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6 secrets for balancing your day job and racing

One of the country’s top riders reveals how he succeeds on the bike when he’s away from the desk

by Craig Richey

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Throughout the past couple of years, I have had some of my strongest and most consistent seasons on the bike: multiple major wins and provincial titles across all cycling disciplines. These successful seasons coincided with starting a serious job as the global marketing manager for Easton Cycling. The common assumption is that you have to be a full-time athlete to ride as a top cyclist. As the only rider who spent the day of this past September’s CrossVegas World Cup working at the Interbike trade show, I am asked frequently how I do it. Balancing career and racing while still living a balanced life is not easy. While I am extremely busy, I have some hard-won secrets that are key in achieving success both in the office and on the bike.

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Race for fun

Before you begin your balancing act, figure out why you are racing. For most cyclists, racing is a hobby, not a job. Any money they make competing is usually only a fraction of what they could make with their day job. So if it isn’t about the money, why do it? I race for fun. I want to get good results, but am not concerned about getting on a better team or winning prize money. I enjoy riding my bike fast and pushing myself. If you are not stressed about getting a result, use that to your advantage. The younger riders are worried about points or placings to make provincial, national or pro teams. You don’t have to worry about any of that, which gives you the freedom to take risks. Go all in with the long solo attack. You will be surprised how often the bold move will succeed. If it doesn’t, you probably still had a fun day of racing.

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If in doubt, don’t race

Pros have to race when their bosses says so. You don’t have to. As someone with a lot of other things going on in your life, you are sometimes going to be too stressed and tired to have fun racing. Sucking it up and starting a race when you really don’t want to is not doing yourself any favours. When the winning move starts to go, you probably aren’t going to dig deep, especially if you are already tired. Simply being pack fill when you don’t want to be riding will kill your motivation. Instead, take that day to relax and live your life off the bike. You will reduce your stress levels and build motivation so that you’re fired up for the next race on your calendar.

Eliminate car time

Car time is wasted time. Training for bike races takes time. Between career and family, there just isn’t enough time in the day, so you need to maximize time on the bike. Commuting to work by bike is a great way to fit some training miles into your busy day. I commute 45 minutes each way by bike four days a week. Sometimes I work interval sessions into my ride home. So, even if I am busy during the week and don’t do any other riding, I still ride six hours with some quality efforts. Note that it is important not to get caught up in the typical commuter race; commuting should be base miles. Hammering your commute will degrade the quality of your real workouts.

You have money, use it

Most riders who are full-time athletes tend to have lots of time, but not much money. They wrench their own bikes and ride the gear they get for free. As a rider with a day job, you tend to have more money and less time, so don’t behave like a full-time athlete. Yes, you can probably fix your own bike and squeeze every last mile out of old parts, but when you are busy, outsource bike maintenance and make sure your equipment is always dialed, even if that means spending some money. Remember, you are riding and racing bicycles for fun. Having equipment issues is not fun.

Get a coach

Even if you don’t have ambitions of winning the national championships, but you care about your race results, you should have a coach. I tend to overdo it. I try to make up for missed workouts by bumping up the volume in the following days. My coach Elliot Bassett, however, reigns me in and ensures I don’t go too far into the red. I’m busy and don’t have time to plan and to continually re- evaluate my training and preparation for key events. Elliot takes all that stress and planning off my plate. When selecting a coach, it is important to consider his or her background and how that will mesh with your career commitments and ambitions. Cycling coaches tend to be former professional riders. They were full-time riders and often can’t appreciate the difficulties of balancing a career with racing. I have seen many people trying to balance career and racing burnt out by coaches who were professional riders.

No excuses

The second you believe the full-time rider or younger athlete has an advantage over you, you’re already beaten. If you’re not stressed about results, if your equipment is working perfectly and if you are motivated to race, you can win. Maybe your recovery has been less than ideal, with less sleep than you would like and a few missed training rides, but you have to remove all that from your mind. You are racing for fun, and it is fun to win.

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