Becoming a bike guide from scratch ( jobless track world )

Sup guys – DID search but just got MRP, blackspire and e13 threads.

I will soon be made redundant from a job that I dont like that didn’t pay too well anyway. Was going to start a masters but for next academic year it’s too soon. My ex has sort of told me I should try travelling, then I sort of started looking at travelling jobs etc before looking at my bike and wondering how hard it is to become a bike guide. I guess I’d need a first aid course – how doable is this?

Any advice appreciated.

Cheers

Viv

Looked into doing this myself, if you want to do it properly look up SMBLA, there is a lot more involved than you may think and it takes quite a while to do!

So far I just haven’t had the time or money to actually get on and do the courses and assesments.

Having said that if it is something you really want to do then I’m sure you will find a way!

There are 2 routes to go with if you’re starting from scratch.
The MBLA (was SMBLA) and the CTC.

MBLA is dedicated to mountain bike with three levels of qualifications, TCL (trail cycle leader), MBL (mountain bike leader) and then an instructor (which you need to be recommended for).

For TCL and MBL you need to have a log book of 20 rides within the remit of whichever grade you’re going for. You then go to a 2 day training course, after which you’ll be given an action plan to work through before going on the 1 day assesment. This will include a set amount of ride to log.
You have to do the TCL before the MBL.
I’ve done courses with 1mtb1… 1mtb1 and can highly recomend Jonathon.

The CTC have a wider range of courses from mountain bike to road. They also do skills training courses and coaching courses. I’ve only done a basic course with CTC and found the course to be excellent.

It depends what you want to offer, if it’s purely off road guiding with just the basic skills session go MBLA, if you want a wide portfolio on and off road go CTC.
Or mix and match the most appropriate course from each.
Hope this helps.

Oh, forgot to say that with both MBLA and CTC you must have a valid 1st aid qualification and British Cycling membership to keep your bike qualifications valid.

wishiwascalledsteve – yes that’s very very helpful, im more interested in mountain biking and travel opportunities really to tcl to mbl maybe a good bet…

No worries, they are excellent courses, you’ll learn things little things to help your biking aswell as well as your guiding.

TCL remit is…
-90-95% ridable.
-no more than 30min from the nearest ambulance accessible road or a shelter from where it’s possible to summon help.
-normal summer conditions in daylight hours
-multi day trips that arent self sufficient.

MBL remit is…
-90-95% ridable.
-terain over 30min for accessible road or shelter.
-any height above sea level.
-normal summer conditions in daylight hours.
-multi day trips that aren’t self sufficient.

Also forget to mention the MBLA add ons, once you’ve done TCL or MBL you can follow up with either an expedition module, night riding module or winter module to help expand your remit.

There’s also MIAS which i’ve not heard of before googling it…
MIAS[/url]

do you speak german or italian?

route to becoming a guide is much easier. first aid certificate is (obviously) necessary, but there are fewer stages to getting your license. don’t know if my german certificate is valid in the uk, but i live in germany so it’s irrelevant for me.

i know that in france they have something similar (paper work wise) to the uk.

i have my MAIS qualification, you’ll need your mountain leader award to get the level 3 and work with groups above 600m.

If your looking at doing it abroad then you may need a local qualification.

I’d say speak to some bike guiding companies and see which qualifications they recognise.

alpin – nah just english – so far….

seems like there is actually quite a lot involved and something I could quickly sort out for this year – still worth doing for long term though…

Get the first aid certificate. Minimum I think should be REC level 2, which will take a couple of weekends and cost about £100 and is valid for 3 years.

If you are looking to work outside of the EU the next best thing to sort is the work visa for the country you are headed to.

Remember, if you are able to legally work in a country and can be flexible on start dates, have the right driving licence and attitude you might be more employable than someone with just an SMBLA or similar. If you are also handy with the spanners and they have a hire fleet you can add that as another reason they may employ you before you get fully qualified. Some companies just needs an assistant guide or a dogsbody to help run the place, clean up after the guests, and do the airport transfers etc.

Once you get out there you’ll quickly rack up the rides that you need to log for the SMBLA Exams/test rides and you’ll make good contacts whilst working in the trade.

Good Luck, the hours can be long, the guests annoying, the locals odd but the cycling is always fantastic. It was how I spent my gap year and looking back I’d definitely do it again 🙂

PS – The other thing to remember is when riding with guests you are riding for them – not yourself. Don’t go leaving them behind because they are slower than you or can’t do the technical stuff.

The most rewarding thing is when they can confidently ride something at the end of the week that they couldn’t at the start.

that’s great advice cheers – i’m not ruling it out, just lots of work and not exactly a quick fix – definitely something I’d pursue though…

BigEaredBiker – Member

PS – The other thing to remember is when riding with guests you are riding for them – not yourself. Don’t go leaving them behind because they are slower than you or can’t do the technical stuff.

The most rewarding thing is when they can confidently ride something at the end of the week that they couldn’t at the start.

+1

It’s (too?) easy to get guiding qualifications. When I did my REC course, I didn’t even have to do an assessment but I don’t know if that’s always the case? I wouldn’t want to be guided by someone wit my first aid experience!! I remember talking to Johnny Smoke of Bushpilot and he couldn’t believe how easy it is for Brits to get ‘qualified’ to guide. I think he is more qualified to guide than all the British guides in Canada put together. So if you want to make a long term living out of guiding, I’d put in a lot more work into it than the courses mentioned above.