Chase the Rabbit
An awesome part about NICA is the opportunity for student-athletes of all skill levels to ride together as a team. This game is designed to give groups of mixed abilities a chance to have some fun while honing skills.
Infected/Zombie Tag
Fall is in the air, scary movies are hitting the theaters, and zombies are out looking for “braaaaains”! This hilarious game is sure to get a laugh out of your student-athletes in the fall season. If you’re in a spring league, don’t let the time of year stop you from throwing this activity into the mix. It’s a great tool for a quick assessment of slow speed bike handling skills, and also a great way to gauge the cohesiveness of your team.
B-I-K-E
A combination of Follow the Leader and H-O-R-S-E basketball game. The
object of the game is to match and perform riding challenges. It’s important that this game is guided by coaches to keep it within the scope NICA riding!
Bike Noodling!
Master timing and coordination with this fun and challenging game! Perfect for building bike-body separation and cornering skills while having a blast.
SCREAM ‘TIL YOU DROP!
A NEW off-the-bike game for NICA coaches! Get loud and get silly with this off-the-bike game. Never underestimate our student-athletes’ desire to still be kids and have FUN. Games can turn up the fun factor and provide variety for everyone at practice.
Adapting Games at Practice
Games increase fun, joy, and skill development. Allowing our athletes to play supports connection to their teammates and the sport of mountain biking. Coaches work in a dynamic environment, and your games will often need to be revised or adapted. Making a change doesn’t mean that you did something wrong, or that it was a bad game. It is essential to adapt activities to ensure that athletes are having fun and experiencing the right level of challenge.
FOOT Down
This classic game with endless creative progressions can help athletes learn balance, coordination, ratcheting, and ultimately, track stands. How does your team play foot down?
How to sequence games throughout your season
On and off the bikes games are great! Especially if you play the right game at the right time. The athletes will be engaged, they will have fun, and they will learn something. If we play a game before our athletes have the social and MTB skills necessary to play the game, the game can be frustrating, no fun, and potentially dangerous. Great coaches and teams understand when to play games and how to adapt them to the athletes in front of them.
Freeze Tag
This familiar playground game gets a twist when you add bikes and balance!
Coaching with Games: PART 1
Welcome to our 3-part Coaching with Games series! We’ll highlight skills, methods, and best practices for using games with your teams.
As NICA coaches, we know that fun is an essential part of learning and whole-athlete development. Here’s how you can become a pro at COACHING WITH GAMES!