INTRODUCTION
Rollapaluza is a fantastic gateway into cycling Suitable for ages 7 and up, we offer children with little or no cycling ability a chance to participate in a thrilling bike event on quality equipment. In the last year Rollapaluza ran over one hundred school events. In recent years we have worked closely with Sustrans, CTC, local authorities, educational establishments and other groups to bring our unique activity into schools throughout the country. Rollapaluza aims to promote cycling as a means of transport, a healthy leisure activity and sport to as many people as possible including non-cyclists and people who do not currently participate in physical activity or exercise.
We reach out to groups underrepresented in the cycling community, ethnic groups where cycling is not a common pursuit and those who may not normally be exposed to cycling. Our events encourage participation in an activity using the same equipment on which some the UK’s most successful athletes have competed, Sir Chris Hoy and Victoria Pendleton, have raced Rollapaluza. Rollapaluza helps to increase access to cycling for groups where opportunities are limited by income, equipment, skills or information.
The events we run provide positive messages supporting the status of cycling to the public. The overriding factor of all our events is the enjoyment of both participants and spectators with a usual 100% participation in each class group.
HOW WE ROLL
Choose from two different, fun-packed Rollapaluza formats to suit your needs Rollapaluza can be setup in any school location, in the classroom, PE Hall, canteen or under our Gazebo in the playground. We recommend participation in groups of between 24 and 30, with a maximum capacity of around 36 students per hour. Each group is briefed about the equipment and the activity before they take part. Our crew assist all participants in setting up the bike to the correct size for each individual and giving them tips on cycling and Rollapaluza. We ask for a member of teaching staff to also be present at all times.
All students are encouraged to race in pairs, which can be boy against boy, girl against girl or boy against girl, though we record their times in separate male and female categories as well as their age group. We record their name and race time, which we write on a Rollapaluza time card as a memento of their race. If there is time towards the end of the session, we try to run finals between the fastest racers or allow second attempts. According to individual school policies we take a “snap” of each participant, these photos along with full results are uploaded to our website.
Your school can choose to opt out of this standard service or request that this page is password protected and not publically viewable. During the activity current pop music is played in the background, one of our team “MC’s” the event announcing racers and results as well as generating atmosphere. Teaching staff are asked to cheer-lead and encourage spectating children to do the same. We can forward our teaching materials regarding Rollapaluza, a printable document with short exercises in Art and Design, Biology, English and Music, with info on cycling and health!
RACE-READY
Our unique equipment boasts custom track bikes and digital timing Our rigs, manufactured to our own exacting design. We have replaced the front wheel with a support that connects the bike directly to the roller rig; this removes the need to balance, allowing the participant to pedal safely at high cadence. The riders’ progress is tracked on a giant dial, viewable from up to 50 metres away indoors or out. Our dual digital timers display the length of time it has taken for the riders to cover race distance. The first rider to complete the distance sets off flashing beacons, so spectators can see who has won the moment the race has finished.
The ‘Two Up’ rig is the most popular option and allows head-tohead racing for two riders at a time. Using our ’Have a Go’ format we can run up to 18 races an hour. The ‘Four Up’ rig allows head-to-head racing for up to four riders at a time. Using our ‘Have a Go’ format we can run up to 15 races an hour (60 riders). This larger rig offers additional format options including team racing, two against two and four-person team time trials. The ‘BMX’ rig showcases our adult and kid suitable top of the range Haro BMX bikes. Racing out of the saddle over a shorter distance this is all about high speed acceleration.
Safety First: The only
thing we place above the enjoyment of our clients is their health and safety. Our equipment is built to very high standards and is regularly checked and tested to make sure it is in top condition. We can provide DBS (CRB) checked staff and each team includes a qualified First Aider. All our events are insured with our comprehensive public liability policy. If any of your students or participants have medical conditions we advise that you contact your GP prior to taking part in this activity. We strive to achieve complete client satisfaction with every aspect of our events. We pride ourselves on being flexible and helpful. If you would like to discuss how we can manage an event for you, please contact us by email: info@rollapaluza.com
TESTIMONIALS
Everybody gets the chance to get on a bike and give it their best shot making it a truly inclusive activity. I attended a Rollapaluza event at Hampstead School as part of a wider programme of activities to engage young people in cycling. This was by far the most popular, with pupils giving up their lunch hour to race against each other, and turning out en masse to support one another. The competitive element encourages people to try their hardest, both tall and short, boys and girls, fast and slow, everybody gets the chance to get on a bike and give it their best shot making it a truly inclusive activity. Rosie Tharp, Community Cycling Officer, London Cycling Campaign
Working in partnership with the chaps at Rollapaluza waseasy. As a new school, all staff and stakeholders felt that our joint event was the highlight of our school year. Feedback from parents and children can be summed up in three words, exciting, challenging and fun. Rollapaluza took care of all risk assessments, timings and costing for the day. This freed us to focus our time and attention on delivering a community event, which could involve all. We focused on encouraging stakeholders to keep fit and have fun together. Rollapaluza also helped us to challenge our gifted and talented children as well as our children with complex communication needs.
The event also gave staff opportunities to plan follow up activities in maths and literacy analysing times and scores of our fastest riders. We will definitely be hiring the team again and the children cannot wait to spin some more! Thank you Rollapaluza we recommend you to all schools with a creative vision for both improvement and inclusion. Mayflower Community School, Plymouth
LB Southwark have hired Rollapaluza to deliver events in Southwark schools over the past 3 to 4 years. All the schools were very enthusiastic about the project and we found it a great way to engage students in cycle awareness and promoting the use of cycling as a transport mode. All the year groups that participated, from year 3 to 11certainly enjoyed the activities and the friendly support from the Rollapaluza crew added to the fun. At one school after a Rollapaluza session we followed this up with a visit to the Herne Hill velodrome, where the students could transfer their roller racing skills onto the track.
It is also a good way to encourage children who can’t cycle to try to learn with Bikeability training. We have also used them for community events, both the larger events as well as smaller housing estate festival days. The always attract positive attention and encourage people to ride the bikes even if they haven’t been on one for many years. We also have encouraged people who can’t cycle to try. It has always been well worth using Rollapaulza and we would highly recommend them to others. Roger Stocker Travel Awareness Officer Transport Planning
So if you want to hold an exciting, gender neutral sporting event in your school, where every pupil can race exactly like their Olympic heroes, then book Rollapaluza! It’s fast, fair and fun. Your pupils will remember it fondly for a long time. Andrew Dade Cycle Training Services Manager Cycle Experience