WATCH the AusCycling Mountain Bike National Championships LIVE and FREE via SBS On Demand on February 12 and 18.
The key to Mullens' success, which includes the Under-23 and Elite road race championships (2009, 2015), cross-country marathon, Olympic distance, eliminator and team relay titles (2012-16), cyclo-cross titles (2017, 2019) and an Under-19 track title in the individual pursuit (2006), has been refusing to be pigeon-holed into one type of cycling.
Curious about what it is about mountain biking that makes her heart sing – and reach record numbers of beats per minute – SBS Sport caught up with the Roxsolt team Director and athlete ahead of this week’s Mountain Bike National Championships short-track (XCC) and Olympic distance cross-country (XCO) events.
Peta, you’ve won 12 national titles across most disciplines in cycling, what is it that put this year’s Mountain Bike National Champs in Thredbo on your 2023 bucket list?
I’ve skipped a lot of national champs in the past but love when we come back to iconic MTB destinations like Thredbo. I had a Facebook memory pop up a few days back from a national round here ten years ago actually!
I’m nearly 35 now so I feel like my XCO days are behind me, but for some reason, even though I find cross-country so ridiculously hard I still like to test myself against the best in the country, who also happen to be the best in the World!
The Roxsolt team is one of the few teams that really embrace opportunities for riders to compete in multiple disciplines of cycling, something that’s been really important in your own racing career. What do you think are some of the most underrated benefits of switching things up rather than sticking to one type of cycling only?
I still do 99 per cent of my training on the road bike, so for me the benefits are purely related to the variety around race days. When you have such a long career it’s easy to get a little bored doing the same six NRS events every season, so the change in environment is nice. New people, new places, new experiences.
Mixing it up between Road, MTB, Gravel and CX quadruples your race day opportunities in a year and can take you to so many more amazing places. It can also be an escape. If I’m having a rough time in one discipline I can escape to a whole new world in another.
You raced the team relay on Thursday, and you’ve signed up for the short course and Olympic distance cross-country races as well. How does each of these experiences set you up for the next?
Is ‘I’m too lazy to do efforts’ a reason?! The team relay is actually a nice way to connect with the Bendigo MTB Club, and the XCC is a good opener for the XCO.
With pretty small Elite fields it’s also just nice for riders to support the races that are put on for us. It gives you an idea of your own form, other riders form, and shakes any nerves out.
Having raced a lap of the XC track during the relay, what do you think will be most challenging about it for riders aiming for a national XCO title?
The idea of racing the Team Relay was to get a hot lap in on the XCO course, but they changed the course last minute to the junior circuit which was really disappointing. Then training was at 7am this morning so I actually haven’t done a full lap yet, in typical Peta fashion!
But we start up an eight per cent fire trail climb for the first eight minutes, and the single track in the forest is really techy both in the uphill and downhill sectors, so I’d say managing your effort through the entire race will be really hard. We’re at an intermediate altitude of 1500m and for a lot of the domestic riders we’ll feel the effects of that; I already did a year best 10-minute heart rate yesterday.
Who are your picks for riders to watch out for in the Elite Women’s and Men’s XCO events?
In the Women’s that’s easy - Bec Henderson. Not only because she’s unbeaten at the national champs and is chasing her tenth Elite national title in a row, but also because she’s the best rider in the world in the early season, which she proved by cleaning up at the first few World Cups last year.
I’d put Zoe Cuthbert as bridesmaid and Kath Hosking in third.
In the Men’s, my money is on Sam Fox to take the win - he had such a great year on the World Cup scene and he visually looks so much faster technically. The minor places are a bit of a free for all. My safe picks are Dan McConnell in second and ‘Trekky,’ Brendan Johnston, in third because they’re both consistent, reliable riders. But I’m hoping Tas Nankervis and Tom Chapman are in the fight!
For anyone watching these events from home and thinking about giving mountain bike riding or racing a go one day, what do you most want to say to them?
Many, many things! But to the average rider out there I’d say that mountain bike riding and mountain bike racing can be the same thing. Don’t be overwhelmed by the title of an event. You don’t have to be a ‘pro’ to enjoy the course, the destination, or a beer at the local pub.
Mountain biking is for everyone and the only way to fail is to never try.
WATCH the AusCycling Mountain Bike National Championships LIVE and FREE via SBS On Demand on February 12 and 18.
