APPENDIX 5
Validity of self-rated experience
This appendix compares the self-rated
experience levels of riders with more objective indications of
their relative experience at mountain biking. It should be recognised
that because mountain biking is a recent development, little time
has been available for the development of extensive rider experience.
In this context, self-rated perceptions could be considered more
relevant. As can be seen by reference to Table A.5.1, higher ratings
corresponded to higher levels in the other experience criteria.
This is discussed further in Section 3.2.
Table A.5.1: Experience indicators at
different self-rated experience levels
| EXPERIENCE FEATURES by SELF-RATED EXPERIENCE | NOTES | ||||
| RACE CLASS
Bike shop customers Novice/Fun riders Novice/Race riders Sport riders Expert riders |
|
|
|
| Riders who rated their experience higher were generally entered in the more competitive race classes (but not always).
(Correlation moderate, r = -0.67) |
| YEARS RIDING MTB
1 year or less 1 - 2 years 2 - 3 years 3 - 4 years 4 - 5 years More than 5 years |
|
|
|
| Riders who rated their experience higher had generally more years of riding mountain bikes. Few riders had more than 5 years experience. This may explain the weak correlation apparent here.
(Correlation weak, r = 0.48) |
| DAYS RIDE/YEAR
Only ride on road Off-road under 6 days Off-road 7 - 12 days Off-road 13 - 24 days Off-road 25 - 50 days Off-road 51 - 100 days Off-road over 100 days |
|
|
|
| Riders who rated their experience higher were riding on more days per year. Expert riders were very intense participants, riding more than twice a week. The most active riders rated their experience highest.
(Correlation strong, r = 0.77) |
| RACES DONE
None done before Only 1 race 2 - 5 6 - 10 11 - 20 21 - 50 51 - 100 Over 100 races |
|
|
|
| Riders who rated their experience higher had done more previous races. Beginners were the least involved in races. Almost all other riders had some experience of them. The most active racers rated their experience highest.
(Correlation strong, r = 0.71) |
In addition to these comparisons, `rated'
experience was compared with another type of experience criteria,
this being the number of sites used in the Wellington district
(Table A.5.2)
This table shows that the more experienced
riders had generally used more sites around the Wellington area,
although the correlation was weak. This may reflect the greater
proportions of experienced riders from outside the Wellington
area, present mainly to participate in the race events sampled.
Table A.5.2: Number of sites used for
riding in the Wellington area
| NUMBER OF SITES USED (refer to map in Appendix 1) |
|
|
|
| |
| 1 - 10 sites
11 - 20 sites 21 - 30 sites 31 - 40 sites 41 - 50 sites Over 51 sites |
|
|
|
| Riders with greater experience had generally ridden on more sites in the Wellington area.
(Correlation was weak, r=0.376) |
Despite the weak correlation, it is
still apparent that the more experienced riders were using more
sites. When all these experience criteria are considered together
in comparison with self-rated experience levels, the rated levels
can be considered largely representative of actual experience
at mountain biking. Once more time has passed, greater experience
may become more associated with the amount of time riders have
been riding, rather than the intensity of their riding, which
appears the case here.