fitting helmet.
• Their bike. ;)
• NOTE: elbow, shin and kneepads help reduce cuts and scrapes but are not mandatory.

For Learn to Ride and "Intro to Mountain Biking (4-6)" programs, any bike will do provided it has pedals. For Beginner/Intermediate, any type of mountain bike will do, provided it has wheels 20 inches or larger and gears, hand brakes and knobby tires. As your child advances, we strongly recommend moving away from bikes purchased at Canadian Tire or Wal Mart (they tend to be very heavy) and instead look to more lightweight bikes made by manufactures who specialize in mountain bikes. For Advanced Programs your child does need a good quality lightweight mountain bike which has originated from a mountain bike store that specifically sells mountain bikes (ie: not Canadian Tire, Wal Mart or SportChek).

Kids grow fast, and gear is expensive -- especially when they outgrow it every year. Many of our local outfitters (Kamikaze, Squire John's, Little Ed's, Skiis and Biikes) sell good quality new and used bikes for great prices and offer discounts when you mention your child is enrolled in Rad Adventures. 

Yes! If you have a used bike you would like to donate, please let us know. We are working with local schools and non-profits to get bikes to kids who want one, but whose parents don't have the means to get one.