fREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Registration:

Event:

Other:

REGISTRATION

1. How do I know if my child is registered?

If you have registered online by credit card , you should receive an automatic response with details, please bring this to the event .
When you enter more than one child, you may just receive one set of receipt / e-ticket but with right amount of how much you have paid (for 2 - 3 children). That means your children are entered successfully. If you do not receive receipt then your payment has not gone through, or the e mail address you have typed was wrong. Do a search on registered entrants list on " Entrants directory
If you mail an entry in, you will receive a mailed response within 1 week IF YOU sent in a stamped addressed envelope , otherwise there is no registration / confirmation reply.

2. What shall I do, if the automatic response for online entry confirmation do not appear in my inbox?

  • The e mail address you typed in probably had a small error!!!
  • Check the entrants directory. The successful online entrants will be shown on the competitor list. The list is organised by region, then alphabetically by child's last name.
  • If you do not find your entry, search by childs First name - as sometimes this is entered in the wrong field.
  • If your entry is not coming up after search, that means your entry has not gone through for some reason and you need to enter again or contact us info@kidsbikejams.co.nz.

3. What age category can my child enter??

For 2012 the courses are by length and how tricky they are not by age. However, there are some restrictions with minimum and maximum ages - please check General Info page for full details.
The courses are unsuitable for trainer wheels - so no trainer wheels!!
Whilst the event is primarily aimed at 5 - 13 year olds children younger or older can participate. For those under 5 years they must be competent off road on a two wheeler, or can go on a trailer bike behind a parent or in a bike seat!!
Parents wishing to ride around the course with a child 7 years or over will need to be with their child at the back of the 'pack'.

4. Can we enter on the day?

NO, to ensure we have enough medals and also need to know in advance how many children will be participating.

5. Can I get refunds?

Up to early bird date there will be $15 refund, after which there is no refund. The reason being that we will have incurred all our costs- registration, administration, plus medals, waterbottles, etc are all ordered.
To with draw please email us - info@kidsbikejams.co.nz - with: name of child, event entered and your bank account details.

6. What age can my child be to enter?

Normally the youngest age is 4 years and oldest 13 years, the important things are the child can ride a pedal two wheeler, and if they are 6 yrs or under an adult MUST accompany them, If they are over 13 years thats fine, its not a race so really doesn't matter!

7. Do adults need to enter/register?

No. Adults can follow their kids on the course and there is no need for adults to enter or register in any way.
NB: Adults accompanying kids 7+yrs and on the medium and long courses have to ride at the back of the group.

8. Can I register my child(ren) in another event this year?

To do so use the same email address on the Start page, choose event region, click "continue", then click "If you wish to start a new registration using the same email address" and lastly "click here"

EVENT

1. How long is my course?

The courses vary in length at the different locations, and also from year to year. There are three grades:
Short – aimed at younger kids and those new to off road riding, recommended for 7 years and under; generally flat and not much tricky stuff, approximate distance 2.5- 3 kms
Medium – aimed at 7 – 9 years, who have done some off road riding; generally flat / undulating, may have some tricky bits, eg roots. Approximate distance – 5 - 7kms
Long – minimum age 8 years, kids who are confident riders and reasonably fit; likely to include a variety of terrain, including flat, undulating, short steep sections, single track, tricky stuff – roots, rocks. Distance 7 – 10km.
The terrain has more of an effect on the difficulty of the course than the actual length, so check out the pages for the different event locations.

CHRISTCHURCH ; NAPIER  ; WELLINGTON ; AUCKLAND ; PALMERSTON NORTH; HAMILTON

2. What time do we have to turn up on the day?

Due to larger numbers - Christchurch will have different registration times - see relevant pages
Registration
9.30 - 10.10am: Long course
10.15 - 10.45am: Medium course
10.45 - 11.10: Short course

There will be a briefing just before each category starts. EVERYONE must attend, so make sure you are there and listening hard!
Wgtn / ChCh - check out the relevant event pages

3. When does each course start?

Because every event is different, the number of kids at each centre and the number in each each grade varies, we cannot give definite start times however the order is : 1. - Long 2. - Medium 3. - Short

4. Can girls ride with boys??

Riders will start in the following order
Boys
Girls
Those riding with parents, or on trailer bikes

NB; Confident girls can choose to ride with the boys.

Waves
Within the groups there will be ‘waves’ of about 20 riders, we recommend that those wanting to go flat out position themselves near the front while those wanting to cruise go further back.

5. Why are there no placing prizes?

The main goal of the jams is to encourage kids to bike and for it to be enjoyable.
It is generally only the top 5-10% of kids who are good enough to seriously "worry"about winning. This event is aimed at all 100% of kids who participate and we want them all to get a personal sense of achievement by finishing the course and enjoying it.

6. Skills competitions - what are they??

They are different at each event and are for the kids 10 years and over who want to see how "good" their skills are compared to others!

7. Wet weather - no cancellations..

Mountain Biking is an all weather activity and kids love mud, so we dont cancel because of rain, and recomend water proofs, gum boots etc!!!

OTHER

1. What sort of bike can my child use??

Any two wheeler kids bike with pedals, provided it has good brakes,"knobbly" tyres and NO trainer wheels.

2. Where can I get the bike checked?? And do I need to get a written proof from the shop??

Any bike shop should be able to do a quick (free or low cost) check on brakes, tyres, head set, gears, BUT any work required will need to be paid for. There is a list of recommended bike shops, if however, none of these are near you please go to your local bike shop.
NO! We don require any written proof from the shop.


3. Other questions?

If you cant find an answer to your query here or on the rest of the site, you can email us info@fordwardthinking.co.nz (please allow a couple of working days for a reply)

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