Partnership with National Interscholastic Cycling Association a win for all 

Photos courtesy of NICA

What’s the most important cycling organization in the United States? You can make a compelling argument that the designation belongs to the National Interscholastic Cycling Association (NICA). Indeed, since its inception in 2011, the now-national high school mountain bike racing league has grown into a powerful two-wheeled force for good, boasting exponential growth, delivering significant economic impact, and providing a launching pad for some of the country’s best young cyclists. But most important of all is simply that NICA is continually providing a runway to get more kids on bikes, which is a primary driver for why Shimano is one of the program’s major sponsors.

There are many reasons why Shimano is excited to be involved with NICA. But what really gets us fired up is seeing kids out on mid-week training sessions. You’ll see 10-20 riders and coaches on the trail just having fun on bikes. That’s really where the magic happens, those day-to-day interactions where these kids learn to embrace cycling as a lifestyle. That is something that will stay with them for the rest of their lives.

Currently that magic is happening in 28 states with six new leagues (Kentucky, Missouri, South Carolina, Kansas, Ohio, and Nebraska) coming on board last year. That works out to approximately 27,000 participating student athletes and 14,000 coaches. And everyone involved is guided by the NICA mission statement and vision, which state in part that the aim is to “build strong minds, bodies, character, and communities through cycling” and that “every youth is empowered to be part of a thriving and engaged cycling community” that values fun, inclusivity, equity, and respect.

Of course, there are also plenty of inspiring success stories. Pro mountain biker Kate Courtney came up through the Northern California NICA ranks and went on to win the 2018 world cross-country championship title and compete in the 2020 Olympics. Fellow U.S. XC pro and fellow 2020 Olympian Haley Batten raced for Utah’s Park City NICA program. Colorado-native Sepp Kuss was a member of the Durango High School NICA team and has since become a top World Tour road pro, winning a stage at the 2021 Tour de France and finishing 8th overall at the 2021 Vuelta a España. And fellow Durango NICA graduate Christopher Blevins also competed at last summer’s Olympics and later became the first American man to win a World Cup cross country race in more than two decades. The list goes on.

There are also plenty of success stories that have nothing to do with racing. Just witness the list of programs NICA has launched over the years, which includes GRiT (Girls Riding Together), the trail advocacy-focused Teen Trail Corps, and NICA Adventure, which aims to help participants experience camaraderie, community, health, and outdoor appreciation. 

Taken in total, it’s a stunning resume for a program that traces its genesis to 1998 when a Berkeley High School math teacher named Matt Fritzinger put out a call for students to join a road cycling club. Five kids showed up, all with mountain bikes, and the rest is history with NICA leagues first popping up in Northern and then Southern California, before making the methodical trek across the rest of the country. And the program is just getting started.

In the next five years, NICA hopes to grow to about 80,000 student athletes and 30,000 coaches. The goal to eventually get into all 50 states. That’s good news for all those kids—and the local communities where they race. NICA has done a number of community surveys and on average there is $180,000 of economic impact from just a single race weekend. And if you take upwards of 100,000 people all involved in NICA, it’s clear they’re a significant economic driver in the cycling world.

Shimano has a played a big role in helping build and maintain that momentum and is looking forward to the continued growth of the NICA program and getting more kids on bikes.