Coaching

Welcome to the USA BMX / BMX CANADA Coaches Certification and the First 10 Weeks Program Home Page

The USA BMX Coaches program has two main goals.

Safety
It is our goal that parents are comfortable with and confident in our coaches character and ability to coach their children and look out for their well-being.  All USA BMX Coaching Candidates must pass three levels of prerequisites before they are allowed to even start the program.  

For the safety of our children, all Coaching Candidates must:

• Receive a Character Reference from a Track Operator, known as the Track Operator Letter of Recommendation
• Be certified in Red Cross or American Heart Association Adult and Pediatric First Aid and CPR
• Pass a Background Check

Due to the safety concerns above, any person teaching a clinic at track as of Jan 1, 2014 must be a USA BMX Certified Coach.

Retention
The Coaching Course and First 10 Weeks Program is focused on brand new riders and how to systematically guide them through setting goals, learning new skills, and giving them the guidance and confidence to stay in BMX and navigate the Novice and Intermediate Classes

Letter to Coaching Candidates

Thank you for your interest in becoming a USA BMX Certified Coach.

What, you may be asking, is a USA BMX Certified Coach? And how is one different than the local pro at my track who teaches weekly clinics?  The answer to that question may surprise you, so let’s break it down a little...

Anywhere there is competition, people will seek out those with knowledge and experience to show them ways they can improve. In team sports coaches play the important role of managing players, practice, plays, and games. Beyond this, coaches are mentors, leaders and role models whose very behavior and attitude can create better players.

In its infancy, BMX fueled the individual spirit, and riders made their own individual path to the top. Riders of the next generation began to look at those on top and seek out their advice. These top pros of the past became the very first coaches in BMX racing. As riders have continued to develop, so has coaching. The first major coaching movement came when pros and teams would travel the country and schedule clinics at various tracks on summer tours. These tours were used as a way to reach racers who have never been to a National and to promote their sponsors. These tours are still alive and well today and play a very important role in our culture.

Many track operators saw how well these traveling coaches helped their local riders and they began to look for ways to help their riders more than traveling clinics would allow. This created the first generation of local coaches - which is our current generation of coaching. They consist of pros, parents and track operators, doing their best to pass on knowledge to new, young racers. Though helpful, these programs vary widely from track to track. With uniform training and direction, good coaches can become great coaches and local BMX programs around the country will slowly begin to flourish as a new level of rider support is offered.

As BMX has matured, now having been held at two Olympic Games, as well as becoming unified across the United States thru USA BMX, we have realized that coaching is the glue that can hold a program together. A coach can ease a riders nerves, explain the ins and outs of racing to confused parents, inspire confidence when a racer doesn’t always win and be a role model for the next generation of BMX racers.

There are three levels to being a USA BMX Coach:

• USA BMX Local Coach (Anyone may receive this certification, with T.O approval)
• Local Assistant Coach (Appointed by Track Operator or Head Coach)
• Local Head Coach (Appointed by Track Operator)

Most tracks will start out with only a Head Coach and as the program grows, they will likely bring in Assistant Coaches to aid the Head Coach.

Certified USA BMX Local Coach:
This means that you have passed all safety prerequisites, taken the coaches course, passed the coaches test and paid the license fee.  This does not mean that you have the 'right' to coach at a track, Track Operators maintain full control of their tracks and the coaches who coach on their tracks.  As a Certified USA BMX Coach you are able to teach any clinic, whether it is part of the First 10 Week program or not at any track as long as you have permision from the Track Operator of that track to do so.

Assistant Coach:
An Assistant Coach may be appointed by a Head Coach or a Track Operator. Assistant Coaches do not have to be certified by USA BMX but may only work under the direct supervision of a Certified Coach who must be present and active at all clinics being taught. Assistant Coaches may be under the age of 18.  All Assistant Coaches over the age of 18 must be background checked through USA BMX. 

Head Coach:
Many responsibilities come with the title of Head Coach. The goal of the USA BMX Coaching Program is to take a cue from traditional sports and provide new riders and parents with a clear, uniform, path for both learning and advancement. As a coach you will be responsible to understand how each lesson you teach and how each program USA BMX offers weaves together a web that will keep new racers involved in BMX racing for years to come.

USA BMX Coaching Certification as it pertains to a USA Cycling BMX Certification

Any great coach will tell you that knowledge is power, and the key to being a good coach is that there is always something to learn that can make you a better coach.  

The USA Cycling program is proof of that.  In their program the focus is clearly on understanding the science of creating a high level athlete, with the basic science being outlined in their "Level 3" Coaches Certification and continuing up through the BMX "AA" Certification.  There is no such thing as knowing too much, and we encourage all of our coaches to always learn as much as possible.

The USA BMX Coaching Program focuses on the structured development of skills, motivation, communication, confidence, safety and mentorship of new riders that creates a system and business model that will increase rider education and retention.  

Basic key sections of our Nutrition, Hydration and Sports Science chapters were developed in conjuntion with USA Cycling, because of this USA Cycling recognizes the USA BMX Coaches Certification as the Equivilent of a Level 3 USA Cycling BMX Certification.  This means that although this is not a USA Cycling License, a person who holds a USA BMX Coaches license meets the Level 3 prerequisite for USA Cycling should they choose to pursue a Level 2 or a "AA" USA Cycling License.

Through the USA BMX program you will learn.

• The business of coaching at a USA BMX Track.
• How coaching affects retention.
• How best to schedule clinics.
• How to build confidence and communicate with riders of all ages.
• How teaching the basics to a Novice differs from how you, (or another advanced rider), may ride.
• Nutrition and age/skill appropriate training methods.

 All persons teaching clinics as of Jan 1, 2014 must hold a USA BMX Coaches Certification