Yes. Very. These pages are just a casual local  communication tool , but USA Cycling is the national governing body for the sport of cycling in the United States. The Mid-Atlantic Bicycle Racing Association, MABRA, is USA Cycling's local association for Maryland, Delaware, the District of Columbia, northern Virginia, and eastern West Virginia. MABRA officials hold national USA Cycling licenses that are recognized internationally. We're not mooching volunteers for a charity event or asking you to chaperone a triathlon for a Walmart gift card. Officials are responsible for the sporting aspect of all USA Cycling competitive races.

Motorcycle referees, or motorefs, are USA Cycling licensed officials riding on course with the bicycle racers. Within the team of officials, they are uniquely situated to observe, communicate, and help manage the organized chaos of a road race. Good motorefs greatly enhance safety and sporting results for road races, but they don’t just appear; they have to be developed. 

It doesn’t hurt, but no racing experience is required. You need interest and the ability to grow to understand how races may progress, how racers think, and what might happen when a race, spectators, and the public meet up together on the road. You can get develop that experience without having a resume as a racer. We will work with you if you're serious.

To be an official, no, but to motoref, yes, absolutely! You must be a proficienct motorcyclist so you’re not a liability to the race. You should enjoy a long day in the saddle in any weather. Motorefs typically work the whole day of racing and races go rain or shine. If you're still new-ish at motorcycles, let’s talk anyway about getting started as a ground official while you get to where you need to be on the motorcycle.

The MABRA road calendar has road races most weekends from February to August. Most races from April to August use motorefs, usually at least 2, sometimes 6. Then cyclocross season runs from September to December; no motorefs there, but great racing and more officiating opportunities. You can stay very busy working bicycle races if you want. With experience, officials are eligible for bigger events on the national & international calendars, like a pie eating contest where you can win more pie. 

MABRA is a pretty good place to be. There are current and former local riders doing great things on big stages, some wearing national champion jerseys and holding pro contracts. Besides our active local race scene, there are big national and international races in or near the mid-Atlantic. The top-rated UCI road race in the US since 2022 has been the Maryland Cycling Classic. In 2026 there will be UCI road races in PA and NY, too. The US Pro Road National Championships are in Charleston, WV (2024-2028). Cyclocross has a strong local calendar plus the Charm City UCI race, PanAm continental championships in DC (2025-2026), and nearby national series events.

Officials typically work a full race day. Scheduling is a dialog between you and the officials assignor based on need, ability, and availability. There is no minimum commitment of days per season or such. If you stay current but only work a couple of race days a year, you're still an asset to MABRA. When you get started, try to allow room to do a few races that year so you can consolidate what you learned during licensing. Officiating is an acquired and perishable skill. 

Who knows whether this is your thing? There's a chance it might be if you appreciate the magnificent sport of bicycle racing, want to contribute to competitions in a supporting role as part of a team of officials, and have some free weekends during race season. Poke around here for info. Get out and explore the local race scene. If you're not already plugged into it, you can find the racing calendars at MABRA and details for specific races at BikeReg. Chat with folks you know. Meet some you don't. Talk with racers, officials, organizers. You need to figure out whether this is a fit for you. 

Do you really need a license? Yes and no, but mostly yes. No test drives as a motoref. You cannot ride a motorcycle on course in a race, or even be a passenger, without a USA Cycling motoref license. However, you can come out to a race and mill about smartly all you want without a license to get a look. Hang around the finish and the pits, see what the officials do. Talk to them and they'll fill you in or give you a front row seat where they can to see what is involved. If it passes your sniff test, get started and kick the tires in earnest.

More in subsequent FAQs and at the links, but the big picture is:

1. Get your commissaire (official) license.

2. Work a few races to find your footing as a new official. See First Races.

3. Complete the additional steps for adding your motoref endorsement.

4. Keep working to build experience and proficiency. 

Whether your goal is a few local races or future world championships and Grand Tours, that's how it starts. MABRA punches above its weight and is a pretty good place to get started. 

The details are spelled out in USA Cycling’s Become An Official page. Look at all the tabs. If you dive in, please drop us a note to let us know. 

Here is some feedback from those navigating the process recently. If you see different, let us know what to update to help the next person.

• Your USA Cycling portal is central to most of this. If you don't already have a membership, get one. If you do, your existing license number doesn't change, it just gets more trimmings. You're aiming to add a "Support License - Commissaire" and a "Moto Referee Technical Discipline." You're not done until you see those. You have to drill down into your profile to find them.

• The online course is available through the portal's LMS. If links are misbehaving, at the moment you can navigate there by Learning > All Courses > Commissaires > Entry-level.

• When you complete the course, you'll get a certificate and an email with further instructions. However, you don't need to wait until you finish (or even start) it to use the portal to launch the records checks (BI for all, + MVR for motors) and SafeSport training. You can do them in parallel with the entry-level course and it's not a bad idea since the BI will take at least a few days to process, maybe longer. Track them until a "Pass" posts in your portal. Then close the deal via email per the instructions.

• Motoref is a separate step. The motoref course should explain this to you. Once your Commissaire license and MVR Pass are showing in your portal, it's another simple email request to officials@usacycling.org sending in your motoref course completion certificate and asking for the endorsement to be added.

We'll update the front page box with any training opportunities we become aware of, and some may be posted here. The motoref course is only done as an instructor-led in-person session (often via Zoom). The entry-level course is DIY online 24/7, but now and then there is a local in-person session. If you've already done it online, it may still be worthwhile to participate in-person.

TMIs?

Bonus minutiae if you thirst for it. Anything not covered? mabra.motoref@gmail.com. 

• I'm still racing or involved with a team. Is that a conflict of interest? No, not if you manage it properly. Competitive cycling is a small world. Everyone is conflicted. You must be impartial and avoid being or appearing to be conflicted. You’re not going to Chief Ref a race put on by the team you manage but you do not need to cut all ties to officiate or recuse yourself from every race with a teammate in it. If you're still racing actively, your larger concern is probably the conflict of time with your racing. You can't squeeze a race in on a day you're officiating, since there is no fluff in the crew to cover for you while you skip out for your category. 

• Time & effort to get licensed. Not sure. How fast do you read and soak things in? What do you already know? It doesn't happen overnight with a pen whip, but it's all fairly reasonable and necessary for a meaningful certification. You can't NOT expect officials to, for example, read the rule book and review its application in practice. There's more content for motorefs. On the administrative and transactional end of things, the background check(s) are typically efficient to submit but then take some days to process. There are some emails with humans in the loop, handling things promptly but not at Amazon web click-through speed. Start early and keep at it with reasonable expectations.

• Talk money. It's incidental. You won’t lose money but you might find more income in fast food. Officials get paid for work at races per the USAC Schedule of Fees and get reimbursed the standard rate for commute and in-race mileage. MABRA approved a local bump of +$45 on top of those day rates, starting Feb 1, 2026. On the cost side, there are some ankle-biter fees for getting licensed, currently $30 for a new official plus $111.13 for a new motoref. MABRA may mitigate that provided you get your license and work some races; discuss with the officials coordinator.

• Talk glory. Don't do it to be in the spotlight. It’s always about the riders, their safety, fair sport, and good racing. It’s never about the officials. You are a part of a team that is essential to a competition you don't star in it. Think bass player or sound board, not singer or lead guitar. A good motoref is never in the finish photo.

• What about motoref equipment? More on the First Races and Resources pages. In a nutshell: 1) BYO motorcycle. It should be agile, reliable, have a decent range and a sane exhaust. 2) An open face helmet or flipped-up modular lets you communicate with riders. 3) Misc: MABRA can loan you an official's vest and radio for your first races; beyond that, you only need some little things you probably already have, so net entry cost is near $0. If you get hooked, you can spend a few bucks later for upgrades that make your job easier, but it doesn't take much. The best gear gets out of your way to let you focus on the race. It doesn't take much.