Believing that they can be the best is the ideal that the members of the Far North Flash Cycling Club strive for.  Despite all the barriers put in front of them, the seven young female cyclists from Kaitaia along with their coach Phil Gibbs are confident that their hard work and determination will pay off and the girls will reach their goals.

The Far North Flash Cycling Club was formed by Phil with a vision to provide opportunities for young people from disadvantaged communities to excel not only in sports however in life using cycling as the medium.  Phil, teacher at Kaitaia Primary School now has seven cyclists; Tyla-Mia Foster, Crystal Wikaira, Brooklyn Dunn Lloyd, Glennis Walters, KC Pomare, Renee Harrison and Jodeci Taniwha aged between 10-13 years old under his wing.  The bikes, the shoes, the uniforms and even the helmets are all provided for the girls so that they can compete on an even playing field with the rest of New Zealand. 

However the club’s annual budget is still very much a “shoe string” one, where they rely on the generosity of friends and whanau to provide accommodation (marae-style) when they travel away, where fundraising hangi and car washes are a necessity and completing funding applications is a regular task. Luckily, they are blessed to have the amazing support of one local sponsor who has been very generous in helping the team to succeed.  In return the girls train five days a week, putting in up to 125km each on the road as well as stints on the stationary bike if the weather is bad coupled with swim training at Lake Ngatu.  

2017 has seen all of their hard work pay off with some solid results which have brought them credibility from both the public and more importantly their peers.  “They don’t turn up to events now as the poor cousins, but as contenders” says Phil.  When Tyla-Mia Foster won the North Island U13 Road Race title it changed everything for the team.  Not only did the cycling fraternity sit up and take notice but the team realised that the national benchmark to beat was actually riding right alongside them.  “They now push themselves to beat each other, to place higher than they did previously and to win championship titles” comments Phil.

The team’s successes have seen them featured on national television, included in “The Kiwi Cyclist Guide to Life” book by Jane King as well as being the subject of many articles in the newspaper.  The team has also been invited to attend the 2018 Epsom Girls Grammar summer training camp in Auckland to prepare for their busy schedule which will see them attend 18 events next year.

The team is affectionately known nationally as “The Marshmallows” because of the distinctive pink cycling kit they wear, however they are not softies.  The girls all have individual goals they are working towards from winning a national title to going to the Commonwealth and Olympic games.  They say that in the beginning it was hard, both physically and mentally but now they just cycle.  So in the words of Crystal, Tyla and Brooke “go hard, train hard, don’t fall off and keep pedalling”.