Officials Level B Program

Module System

This is the system for upgrading to level B on the road. There are a series of modules to be taken, before moving up to level B. The advantages to this system are as follows:

• The official controls their own pace of advancement
• A lack of a clinic in an area will not be a hindrance
• The process will make for a much better official
• The checks will make sure that the official has learned the material and has the practical experience to upgrade.
• Through this process, the official will be in close contact with a member of the USA Cycling Technical Commission, as well as the on-site Chief Referee, who will be able to give valuable mentoring and evaluation to the official

Pathway to Upgrading

In a perfect world, a new official will start out working races under the tutelage of more experienced officials and will gradually work in positions of more and more responsibility until eventually working as Chief Referees and Chief Judges. The modules are organized in a progressive manner with the lower numbered ones being more basic. It is hoped that by the end of the process, the official who is ready to upgrade to level B is also ready to be Chief Referee of local races. Therefore, the last module involve the tasks of a Chief Referee, including pre-race, during, and post-race responsibilities.

Of course, the world is rarely perfect, and sometimes an official is called upon to advance more quickly (hopefully not too quickly). You might be the only official in half your state. In this case, before being assigned as a Chief Referee, you will need to complete at least the pre-event parts of the Chief Referee module before working your first race as a Chief. Your Local Association officials assigner and the Regional Technical Commission (RTC)  should work to get you into an event with a more experienced CR so you can complete the modules.

Upgrading Requirements

To upgrade to level B, you must successfully complete the 11 required modules:

Module 0 – Customer Service
Module 1 (Assistant Judge-criterium) – Judging and Scoring
Module 2 (Assistant Judge-TT ) – Timing
Module 3 (Assistant Judge-Stage Race) – Judging omniums and stage races
Module 4 (Assistant Referee/Pit) – Working a pit at a Criterium
Module 5 (Assistant Referee/Crit) – Working as an assistant referee at a Criterium
Module 6 (Assistant Referee Vehicle) – Working races from a follow car
Module 7 (Assistant Referee/TT) – Working a TT as a stager/whip/holder
Module 8 (Assistant Referee/Starter) – Acting as starter for a TT
Module 9 (Radio) – Using proper radio protocol
Module 10 (Chief Referee) – Managing races as Chief Referee

 

Format of the Modules

Each module comes with several parts:

• Introductory material that explains the goals of the module and any prerequisites, including required reading
• A module pre-test that you will complete and then check your own answers in the back.
• The observed practical tasks of the material that you perform to pass the module
• A check-off sheet where the tasks can be documented by the Chief Referee of the race(s) where you complete the module

Some modules are longer than others. Some could easily be done in one race. Others specifically require working multiple races. Some require tasks you might not see at every race, so you might have to work several before the situation presents itself. Some modules have more theory and less practical than others too.

How to get started

The first thing to do is to contact one of your designated Technical Commission members regarding this process. Each USA Cycling region has at least two members of the National Technical Commission and several more members of your Regional Technical Commission. These people will be managing the level B road upgrade process. Here are links to the people you will want to start communicating with (click on their names to email them):

WESTERN REGION – AK, CA, HI, ID, NV, OR, WA

Tod Manning  (WA) 425-922-9003

Dan MacLeod (OR) 541-815-6784

MOUNTAIN AND SOUTHERN REGION – AR, AZ, CO, KS, MT, NM, OK, TX, UT, WY

Bonnie Walker  (TX) 512-461-4632

Andy McCord (CO) 719-651-4596

Dan Thomas (CO) 970-261-6845

SOUTHEASTERN REGION – AL, FL, GA, LA, MS, NC, SC, TN

Steve Brady (GA) 404-498-8725

Chuck Hodge (SC) 864-414-9290

MIDWEST REGION – IA, IL, IN, KY, MI, MN, MO, ND, NE, OH, SD, WI

Heidi Mingesz (WI) 262-877-4862

Bruce Brasaemle (MN) 612-708-4834

NORTHEAST REGION – CT, DC, DE, MA, MD, ME, NH, NJ, NY, PA, RI, VA, VT, WV

Ed Dailey (PA) 610-283-9900

Tom Nee (NY) 914-715-6863

The next thing to do would be to take a look at the modules themselves, which can be downloaded by clicking on the links on the module lists above. These modules were updated in early 2013.