Redbull Foxhunt 2014 with Rachel Atherton

The first time I heard of The Female Red Bull Fox Hunt with Rachel Atherton I was filled with a feeling of grand delight in the anticipation that something awesome was going to happen.  The realisation that the event was taking place in Scotland and not only that but very near my roots hometown in the Pentland Hills compounded my excitement.  So its no surprise to myself and anyone who knows me, follows my blog, or racing that I was going to put my heart and soul into it.

At the Start Line  

Putting all that aside i've decided to focus on why I consider this event to have an ever increasing impact of the quality and popularity of mountain biking in the UK.  

So why was this event so fantastic for mountain biking?  Why do I consider it a success?

The first aspect that I never considered about the largest female only mountain biking event in perhaps the world, and definitely on this island we call home is that there would be a large amount of children present.  Not just random children, but the children of female bikers who don’t race or compete that often.  It was not only an incredible and accessible opportunity for the kiddie winks to see their own mother ride, but also to see other women and mothers in a racing environment.  Is it implausible to consider that this may be part of a small stepping-stone to demonstrate to a new generation that active women and athletes are the bees knees.  No matter who they are or what they do they want to be active both for fun and self-fulfillment. They are our mothers, sisters, aunts, cousins and grandmothers and these ladies are badass! And hell yeah they all rode their bikes as best they could. Taken this into consideration, surely a new generation of rippers could be on the cards and thus British Cycling could be in for an insane arrival of upcoming talent.   

Riding with my daughter Ski Pea

Secondly with the large amount of children in many instances with their fathers, brothers, mother’s partners or grandparents, it was empowering to see the role reversal of men with child whilst women ride.  Something that reassures me that Gender Equality for both the sexes may not be some words we just pull out of a political agenda hat every now and again to make local services look better.

Another aspect I never considered was that women who were pregnant may turn up to ride the course and participate in practice, joining in with their friends and part of this extraordinary celebration of women on bikes.  This alone gave me an acute sense of pride and belonging that women, despite this potentially limiting factor were more than happy to overcome this to show that the activity is part of their lives.  

On top of this it was great to see my daughter play with my friends children.  We ride and chat about our children a lot but very rarely with our children and partners.  With the inadvertent ex golf course bunker sand pits included, the Red Bull Fox hunt had a great family event feel in the air.

The Push up had our heart rates up. 

Perhaps what put the icing on the cake for empowering female riders and athletes was that Rachel Atherton (and her mother) were hugely supportive and involved.  Rachel talked openly about her own experiences of riding and racing, blending in with the social ease of any other participant, and it was easy to see that she was more than happy to be involved.  

Keeping the speed up out the woods 

I was really impressed to see Rachel and her team support all riders, young and old coaching and assisting them with technical issues and also providing support on the course and hill.  Seeing Rachel’s commitment and natural pleasure to be part of an event involving girls from all backgrounds and abilities-a far cry from the fast paced and competitive lifestyle she is usually engaged in, made me realise that she is a great asset to British and world cycling.

Chasing Elena

It was such a fantastic weekend.  I thoroughly enjoyed meeting so many girls, catching up with old faces, racing with my friends from other disciplines, doing yoga and riding an awesome course as fast as I could.

And for me to crash so near to a podium finish was also a good lesson on my mental outlook for racing.

1.     Positive and confident riders take risks,

2.     A committed athlete has a positive reaction to set backs and takes responsibility that risks don’t always work and learns from this.

3.     Holding onto and dwelling on a mistake will only make it harder to race next time.  ‘So Let Go’ think of the positives and thrives on the good times.

4.     After a mild concussion I definitely need to buy a new helmet.

"You only achieve what you believe"

Well done to all the girls, women, mothers, daughters, aunts and grandmothers who took part.

 Thank you to Redbull for putting on a great event and to Rachel Atherton, her Mother and the GT Team for all their fantastic contribution.

A video of my race run: