About WVU Cycling

• How do I join the team?

  Joining the WVU Cycling team is easy. You just have to ride a bike. There are no tryouts to be on the team.

  In the past we've been mostly a race team, but are trying to involved more of a club aspect, with groups rides and more membership by those who dont care to race. The team is run by its members, and the more active the members, the more exciting the club will be.

  We're always looking for active members who just enjoy riding, no matter what skill level or how nice thier bike is, whether they care to race or not.

  As a member of the team you become eligible for many discounts on cycling related gear including.

  • Discount at our local bike shop, Pathfinder
  • Free entry fees for WVU home races
  • Free Team T-Shirt
  • Group rides
  • Clinics
  • Discounted team jerseys
  • Discounts from sponsors like Park Tool, Zipp, Thompson, Hayes, Clif, and others
  • Many others

  There are 2 levels of membership based on membership dues and the amount of effort put into the team. There is a lot of work that goes into a sucessful team, and we're always in need of people looking to expand their education into more than just riding a bike. Basic membership is $15, while race membership is $45 for Fall and $60 for Spring semesters. Race/active membership gives greater and additional discounts.

  Although we train year around on mountain and road bikes, our race season is mountain during Fall semester and road during spring. There are a couple requirements to race in the collegiate conference. First you must be a full-time student, graduate included. Second you must have a racing license through USA Cycling. This provides insurance to the promoters and other benefits. A 1-day can be purchased if you only want to try racing, or an annual for the more eager.

  There has been some interest by high and middle schools, as well as students. If you're either, and would like information, let us know and we'll see if we can help out.

  
  

  Thanks for taking an interest in the team,

  
  

  WVU Cycling

• Where can I store my bike?
  We do not have any official storage space or Bike Room. Each individual member keeps his or her own bike at his or her residence.
  The dorms allow you to store your bike in your room, provided you do not make a large mess, and that your roommate(s) do not mind.
  Try to keep your bike inside, since leaving a bike outside exposes them to weather and theft. Despite the somewhat small dorm rooms, there are ways to store them without being too much in the way.
  You can stand them up along a wall and overlap handlebars. This method takes up about 18" of floor space for the first bike, and about 10" for each additional.
  
  

  Stored side by side in Stalnaker

  You can purchase a stand, which will get the bikes off the floor, for $85-100 at Pathfinder.
  
  

  Stored in a stand in Stalnaker

  For rooms with bunk beds, you can also flip over the bed with the high headboard/footboard, giving enough space to store bikes laid down underneath it.
• Where can I ride?
  • Casual Riding
    Mon River Rail Trails are popular and have dozens of miles of flat, scenic trails to ride on. You can access the trails from many different locations around town. The Mon River Trails site has trail maps and all the information you'd need to find your way there.
  • XC MTB
    Within riding distance of town, we visit White Park and Bakers Ridge. White Park has a series of short little loops for easy to medium skill level, as well as some BMX jumps built into the dirt. Bakers Ridge has a lot of climbing with a few technical trails. For those inclined to drive, Coopers Rock State Forest. We host our collegiate races at Big Bear Lake, one of our sponsors, in Hazleton, WV.
  • Road
    See our Routes Page for ideas on good roads.
  • Gravity
    Wisp in McHenry, MD has some downhill trails open in the summer and they also happen to be one of our sponsors. We host our collegiate gravity events here each Fall. Occassionally we take trips to Snowshoe Mountain for its world-class downhilling.
  • BMX
    White Park has some BMX jumps back among the trails. Poor Farm BMX in Fairmont hosts races and events throughout the year.
• Do you race?
  Yes. We are not an NCAA sport, though. We race intercollegiately through the national cycling organization called USA Cycling. We are within the Atlantic Collegiate Cycling Conference and race against collegest and universities from Maryland, West Virginia, Virginia, and North Carolina. We race mountain bike in the early fall, cyclocross in the late fall, and road in the spring semester. Each week a different school hosts a weekend of races where we compete for points toward conference championship and Nationals qualification. You can view our race schedule here. In order to race, you must order a collegiate racing license from USA Cycling. There are beginner categories so anyone can give racing a try.
• Do I have to race to be a part of the team?
  No. Racing is just one of many aspects of our team. We also participate in community service projects, such as Adopt-a-Highway. We also try to promote cycling and cycling-friendly policies in the community. You can join just to meet other cyclists, to ride with us, to participate in our events, to learn more about how you can fix or take care of your bicycle, or just to find out more about this sport.
• Do you have any girls on the team?
  YES! Even though cycling is a male-dominated sport, our president is a woman, and a pretty badass one at that. Many women may feel intimidated by joining because it doesn't seem like there are many. Email the team account if you are a female cyclist and want to get more involved but aren't too sure yet because of the gender disparity, we'll be happy to help you out.
• What kind of bikes do you ride? How far do you go?
  We ride every bike! We race mountain, cyclocross, and road, but there are also some gravity riders, some BMX (not a whole lot, though, but we are always interested), and even single-speed/fixed gear riders. How far we go depends on the bicycle and what our mood is. Race distances for mountain tend to be about 10-30 miles, and road distances can be from 20 miles for the beginners to 80 for the more elite racers. If you are interested in trying out a certain type of bike, email us and let us know. We might be able to help you borrow a bike on one of our rides to give it a try before you commit to buying one.
• When do you ride?
  As of right now, we do not have any official rides. Since our class schedules vary, we post rides invidually through our forum and meet at the Mountainlair. Somebody from the team will be riding everyday, so keep an eye out on the forum to find out when and what type of ride it is. If you are a member of our forum, you can also post a ride and maybe somebody will join you. We also join rides through the Mon Bike Club, MoTown Girls Club, and Country Road Cyclists.
• How much are dues?
  Dues depend on what type of level and involvement you have with the team. During mountain season/fall semester, club members pay $15 and you receive a 10% discount at Pathfinder and free race entry to our home mountain bike race. Racer dues are $45 but you receive a higher discount at Pathfinder and free race entry to every race that season. Road season/spring semester club member dues are still $15 with the same benefits, but racer dues are $60 because there are more races. The more involved you are in helping out the team, the higher your discount at Pathfinder and the better benefits you receive through our other sponsors.
• Do I have to be a student? What about grad students?
  You must be a full-time enrolled student (grad or undergrad) in order to race for us. If not, you are free to join any of our rides with us.