November 1, 2006 — What an incredible year for the OCA! Membership numbers have soared to record heights and our club system has expanded by 17%.

The OCA’s On-line membership registration system was launched in March of this year with success. Yes there were some growing pains however those have been worked out and we look forward to improving this member service in 2007. The ease of use of on-line registration will expedite the process for our membership and reduce the paper work for all.

Our organizers benefited from the new on-line event registration system put into place. Essentially this is a value added service for our clubs and organizers who want to use it. The only cost passed on to the organizer is the fees (3%) the OCA incurs from the credit card companies. This service allows organizers small and big to provide a system that is linked with our membership database for easy event registration. Now all our organizers can offer this convenience at virtually no cost to them”¦plus they get clean data and eliminate processing entry form after entry form!

The Forest City Velodrome has been operating for more than a year under the roof of the London Icehouse and the results have been incredible. As it is one of only three indoor tracks in North America, it offers our members a year round place to train and race. Our BMX, MTB XC, and even DH riders are taking regular spins at the track. Provincial track championships had 58 participants and is growing rapidly every year. The Velokids program continues to be very popular amongst the youth in the area.

THE YEAR IN FIGURES
Overview of membership numbers
UCI & General members = 2,070
Citizen Permit members = 1,760
Club members = 5947
– Total of 9777 for the year 2006
– In 2005, this number was 8898
– In 2004, this number was 8032
– In 2003, this number was 7654
Average growth of over 9% per year!
There was an increase in UCI licenses for the 6th year in a row.

EVENTS
– In our Mountain Bike XC OCUP series, our overall numbers remain strong with an average of over 600 participants per OCUP. Over 125 Peewee, Minime and Cadets are racing at each OCUP and female participation has steadily grown to almost 19% (from a low of 10.5% in 1998)
– In our premier Road Ontario Cup Series, participation numbers are up again for the 9th year in a row (average of 9% more participants per event from 2005) Our U17 and women participation is up for the 5th year in a row.
– The Downhill OCUP series has grown steadily for four years in a row. Yes Ontario does not have large mountains but we do have a large, healthy downhill racing community. Over 170 DH racers are coming out to each race!
– The racing calendar saw some ups and downs. On the positive side, this year we had more events — we surpassed 100 one-day events and when you add in all the weekly sanctioned series, we were close to 300 race events in 2006. Some of the highlights included:
– The longest standing Canada Cup at Hardwood Hills proved again why it is one of the best attended and healthiest stops on the circuit
– Scott Doel will be organizing a UCI Cyclo-Cross race for the second year in a row in Aurora
– For safety reasons, we had to move our Provincial Road championships one week prior to the event. Thanks to the Cyclissimo club & retail outlet in Aurora, the replacement event exceeded all expectations and provided athletes with a first class Provincial championships
– Plans are in the works for Velofest 2007, an international UCI Road Race that will take place in the Ottawa area
– OCA boasts two Cyclo-Cross series in the province, both averaging almost 100 participants per race

CLUBS
– Up from 92 in 2003, to 114 in 2004, 122 in 2005 and 143 this year!
– More club members each year: 4212 to 4844 to 5131 to 5947 this year — huge growth!

BMX
– With the introduction of our BMX Citizen Permit, we have more than doubled our BMX members to 460. This entry level membership offers a low barrier to entry for the kids who want to get started in a minimal cost, no pressure environment.

COMMISSAIRES
– We now have 30 active Mountain Bike Commissaires in Ontario
– Five new Commissaires in Ontario have become certified instructors

HIGH PERFORMANCE
– Ontario representation on National Team: 21 riders
– 17 Athletes in the top 10 in MTB XC and DH National Championships: up 8 from “˜05 (1G, 3S, 2B)
– 43 Athletes finished in the top 10 in Road/Track National Championships (3G, 1S, 8B)
– 13 BMX Athletes in Top 10 at National Championships
– One Level 1 Technical MTB Coaching course was conducted at Hardwood Hills
– One Level 2 Core Coaching course was conducted in Toronto
– One Level 1 MTB Technical course was conducted in Thunder Bay in partnership with the Coaches Association of Ontario
– One Level 1 Technical Road course was conducted in Toronto
– In addition to the above courses there are two more courses planned for the fall.
– Level 1 Road Technical course
– Level 2 MTB Technical course

Ontario was proud to continue our BMX High Performance program in 2006. With a dedicated coach, Brendan Arnold setting up an annual training and competition program, Team Ontario had four podiums at the National Championships. Team Ontario BMX has the only Level 2 BMX coach in Canada working with 10 Expert and Elite athletes. Six projects planned are for 2007.

OVERALL
The OCA now boasts almost 2000 UCI license holders and when you add in our Citizen Permit holders and club affiliate members, a membership closing in on 10,000. At our recent Board retreat, we have ambitiously set our three year membership target at over 12,500.

In support of our National Federation, we have increased our affiliation fees to the CCA from $25,000 in 2002 to almost $38,000 this year.

The OCA continues to develop and sponsor youth programs including Sprockids and Kids CAN-BIKE. Much work needs to be done in these areas, especially with respect to Sprockids infrastructure. Youth programs and recruitment (“growing the base”) will continue to be a focus for the OCA in the years to come.