Every child should have the opportunity to ride a bike. Learning how to ride a bike isn’t just a prerequisite to enjoying the great outdoors from a different perspective, it’s an open door to exercise, exploration, freedom, and even imagination. For a kid, riding a bike can promote positive personal time with one’s own thoughts, and can also encourage quality social time with friends.

Nederland is in an ideal location, surrounded by miles and miles of amazing trails, each offering different levels of challenge for the avid rider. But, as with so many recreational activities, biking comes with both a learning curve and a relatively steep initial cost that deters some youth from being able to enjoy the hobby. The Ned SHRED program aims to alleviate these problems and offer kids in Nederland free access to bikes and to hands-on training.

“The program provides an opportunity for full classrooms to be able to get out and really see the trails and the opportunities that we have,” Singletrack Mountain Bike Adventures (SMBA) Director Heather Williams told The Mountain-Ear.

“We’re so lucky here because everything is right out our doors. The cool thing with the elementary school is that there’s access to US Forest Service and Boulder County open space trails, so it’s a really good opportunity for a lot of kids,” continues Williams.

The Ned SHRED program is a partnership between the Nederland Elementary PTA, Peak to Peak Endurance, and SMBA that provides third grade to fifth grade kids with mountain biking opportunities and instruction.

A fleet of 30 mountain bikes has been purchased for the program and the funding for the purchase, maintenance, and storage of the bikes comes from grants, donations, and various fundraising efforts.

“A barrier to participating in mountain biking programs is sometimes kids don’t always have a bike that’s adequate,” Williams noted. “With the Ned SHRED program we were able to get a fleet of bikes that would cover an entire classroom so even if a student doesn’t have a bike they’ll still be able to participate.”

“Tin Shed helped us purchase 15 bikes, and Batch Cycles donated another set. A lot of bike companies and outdoor companies have been really supportive of the program and have helped make this happen. Osprey has donated some backpacks as well, and Skratch Labs is donating snacks and water bottles for the rides,” Williams said.

The fleet of bikes will be used for in-school mountain biking trips, where kids will also receive training from SMBA instructors on some of the more beginner-friendly trails in the area.

“For this first ride we’ll start at the school and we’ll have opportunities for kids who have never ridden or who are still learning to balance,” Williams explained. “That group will stay close to the school in the grassy areas and we’ll work with them to get comfortable pedaling.”

“Groups who have a little more experience will go out to trails on Mud Lake and then we’ll all meet there for lunch!”

“SMBA has about five coaches that live up here in Nederland who are very excited to be part of the program. We also have helmets and snacks and water bottles; we’ll have everything that a kid needs to ride a bike safely for the program, they just need to come with the appropriate shoes and they’ll be ready to ride!”

The fleet of bikes will also be available to be used during gym class for the third, fourth, and fifth grade students, as well as for any after-school or summer programs. If a child wished to participate in any family-friendly biking event held in Nederland throughout the year, they could also have access to a bike from the fleet, free of charge.

“I’m hoping that by introducing a lot of the kids to the trails and to this program it will let them know that they can also participate in SMBA through our summer programs,” Williams added. “SMBA offers scholarships for our programs and we’ll have access to the Shred fleet for kids who want to participate but don’t have a bike.”

The first Ned SHRED mountain biking day for the elementary school students will be on Friday, May 5, 2023. Third graders will get to take the fleet of bikes out to Mud Lake to try out their skills on some flat trails, with many who will be learning how to ride for the first time. The fourth graders will be biking out to Mud Lake on Friday, May 12, and the fifth graders will take the fleet out on Friday, May 19.

“We started talking about this in the fall of last year and the committee has been so wonderful,” Williams mentioned. “It’s been great to work with the parents in the PTA and with Gavin (Coombs) at Peak to Peak Endurance to get this together and we’re so excited to get it off the ground this year, and we can have this great program in the spring and hopefully the fall as well!”

“Our executive director started the SMBA program at the Nederland Elementary School when he was PE teacher there 30 years ago,” Williams said. “So it’s really great to see that there’s still this interest in getting our kids outside and getting them out on bikes and providing this opportunity for kids who might not normally have it.”

Thanks to the amazing and inventive collaborative efforts from organizations like the Ned PTA, Peak to Peak Endurance, and SMBA, the introductory burdens that can discourage kids from being able to enjoy the experience of riding a bike have been lifted. With the Ned SHRED program, more of our younger residents now have the opportunity to get on a bike, be trained by professionals, learn alongside their peers, and to expand their horizons.

For more information on the Ned SHRED program, visit: https://www.peaktopeakendurance.com/partners.

For more information on the SMBA program, who are preparing to celebrate their 30th anniversary, go to: https://smba.lertprograms.com.