<body><div><figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=0UKoQ9_1Esu91Q600" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=0UKoQ9_1Esu91Q600" width="1200" height="790" ></figure>906 Adventure Team finishes their first summer season in Petoskey and GaylordNorthern Michigan is rich in youth cycling programs designed to get kids off the couch, away from screens, and into the great outdoors. Traverse City-based Norte teaches mountain biking skills to youngsters all over the tip of the mitt. Top of Michigan Trails Council’s Kids Biking Initiative, which serves Emmet County fourth graders, hosts school-aligned all-day field trip bike rides on paved inland trails.There are others, of course. But a newcomer is getting lots of attention as it rapidly migrates southward from its Marquette headquarters.The 906 Adventure Team (906AT), a cycling/hiking-focused youth resilience program, this year expanded into the Petoskey and Gaylord areas. Founded in 2014 by outdoorsman Todd Poquette, 906AT bills itself as “youth development re-imagined.”“We take a challenging outdoor activity (mountain biking or hiking) that develops self-confidence, resilience, grit, and community and bring it to youth without the pressure of head-to-head competition—no clocks to race against or finish lines to fight for,” the program’s website says. “We meet kids where they are and help them get better. We focus on skills on and off the bike and emphasize working together. When the goal is to become the best person and team player you can be, there is no finish line.”How It StartedPrior to founding 906AT, Poquette worked in the food distribution industry. He says he noticed and was disturbed by what he saw as young people who were not only unprepared for the workforce, but also lacking basic life skills. He mulled the problem through a series of back surgeries.Recovering, his doctor recommended bicycling, and it was in his riding that he had an epiphany that revealed a path forward. The cycling training and group events, all of which he’d grown to love, had changed him as a person. Poquette thought if he could build a program that incorporated the same cycling challenges he’d just endured, he might have a chance helping youngsters develop, too.“At the same time I noticed there weren’t many group cycling opportunities for kids or adults,” he says. “There were no cycling groups in Marquette. That was shocking to us. So basically I say, ‘let’s try to take all these ideas and roll them into one’. I knew I wanted to help people become better versions of themselves. And that was the beginning of 906 Adventure Team. You can make the changes you want to see in your life, if you put in the time and the work.”How It WorksDoing hard things is a hallmark of 906AT. Poquette believes that grit and determination—basic life skills to him—are essential for well-rounded character development. The program eschews racing and competition in favor of individual accomplishment and overcoming adversity.The website sums it up: “We don’t worry about who’s fastest or who can go the farthest, but that doesn’t mean it will be easy. Everyone needs a challenge, especially our youth. We take a more patient approach but still have high expectations.”Poquette underscores the point.“Competitive sports are great for the kids it’s great for, and not so great for kids it isn’t great for,” he tells Northern Express. “Those kids still need fundamental development that the kids in team sports get. They need to learn how to work hard, to work in a team, to set goals, to experience failure and defeat, and to try again and succeed. The avenue of competitive sports is just not for them, or maybe they’re not good enough to play. We try to be that team for all those kids because we need all the kids in our communities to be developed, to be high performers.”Like the other youth cycling programs, 906AT relies on a small army of trained volunteers to conduct the camps, which now take place in 17 communities across Michigan, Ohio, and Wisconsin. Kids ages 5-17 can join.After breaking into age-similar groups, team members ride for two hours once a week throughout the summer months. Volunteer coaches monitor participants, but the camps are mostly unstructured.How It’s GoingRyan and Rachel Brown lead the Petoskey area group which, like the Gaylord chapter, started early this year. Their base camp is at Avalanche Nature Preserve outside Boyne City. Rachel says the effort to start the group began after the 2025 holidays with pre-season meet-ups at local libraries. Once coaches are trained and pass background checks, they join leaders at meet-ups, where they’re introduced to participants and their parents.Registration takes place in April, with the first rides beginning in June.“The first night is orientation, and it’s mandatory,” Rachel explains. “We don’t do a ride on the first night. We get kids in groups, they meet the coaches, and we go over expectations. It’s always a very consistent layout. Our base camp always looks exactly the same. There are rules and our coaches make sure they’re followed. We group kids by age—not by their skill sets or gender.”The Petoskey chapter had 28 participants and 15 volunteer coaches in its first season, which concluded in mid-August. “We didn’t know what to expect [in terms of turnout],” Ryan, a DNR employee who manages Petoskey State Park, says. “We’re honestly very happy with [our numbers]. We have a maximum capacity of 50, so we were very excited with 28 kids in our first year.”“We had some participants who were very challenged on the bike at first,” Rachel adds. “And we were astounded at the progress they made from the first to the last week—how big a difference these kids are showing. Their skills were really shining through. We had parents telling us they could never get their kid on a bike, but now they can’t keep them off it!”How a Meet-up GoesThe Browns say typical weekly gatherings start with grouping participants and performing routine safety and maintenance inspections on their bikes.“Then we go out on the trail for a two-hour adventure!” Ryan continues. “We do have ride plans, but there’s no competition, no races. It’s just you versus you. Our program starts easy. The first week is just mounting and dismounting the bike. But we build their skills as the season goes on. They also develop character skills like respect, grit, self-reliance, consistency, being on time, and more.“We teach them to then use those skills in the biking world,” he continues. “But, the bike is just a tool. This a youth resilience program, not a mountain biking program.”After a couple hours on the trail, participants reconvene back at camp where they work on a weekly featured bike skill. They also work on overcoming obstacles and navigating rollers, bridges, and skinny planks. Ryan says the course is very simple at the beginning, but gets more difficult.How the Org OperatesThat’s the point, according to Poquette, who views confronting and overcoming difficult challenges as essential to developing productive community members.“I think we actually do what people want to see people doing, and what a lot of people claim to do,” Poquette explains. “We actually do bring people together. We are not a polarizing organization. We have clear rules of engagement. We have specific field manuals for each program, and we have specific, articulated training for our volunteer leaders. Everything is made very clear to parents: what we are and what we are not. We’re very clear and direct. We’re not changing for you so let’s not waste anyone’s time.”Poquette says 906AT is different from a lot of other, similar organizations in that it isn’t tethered to any governing grant maker or other organizations that could sway the program from its core ethos.“We’re not affiliated with schools at all,” he says. “We stay away from schools. We’re not urban; we’re back-country. We’re adventure. We don’t follow corporate trends. Eighty percent of our unrestricted revenue is self-generated through events and merchandise sales. We have a lot of support. But the key is this: we have enough financial autonomy and we haven’t been purchased by any organization that would tell us, ‘Do it our way, or you don’t get funding.”The Adventure Team was awarded the League of Michigan Bicyclist’s 2023 Changemaker of the Year Award, and the Community Mental Health Association of Michigan endorses 906AT’s lessons to build children’s character, provide coping skills, and promote their ability to adapt to challenges they will face moving into adulthood.In addition to its youth programming, 906AT hosts three ultra-endurance cycling events, the Marji Gesick, the Polar Roll, and The Crusher.To learn more, visit 906adventureteam.com.</div></body>

Block Source: northernexpress.com

Misinformation

Clickbait

Old or repetitive news

Explicit content

Location not relevant

906 Adventure Team finishes their first summer season in Petoskey and Gaylord. Northern Michigan is rich in youth cycling programs designed to get kids off the couch, away from screens, and into the great outdoors. Traverse City-based Norte teaches mountain biking skills to youngsters all over the tip of the mitt. Top of Michigan Trails Council’s Kids Biking Initiative, which serves Emmet County fourth graders, hosts school-aligned all-day field trip bike rides on paved inland trails.

A Youth Resilience Program on Wheels

NewsBreak

906 Adventure Team finishes their first summer season in Petoskey and Gaylord. Northern Michigan is rich in youth cycling programs designed to get kids off

A Youth Resilience Program on Wheels

Comments