Berkeley Bike Club Juniors · East Bay
It takes a whole community to raise a bike racer.
Berkeley Bike Club Juniors is where young East Bay riders learn to race, and to be good teammates. This is the story of the coaches, clubs, teams, schools, families and races that carry them forward.
- Program
- Berkeley Bike Club Juniors
- Led by
- Todd Edminster
- Races with
- Club, development teams and high school NICA
- Next step
- U23 racing, and giving back
01 More than results
The goal isn't only to win races.
Winning is part of bike racing, and juniors should learn how to do it. But the Berkeley Bicycle Club's junior program, led by Todd Edminster, is built around a bigger goal: riders who are confident on the bike, who understand how a race works, and who know how to show up for their teammates.
Junior cycling is a development pathway. The riders who stay with it learn teamwork, race skills, responsibility, sportsmanship and confidence, and carry those well beyond the finish line.
Many kits, one community
Not one banner. A whole ecosystem.
BBC juniors don't race under a single jersey. Depending on the race, the season and the opportunity, they also ride with development teams, bike shop programs and their high school NICA teams. These aren't competing programs. Together they give a young rider more chances to race, learn and grow.
Berkeley Bike Club Juniors
Mentoring, group rides and race fundamentals, led by Todd Edminster.
Monarch Racing Development Team
A junior racing development program sponsored by the club.
TeamCA
A development team some BBC juniors race with at selected events.
Sharp Bicycle, Lafayette
A local bike shop program that some juniors race with.
High school mountain bike teams
Each rider's own school team during NICA season.
Red Peloton
One of the U23 programs juniors can graduate into.
Parents and families
Early mornings, long drives, and a lot of laundry.
Promoters, officials and volunteers
The people who make sure there is a race to enter.
Sponsors
Partners whose support turns into coaching, equipment and race opportunities.
The development pathway
One route, many hands.
No junior gets from a first ride to U23 racing alone. At every step, a different part of the Bay Area cycling community picks them up and carries them forward.
Discover cycling
A first ride, a borrowed bike, a friend who races. Programs like BBCjr and the club's loaner bike fleet lower the barrier to getting started.
Who helps: ParentsFriendsLoaner bikes
Berkeley Bike Club Juniors
Group rides, skills, race fundamentals and a club full of riders who were once new too.
Who helps: Todd EdminsterClub mentorsRide leaders
Local and regional racing
Junior fields at Northern California road races and criteriums, including the Berkeley Hills Road Race and Berkeley Streets.
Who helps: Race promotersOfficialsVolunteers
Development teams
Depending on the race and the season, juniors also line up with Monarch Racing, TeamCA or Sharp Bicycle.
Who helps: MonarchTeamCASharp Bicycle
High school NICA
During NICA season, riders race mountain bikes for their own high schools, alongside classmates.
Who helps: NICA coachesSchool teamsFamilies
U23 development
Some riders graduate from the junior pathway into U23 racing, including opportunities with Red Peloton.
Who helps: Red PelotonU23 programs
A cyclist for life
- Lifelong cyclist
- Racer
- Mentor
- Coach
- Volunteer
Turning pro is one possible outcome, not the definition of success. Success is a confident rider, a good teammate, and someone who stays in the sport.
And then back to the start line, as the mentor, coach or volunteer for the next young rider.
The mentor
Todd Edminster and the long game.
Todd Edminster leads the Berkeley Bike Club junior program. His work is less about any single race than about what a rider carries from one season to the next: skills, habits, and the sense of being part of a team.
That means teaching racecraft and bike handling, and just as much, teaching riders to win well, lose well, and ride for each other.
- 01
Mentoring
Knowing each rider, and what they need next.
- 02
Racecraft and bike skills
Cornering, positioning, pack riding and reading a race.
- 03
Teamwork
Riding for a teammate, and trusting one to ride for you.
- 04
Winning and losing
Handling both with the same grace.
- 05
Supporting teammates
Celebrating someone else's result like your own.
- 06
Consistency and discipline
Showing up, training steadily, and doing the small things.
- 07
Opportunities to race
Getting riders to start lines where they can learn.
- 08
The next level
Helping each rider find the right team or program for their next step.
- 09
Fun that lasts
Keeping cycling enjoyable enough to ride for life.
Race days and team moments
Learning to win, and to lose.
Podiums are part of it. So are the races where nothing goes right, and the days spent helping a teammate onto the step. Many kits, many races, one community of young riders.
02 High school NICA
Mountain bikes, school colors, more time riding.
During NICA season, BBC juniors race mountain bikes for their own high school teams. It's a different discipline, and it complements road development in all the right ways.
Riders build fitness, bike handling and teamwork. They represent their schools, meet other young cyclists, become part of a team community, and simply spend more time on bikes.
Supporting NICA is part of the Berkeley Omnium's commitment to the next generation: in 2026, Omnium proceeds raised $28,610 for six East Bay NICA high school teams.
03 From junior to U23
Junior racing shouldn't be a dead end.
When a rider ages out of junior racing, there should be somewhere to go next. Some BBC juniors graduate from the junior pathway into U23 racing, including opportunities with Red Peloton.
Local cycling needs a pathway people can see: discover the bike, join a club, race locally, ride NICA, race with a development team, move into U23, and one day come back as a mentor, coach, volunteer or lifelong cyclist. Each stage only works if the next one exists.
Why Berkeley Omnium supports junior racing
Skills need somewhere to race.
- Coaching
- Training
- Teamwork
- Local racing
- Development
- Giving back
Coaching and training only go so far. A junior learns to hold a wheel in a real field, to read a breakaway, to corner in a group and to help a teammate by doing it on race day.
The Berkeley Hills Road Race and the Berkeley Streets Criterium both run junior fields at age-appropriate distances, so young riders race the same courses as the rest of Northern California, close to home.
Every local race that disappears is one fewer place for a young rider to learn. That is one of the reasons the Berkeley Bicycle Club, its volunteers and its sponsors are working to keep local racing alive, and why a portion of every Berkeley Omnium entry supports East Bay NICA high school teams.
Meet the juniors
In their own words.
Rider stories are on the way. Each one will be told by the junior, shared with their family's permission, and cover:
- 01How they started cycling
- 02Teams and programs they've ridden with
- 03Favorite race
- 04What they've learned
- 05Goals
- 06Advice for another young rider
Junior cycling FAQ
Questions about junior cycling in Berkeley.
What is the Berkeley Bike Club Junior program?
Berkeley Bike Club Juniors is the Berkeley Bicycle Club's program for young riders in Berkeley and the East Bay. Led by Todd Edminster, it mentors juniors in bike skills, racecraft, teamwork and sportsmanship, and helps them find opportunities to race.
Do Berkeley Bike Club juniors only race for one team?
No. Depending on the race, season and opportunity, BBC juniors also race with development programs and teams including the Monarch Racing Development Team, TeamCA and Sharp Bicycle in Lafayette, and with their high school NICA mountain bike teams during NICA season.
How does high school NICA mountain biking fit with junior road racing?
During NICA season, juniors race mountain bikes for their own high school teams. It builds fitness, bike handling and teamwork that carry over to road racing. Berkeley Omnium proceeds raised $28,610 for six East Bay NICA high school teams in 2026.
Where the proceeds go →What comes after junior racing?
Some riders graduate from the junior pathway into U23 racing, including opportunities with Red Peloton. Many others stay in the sport as lifelong cyclists, racers, mentors, coaches and volunteers. Turning professional is not the only definition of success.
Can juniors race the Berkeley Omnium?
Yes. The Berkeley Omnium includes junior fields at age-appropriate distances at both the Berkeley Hills Road Race and the Berkeley Streets Criterium, and a portion of every entry fee supports East Bay NICA high school teams.
See the races →How can I support junior cycling in the Bay Area?
Race the Berkeley Omnium, volunteer on race weekend, or sponsor the event. Sponsorship helps fund race opportunities for junior riders and supports East Bay NICA teams.
Become a sponsor →Interested in junior cycling?
Help build the next generation.
Coaches, clubs, development teams, NICA programs, bike shops, parents, volunteers, sponsors and races all have a part. Here's how you can take yours.