• We are a community volunteer run club affiliated to and operating under the guidance of British Cycling
• We are predominantly a Mountain Bike club although we have a few members who actively ride and race road bikes and cyclo-cross bikes. We can hopefully point you in the right direction whatever your discipline, just get in contact.
•  We run weekly sessions on a Saturday morning from 10am until midday during school term time. They tend to run as a circular or point-to-point ride with a few suitable stops for coaching. And occasionally we run a round robin static coaching session with a number of different coaching posts.
• We don't have a formal clubhouse or set location, we run our sessions from different locations around the Minehead area with the occasional trip over to the Quantocks. This we believe gives the children a chance to ride on different terrains whilst learning a range of trails to use when out with their friends & families.
• All our coaches are qualified to a minimum of Level 2 MTB ride leaders, operating under the governance of British Cycling and they all hold outdoor first aid and safeguarding qualifications. The coaches all have a DBS check completed on them which is renewed every 3 years.
• We are Clubmark recognised, awarded by Sport England. Clubmark is a cross sport accreditation scheme for community clubs that has raised the standards of delivery, welfare and programmes within clubs.
• We run low key introductory races at Webbers Post to give children their first taste of racing. However we also run yearly races as part of both the South West Mountain Bike Cross Country series and the South West Cyclo-cross series. We also share all information and recommendations with our membership of other races in the area which maybe of interest.
• We do not run Cycling Proficiency, however the Somerset Road Safety Team tend to run courses through school holiday periods. Please see their website for more information.

What equipment does a child need?

• A child should have their own bike in safe working order (these are checked before setting out on a ride), a helmet and we recommend full finger gloves. Many of the children in the higher level groups also wear knee and elbow protection. 
• We can lend out a small number of bikes and helmets if necessary, please get in touch to discuss.
• A child should also be able to carry their own water, either on the bike or in a rucksack along with a snack and raincoat.

How do the groups work?

Once assessed by one of the coaching team a child will be allocated to one of 4 groups; Green, Blue, Red and Black in ascending order of difficulty.  This will be done purely based upon ability and not age, groups are regularly reviewed as a child progresses or finds they are struggling to keep up.  We are here to help children build both their confidence and skills as they progress through the groups.

How does my child join Merlins?

• Please get in contact with us through the enquiry page of this website and we can give you more details and invite you along for a free trial session.
• At times when there is high demand and we are unable to offer any more places due to our rider to coach ratio limit we operate a waiting list system. We will put children on the list in order of enquiry date and will offer places as soon as we can cater for greater numbers.
• Yearly membership is £10 per year (1st Jan - 31st Dec) or £5 if joining after 1st Sept. Weekly subs are £3 for a single session or £2 per week if paying as a block for the whole half term.

What happens when my child turns 16?

• Children remain members up until the end of the school year in which they turn 16.
• Beyond the end of the school year they turn 16 members have 2 options to remain with Merlins;
• They may continue to ride with the Merlins as normal until their 18th birthday.
• They can also, if they wish and subject to committee approval, begin their Level1 British Cycling Coaching qualification with a view to progressing to Level2 when they reach 18 and becoming a volunteer with the club.

The Jewson Rider Development Fund

• The Rider Development Fund (RDF) is a Minehead Merlins run fund thanks to Jewson's sponsorship, set up and run to encourage members of the club to race competitively by helping to ease the financial burden of racing. The fund will fully reimburse race entry fees according to the terms & conditions of the fund.
• The T&C's and application form for the fund can be found on the "Docs" page of the website.

Volunteering Opportunities

• We are always keen to have move adult volunteer helpers; coaches, ride leaders or committee members. Please get in contact and we can talk you through what is required, i.e. DBS check, Volunteer Application form, etc. If you are already qualified then great, all we will need is copies of your certificates, however no problem if not as we will help fund and mentor you through your training.
• If you child is a member and wants to help as part of their DofE, then we have a DofE assessor as part of our coaching team to help them out. We also offer the chance to join the British Cycling Young Leader program, which will help them learn and get more involved with the running of the club and events.

How can I pay?

• We prefer not to take cash but can accept payment via Paypal or Bank Transfer
• For Paypal please send money using "Friends and Family" service to paypal@mineheadmerlins.com
• For BACS Bank Transfer please send money to the following account;
• Name : Minehead Merlins
• Sort Code : 08-92-99
• Acc No : 65792874