Over the past week, four RCMP officers (two from Kimberley detachment and two from Cranbrook detachment) took part in Police Mountain Bike Training.

The course, which takes place over several days, covered a wide variety of topics associated to cycling; proper equipment, bike fit and operation start the week off.

A time trial is done to ensure the candidates are fit and ready for the physical challenges.   A lot of time is spent on traffic safety and the rules of the road, this ensures officers can safely negotiate through heavy traffic and educate others, noted course instructor, Cpl. Chris Newel of Kimberley RCMP.

Once officers are confident in overcoming obstacles such as stairs and other barriers they move on to police tactics. Dealing with subjects and pulling over vehicles on bike is considerable different than doing it in a marked fully equipped police vehicle. Safety is very important, as you don’t have a vehicle to utilize, Newel said.

Officers also underwent a stress shoot, where they cycled hard and fast for one kilometre, then with an elevated heart rate go through a course of fire as a directed.

“The bike patrols are very effective particularly in heavily populated areas. Subjects generally do not hear a bike approach and they are caught before they realize it,” Newel said, adding, “The officers on bike patrol interact more with the public because they are more approachable making them a great community policing initiative.”

Although bikes can be used throughout the season, they are most often seen during Sam Steele Days in Cranbrook and JulyFest in Kimberley.

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