Coach’s Guide to NICA Race Weekends
For Head Coaches and Team Directors
Three weeks or more before race weekend
Registration – Ensure all students and coaches are fully registered in Pit Zone.
Coaches need a green check by their names and Student-athletes need a “yes” in the “Practice Ready” column of the Pit Zone profile by TUESDAY of race week. Late registration is open Sat. on-site and includes a $25 late fee.
Practices – Help your students prepare by incorporating race scenarios in practice.
Ideas include: staging, race starts, passing, feed zone/hand ups. If you want more detailed practice plans, check out NICA’s Pre-Race Activity Plan.
Rules / Handbook – Become familiar with the NICA Handbook.
All coaches, student-athletes, and parents should be familiar with the NICA Handbook and the Texas Exemptions (Page 87 of the Handbook), as well as the penalties associated with rule violations.
Coaching Team – Organize your coaching and volunteer team.
The Head Coach will attend each race weekend OR designate an acting head coach by emailing the League Director. The Head Coach and Team Director should ensure enough licensed coaches attend each race to support pre-ride with appropriate coach-to-student-athlete ratios. It is also a good idea to designate coaches or parent volunteers to help with staging, feed zones, finish-line support, etc.
Categories – Check your student athlete’s categories in Pit Zone and make sure they are in the appropriate category for their skill level.
Categories are determined by a formula based on the previous season’s NICA results. You can review this information in the Category Placement Table. The formula does not account for extenuating circumstances or athlete training. It also does not place new student-athletes. Therefore, coaches should review the placement for all athletes and submit petitions if an athlete should be recategorized. The deadline to submit the Category Placement Petition form is the Friday of the weekend before the race (ten days before the race).
Home Teams – Review the Home Team Schedule on the Race Flyer Webpages.
Each team is assigned one race per season to serve as a Home Team. Home Teams are responsible for filling most volunteer positions at their home races. We would love to have volunteers from every team at every race so your families are not limited to volunteering at only your home race.
Team Communications – Set up your race day communications tools.
Official race day communications will be on TeamSnap and hand-held radios.
TeamSnap: The League provides every team with a TeamSnap account. Head Coaches and Team Directors should be included in the League’s “Texas Coaches” chat and the “North/South Conf. Coaches Chat.”
Hand-Held Radios: Teams should also have at least one Rocky Talkie (or similar) radio to receive real-time updates from race officials. While we do our best to provide updates on TeamSnap and through PA announcements, those methods are not always available. Our partners at Rocky Talkie offer a discount for all teams. For a Rocky Talkie discount:
- Download your coach license from Pit Zone
- Apply for the Rocky Talkie Pro Deal
- When prompted to upload a verification file, upload your coach license.
Communications Set Up: Our Operations Manager, Mike, will be happy to help you set up your communications tools or answer any questions. mike@texasmtb.org.
Rules / Handbook
Become familiar with the NICA Handbook and the Texas Exemptions
(Page 87 of the Handbook).
All coaches, student-athletes and parents should be familiar with the rules and penalties associated with rule violations.
Race Week
Race Flyer Web Page – Read and share the Race Page.
Every race has a dedicated web page with relevant information for the weekend. This is where you will find directions to the race venue, venue-specific rules, venue and camping maps, the race schedule, etc. Answers to most of the questions we get from families can be found on the race web page.
Coaches Call – MONDAY – Attend the coaches’ call.
Coaches’ calls take place Monday at 7:00 pm before each race weekend. An email invitation will be sent to the Head Coach and Team Director of each team. If the Head Coach or Team Director is unable to attend, they may share the call link with a delegate from the team.
Team Meeting / Information – Share race information with your team.
Many teams host a team call after the Coaches’ call to review the race weekend presentation and go over team-specific activities and expectations.
Call-Ups – THURSDAY – Review the call-ups.
Head Coaches and Team Directors will receive the call-ups (the order in which athletes are staged at the start) from the League Director no later than Thursday evening. It is the coach’s responsibility to share this information with their team. Student-athletes will be responsible for knowing their call-up information and will need to have it marked on their arms when they arrive at staging.
Weather – THURSDAY – Watch official league channels for weather-related changes.
In the event of inclement weather forecasts, the League will strive to make calls to cancel races by noon on the Thursday before race weekend. Due to the unpredictable and emergent nature of Texas weather, this may not always be possible. Any decisions regarding canceling, postponing, or altering race start times, lap length, number of laps, etc. will be made jointly by the Texas League director, the Associate League Director, the League Weather Manager, and the race land manager.
Venue Waiver – Remind your families to sign the venue waiver.
The online venue waiver must be signed by every race participant and spectator. The waiver only needs to be completed once per season and will be valid at all venues. Waiver completion will be checked at the entrance to each race.
Volunteers – Recruit Volunteers.
It takes more than 100 volunteers to put on a NICA race weekend and we need your help. Encourage your families to sign up to volunteer. This is particularly important if you are a home team. No experience is required.
Race Weekend – Friday
Most information you will need for the race weekend will be found on the race weekend’s web page.
Camping – Review the venue map and pick a team camping location on-site.
The majority of teams choose to camp at races. Please review the venue map on the race page for appropriate camping locations. Have a game plan in place for communicating with your team where you will be camped.
At most venues, campsites are on a first-come You may not stake out your campsite before venue gates open on Friday of the race weekend. Camping is encouraged, but not required. Many teams have families who choose hotels or AirBnBs.
A few venues offer limited RV hookups. Coordinate RV hookup reservations with the land owners.
Venues – Understand and share the rules at different venues.
Share venue information with your families.
Venue Gate Hours: gate hours can be found on the race web page.
Venue Rules: For example, dogs are allowed at most of our venues but not at all of them. If someone brings a pet to a venue where they are not allowed, they will be denied entrance. The race flyers will have all of this information for each venue.
Venue Fees: Venue fees are the same at each venue this season. Venue fees go to the venue owners/organizations who manage and maintain the trails and camping areas that we are using.
Venue Waivers: Don’t forget to have everyone sign the venue waiver before you get to the venue.
Race Weekend – Saturday
Packet & Race Plate Pick-Up – 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. – Pick up your packet at the Registration tent.
Packets: Team packets will be at the registration tent at your first race. The packet will include race plates for all coaches/athletes who were registered by Tues. of race week. It will also include coach lanyards for the staging and feed zone areas. Race plates and lanyards should be kept and used all season. Replacements will be $10 each.
Race Plates: The race plate goes on the front of the bike to identify the rider and has a timing transponder on the back. Coaches and Students must have a race plate on their bike to be on course at any time during race weekends. On race day, athletes must also have a number on the back of their jersey when entering the staging area. The race plate with the transponder must be affixed to the bike. The back plate will not be read by the timing system and cannot be used as a substitute for the race plate.
Team Pit Zones – Set up your pit zone, a space for teams to come together.
Team pit zones are located near the course’s start/finish line. The pit zone area is designated for team setup and preparation. Typically teams set up a canopy, bike rack, bike trainers, etc. to help riders prepare for races and cheer on their teammates.
Setup: The setup period is Sat. morning from 9 to 11 am. Vehicles are allowed into the pit zone to unload gear and equipment during this period. After the setup period, vehicles are not allowed in pit zone until infield teardown.
Team takedown: Vehicles are allowed back in and out of the pit zone during infield takedown.
Coaching tip: Setting up the team’s pit zone is a great leadership activity for team captains. Have your students set up the canopy, bike racks, and snacks.ve your students set up the easy-up tent, bike racks and snacks.
Pre-Rides – Check your team’s pre-ride time.
Pre-ride times change every race and are posted on the race page. You may begin your pre-ride at any time within your team’s pre-ride time. For example, if your team’s pre-ride is from 11 a.m. – noon, you may begin at 11:30 a.m.
The pre-ride is a chance for riders to get to know the course they’ll be racing on. It’s a great opportunity for students to figure out tricky areas and make sure they know what to expect when racing the course. For students who race multiple laps, pre-rides allow them to become familiar with feed zones and multi-lap connectors.
Saturday Activities – Get involved and watch your team thrive!
GRiT is the league’s program to get more girls and women on bike. Each Saturday features an all-girls GRiT ride at 3 p.m. and activities at the GRiT tent.
Adventure hosts activities for students from any team to participate in on Saturday.
Team Activities: Some teams have traditions, such as wiffleball, kickball, or campfire jams.
Neutral Support Zone – Keep the wheels turning.
The neutral support zone is available Saturday and Sunday. Mechanics from Trek and local bike shops are on site to help student-athletes with bike mechanical issues that may arise during the race weekend.
Race Weekend – Sunday
Sportsmanship
Cheer for everyone on every team at every race!
At TX NICA, we give our best, support each other, and celebrate every rider’s hard work and achievement. No matter the team, every student-athlete deserves to be cheered on and supported. Teach your student-athletes to behave with courtesy and respect whether they are hanging out in the infield, passing or being passed on the course, or crossing the finish line. NICA athletes display outstanding sportsmanship on and off the course.
Coaches Meeting – 8:15 a.m. – Attend the mandatory coaches meeting.
8:15 a.m. a head coaches meeting is held at the registration tent.
This meeting is the last chance for the event crew to share any final race/event changes and information. The crew learns a lot during Saturday’s pre-ride day and there are often important updates.
Coaching tip: Plan to have a meeting with your team to relay any information from the meeting.
This meeting is mandatory. If a team does not have a coach represented, a penalty may be assessed.
Race Schedule – Review the schedule and communicate it to your team.
Start/staging times are found on the race page. Many teams copy the start/staging times onto a large whiteboard to have in their team pit zones or team camps so it is easy to see and easy to edit.
Coaching tip: Give your team’s student leadership tasks like helping to round up the team’s middle school riders.
Staging – Review the staging instructions to ensure your students are ready.
Start/Staging times are posted on the race pages. Staging time is the time an athlete must be at the start gate (A, B, or C) and ready to enter into the start chute. Student-athletes who arrive early may start pre-sorting themselves by their call-up numbers. Those who arrive late may be sent to the back row. Student-athletes are responsible for knowing their call-up information and having it marked on their arms before staging.
Feed Zone – Designate a feed zone volunteer.
Feed zone lanyards are included in your team packet and must be worn by anyone entering the Feed Zone. This area is designated for providing riders with hydration and nutrition during multi-lap races in a safe, controlled manner. Designated coaches, riders, or volunteers can enter the feed zone and hand off food, bottles, glasses, jackets, etc. to riders as they pass by. This is the only area on course where this support can be provided.
See the NICA Handbook for detailed feed zone rules.
Results – Check all results.
Live result feeds can be found on race day at https://my.raceresult.com/events/
- Enter TX NICA
- Select the race weekend
We will make every effort to have live/online results, but that is not always possible. Be mindful that live results may not reflect time penalty assessments or other errors such as missed chip-reads.
Preliminary results will be printed and posted on a-frame signs near the registration area in infield. The posting of the results will be announced over official league channels.
Questions or Protests: Questions about results, protests, and opposition to penalties must be filed at the registration tent by a Head Coach or Team Director (cannot be the athlete’s parent) within 15 minutes of the posting of the preliminary results. Student-athletes may join the coach. Parents, friends, and other spectators may ask questions about results but cannot officially submit a protest or be present for the protest discussions. After the timely protests and opposition to penalties are considered, ruled upon, and approved by the League Director or the Chief Referee, the results on race day shall be official. Unless otherwise stated in a decision or ruling, such decisions and rulings made on race day regarding protests and penalties are conclusive. At the discretion of the League Director or Chief Referee, the decision and ruling on a protest or opposition to a penalty may be deferred until after race day.
Final Results: After all timely protests have been considered, the results will be reposted if necessary and will be considered official. The official results may not be reflected online immediately. The online results will be updated to reflect the official placings no later than Tuesday after the race. dered official. The official results may not be reflected online immediately. The online results will be updated to reflect the official placings no later than Tuesday after the race.
Podiums – Approx. 3 p.m. – Help take down infield, then enjoy podiums.
NICA is a volunteer-run organization and we all help tear down the infield. First things first, infield clean-up. We start tearing down after the last rider is cheered across the finish line. At this point, the more volunteers who help clean up the infield, the quicker it goes.
In general, the infield is cleaned up ~3 p.m. and podiums are wrapped up ~4 p.m.
Podiums are awards ceremonies for the top 5 racers in a category. Regardless of team, these student-athletes have given a lot to achieve what they have and all of them would love more cheers.
