Which Leadership Course?

Pedal!!!

Im looking at doing a mtb leadership course some time this summer and was wondering if anyone had any opinions on which one to go for. Accreditation is a big thing in my mind as i don't want to get a worthless award that noone recognises. I've got two in mind.

The first is going through "mountain bike instruction" and getting the MIAS which is an NVQ and is a two day course.

The other is using Plas y Brenin and the MBLA scheme. This is accredited by British cycling but takes longer to work though the levels and will be more expensive.

I was wondering if anyone had any opinions?

allthegearnoidea

smbla is accepted in more places than mias from what i remember,
had a chat with a couple of guys about it a while back, smbla allowed you to lead groups in the alps etc where mias wasnt recognised,
dont know if thats changed much since though??

anjs

SMLTB takes a long time and you have to do a number of quality mountain days between the two courses. Oh and you have to show that you acted as a leader, you can not just go outwith some friends.

forgotrafe

I did MIAS level 2 with Ray of Mountain Bike Instruction in Bolton. Top guy, top course. It won't let you go above 600m but is relatively cheap, quick and easy. It's good enough to get cycle instructor insurance which is all I cared about!

If you want to go higher there are qualifications (including MIAS 3) but they take a long time and a lot of effort (you need mountain leadership which is a big qualification in its own right).