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Being mentally right – how Evie Richards stays on top of her racing game
The British cross-country mountain bike star shares her tips for overcoming difficult results and shutting out the noise during those World Cup racing weekends.
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Resilience, grit and determination are part of any athlete's DNA. But what happens when things don't go to plan? For Evie Richards, a careful and considered strategy of learning to ask for help and embracing down-time has catapulted her back into the saddle after what's been a challenging season for the 23-year-old pro cross-country mountain bike racer.
Following her disappointing result in the elite class in Albstadt (Richards finished 25th), she bounced back just a week later to secure her best ever result when she came 5th in Nové Město. Destined for the podium later this season, Evie is on a roll as she impressively scooped 6th place at Leogang.
Here, she shares the art of pre-race mental prep, why her family has always got her back and just how her local garden centre provides a little post-race-day sanctuary.
1. Talking is my best strategy to prepare for race day
I have two amazing coaches and a really good psychologist [the British Cycling's federation Psychologist, Rich Hampson], so for me, just talking and being really open with them about how I'm feeling is really beneficial. If anything's building up, or if I'm getting nervous – perhaps about something on the course that I'm not happy with – I’ll talk about it.
If pressure is mounting, Richards leans on her coaches for mental support
© Bartek Wolinski/Red Bull Content Pool
I'm not always the best at opening up and sometimes they have to poke me because I have a tendency to bury my head in the sand, but solving the problem together and not letting things build up is something that helps me in the lead up to a race.
2. I try not to fixate on pre-season pressure
I’m still a normal person at the end of the day, so if I can feel pressure building up, I think ‘right, I need to go and see my friends' or 'I need to go swimming’. If you just think you're OK and let the pressure build up, then there will almost be a snapping point where you can't cope anymore. It's about trying to get an out route before it gets to that point.
3. Inspirational quotes help occupy my mind
Before every race, my mum will share an inspirational quote with me on Instagram so I always have one or two quotes in my head. It might just be a couple of words, but I’ll focus on those words and repeat them in my head to get me round the track. The last one she sent me was before Leogang and just said ‘when it gets tough, turn around and look how far you’ve already come’.
It helps me to have something positive like that to focus on and it gives me confidence. With anything that you truly love, like competing, it shouldn't need to take loads of pep talks. I love competing, so I never have to have something that pushes me like a pep talk. I just need something to go through my brain to keep me occupied for an hour and a half!
4. I visualise the track
Planning the track and her lines gives Richards confidence before race day
© Bartek Wolinski/Red Bull Content Pool
I go through the course in my head – I like to be able to write it down and work out what lines I'm going to take and exactly what I'm going to hit on different descents, or what gear I'm going to change into. Once I’ve done that, I’m happy. I think it would make me quite nervous going into the race, not knowing all those little details – writing it all down just puts my mind at ease.
For me, it’s important to visualise the things that could go wrong, too, like dropping a bottle and how I’m going to handle that situation – it’s giving yourself as much preparation for any situation and the best way to approach it on the day.
5. I’ve learnt to ask for help, but it’s been a long process
Even as a kid, I was always really independent and quite stubborn. I like to do things my own way and not ask for help. I’ve worked with British Cycling's Rich Hampson for two years now and it’s taken me that time to realise a problem shared really is a problem halved. I speak to him every couple of weeks or more frequently, depending on what’s going on.
My coach will sometimes join the call to compare notes because I’m not always honest with how things are going with training or my mental health. The psychologist will give me homework to do and encourage me to keep a diary, which is useful. It’s incredible to see the progress I’ve made with him and how our sessions have given me tools to navigate anxiety. Even in life outside of racing, I'm so much happier.
6. Learning from my experiences is integral
Working with Rich and my coaches, I’ve learned not to dwell on the past. They’ve taught me how to enjoy racing and not to focus on the bad moments. It’s easy to get stuck and beat myself up, but they’ve encouraged me to move on to the next result. It takes a while to break a habit, so I'm really lucky that I found the time and the support to do that so early in my career.
Evie's learned to not dwell on the past but to look ahead to her next race
© Bartek Wolinski/Red Bull Content Pool
7. I’m the last person to turn off their music at the start line
Music is a really big thing for me to get in the zone on race day. I always have music on right up until five minutes before the race starts. It depends on the race and how much caffeine I’ve had, or how pumped I need to get, but it’ll be anything from Mamma Mia to some heavy drum and bass!
8. Keeping busy and doing what I love helps me to mentally switch off between races
My coaches will say ‘you should probably do something to take your mind off racing’ and I'm like ‘well, I've already been to the lake, I've been to the swimming pool, I've been out for coffee and the garden centre…’ I just love life.
Seeing friends and spending time outdoors gives Richards balance
© Patrik Lundin/Red Bull Content Pool
It’s probably easier for me to say what I don't do [to decompress outside of racing] because I feel like I do everything! I like enjoying people's company and I just want to make the most of every second of the day. I'm a very outdoorsy person, so I wouldn't go to the shopping mall to unwind – I would rather go and see friends and make a fire or go and find a river to swim in.
You can't put your life on hold to get a result, you need to really enjoy life and enjoy the process
9. When I see friends and I'm happy, that’s when I race at my best
There's been seasons where I've sacrificed everything. I've just ridden my bike and literally not seen anyone for a year, and then, if that result doesn't happen for whatever reason – whether I crash, or I just don't perform on that day – I feel like I've wasted a whole year of my life, to get a result and then I didn't even get it. You can't put your life on hold to get a result, you need to really enjoy life and enjoy the process.
Being happy makes Richards race better
© Bartek Wolinski/Red Bull Content Pool
When I started off the season, I probably wasn't where I wanted to be, but I just didn’t get it. I'd trained harder than I ever have before and I didn’t understand why I wasn’t riding at my best. I think for everyone who’d been in lockdown, it was mentally draining and when you don't have the freedom to do the things you normally do, it’s hard. I found it really difficult after races having to isolate on my own for 10 days.
Normally it’s really important for me to see friends and to catch up with my family – it was quite a negative thing. Now, being out in Europe and just not having the stress of ‘can I get the next flight out?’ or knowing where you stand because of isolation, I feel very lucky that I can really enjoy being here [in Austria] and not worry about that stuff.
10. Smile at the start line
Richards gets in the zone by pumping music on the start line
© Bartek Wolinski/Red Bull Content Pool
My mum likes to reassure me [before a race] – she just sees how hard I train and sometimes I don't realise it because I'm always just training. She’s very good at saying ‘come on – look back at your training, see how hard you work, you’ve got this. Go and enjoy yourself!’. She tells me to smile at the start line, embrace being there and enjoy every second. I'm very fortunate to have a very close family. Even when I'm across the other side of the world, they're always there for me.
In the past it would have taken me weeks to get over a disappointing race. I would hold on to it for so long
11. Forget about what’s happened and start with a clean slate
In the U23 racing, I was on the podium for every race. You don't really learn anything from that. Obviously you don't want to fail at races, but everyone says ‘you learn when you do bad’ and I do think from Worlds last year where I didn't do very well, I learned so much from that. There are still races – like in the short track – where I haven't done what I wanted to, but with Rich and my coaches we've learned so much from those races and we bring those learnings to my next race.
In the past, it would have taken me weeks to get over a disappointing race. I would hold on to it for so long, but for instance [in Leogang] I didn't have the short track I wanted to, and I think some people probably see how I act after that and say ‘oh, she doesn't care’ but I just think, I've tried as hard as I can, there's no point dwelling on it. I know I trained as hard as I could.
When the racing is over, move on
© Bartek Wolinski/Red Bull Content Pool
After [the race] I wasn't happy, so I sat in the pits and watched the other racers, and then I had a team dinner. I still sometimes have a bit of a cry but I’m very fortunate that I've managed to find a way that [if I’m upset] it doesn't drag on for ages. I'm very good at saying ‘right, tomorrow's a new day, we'll try again.’
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