Officers from 10 law enforcement agencies in New York State are learning how to incorporate bicycles into their operations at the 2017 Police Mountain Bike School, being held June 5–9 at Ithaca College.
The course is designed as an entry-level training for law enforcement personnel utilizing specialized mountain bikes for patrol activities. Its curriculum includes classroom training on such topics as vehicle and traffic law, bicycle maintenance, and nutrition and fitness. Participants will also take to the streets, off-road trails and campus stairs, curbs and parking lots to learn practical skills involving riding evolutions, mock scenarios, obstacle negotiation, dismounts, takedowns, suspect contact and tactical response with firearms.
This is the 24th year for the school, which began in 1993 when instructors from Ithaca College, Cornell University and the Ithaca Police Department teamed up to develop what was at that time a pioneering course in police bike patrolling. Today, the course curriculum remains the model utilized by numerous agencies throughout the region.
Law enforcement agencies represented by the 19 students at the school include the Suffolk County Sheriff's Office; SUNY Brockport and SUNY Geneseo; the Binghamton, Endicott, Herkimer, Ithaca and Rome Police Departments; and Ithaca and Nazareth Colleges.
The course is sponsored by the Ithaca College Office of Public Safety and Emergency Management, and the instructors hold certifications from agencies including the New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services, International Police Mountain Bike Association and Law Enforcement Bicycle Association.