ADVENTURE|MECHANICS|MINDSET
my Story
Confidence
Whether it’s an adrenaline-fuelled mountain biking run interspersed with technical climbs – or riding through woods and along the coast with my disabled teenage daughter behind me on her pull-along trike – it all serves the same purpose: freeing the mind and feeding the soul. I am an adventurous person who has learned to make that fit within a family life that includes a child with Special Needs. I’ve learned to look for the positive in all situations and make the most of opportunities, as well as understanding the true benefits of exercise. I love challenges, big or small, and believe the ability to face our fears and overcome them is the key to growth and empowerment. Having the confidence to try, to experiment, to fail, to learn and to keep going is central to me.
adventure
Bikes have always spelled freedom and adventure – from a young age, I was taking myself off on my bike, cycling five miles on the dirt road to the harbour where I kept my little boat, or spending three days cycling along every road in our town and marking them off on a map so that the whole town was coloured in. Adventure is about finding the opportunity in any situation – when my bikepacking plans to race Kingdom Enduro (Lesotho, Africa) and Megavalanche (France) were scuppered by Covid-19, I took my recently resprayed and rebuilt hybrid and pedalled it up the 21 bends of the Alpe d’Huez road climb. Adventure simply means finding something that challenges you and giving it a go.
challenges
We will all face challenges, it’s as certain as death and taxes, but approached with the right mindset those challenges are what make us mentally resilient and help us to find the real value and beauty in life. Since having children, I’ve learned that life rarely unfolds as you expect it too. My eldest has had major health challenges to tackle, while my youngest has a unique genetic mutation and subsequent disabilities. As a young mum, I found that wherever I turned things were not unrolling as I had dreamed they would. I was not taking long walks in forests or mountains, sailing the seas, exploring local food markets in foreign countries as I had predicted I would with my easy, healthy, free-range off-spring. However, what I have learned is that you can still achieve your dreams, just in a different format. We still travelled, just with McDonalds in every country in the world as our friend, because of their attention to food allergy labelling; we still explored forests and coastlines, just with a Mountain Buggy and alternative paths, instead of a youngster walking alongside us; and finally 15 years on we are able to go for family cycle rides. Adventure is out there, you simply need to adjust your mindset to be able to see it and embrace it.
mechanics
My love of mechanics and engineering stems from years in the shed, the garage and working on boats with my grandad and my dad. At the age of five, my grandad put an engine on my bike and made me a miniature motorbike – after several laps of the common, I drove over the toolbox and impaled my knee on a screwdriver: my future as a bike mechanic was sealed! Working with your hands is satisfying and tangible. Learning the skills needed to be mechanically self-sufficient on your bike whether you’re cycling for transport or for leisure, gives peace of mind and independence, a sense that if you dream big enough, anything is possible.
me time
After 12 years of being a stay-at-home mum, sorting out the medical and schooling needs of my kids, I realised that I needed to reconnect with myself and find some work. To disrupt the family, it had to be work that I enjoyed and that connected me to people, I didn’t want to go back to my old London-based city PR life. After much thought I came up with barista or bike mechanic! Thanks to Adam and Lesley at Biketart, my local bike shop, I started long-term work experience as an assistant in the workshop. After six months, I realised I loved it and enrolled on a Level 3 IMI Cycle Mechanic course at Downland Cycles and qualified as a mechanic. I continued to work for Biketart, before leaving to focus on my work as a mechanic at events such a Megavalanche, Sea Otter and Windsor Triathlon for Chain Reaction Cycles and Wiggle. I love event work and the intensity it offers, but after finding myself explaining what I was doing to customers, I decided to follow my passion for teaching. I taught regularly at my local community bike project – The Canterbury Bike Project – and now have a fully fitted workshop at home where I teach one or two people at a time. Teaching in very small numbers is a great way of making sure the client gets a grounded understanding of the topic and has the confidence to go and practice at home.
