Haley Smith: “That moment when you think, ‘I can’t’ is where the magic happens…”
Professional offroad bike racer Haley Smith talks Cape Epic – bike choice, preparation, lush jungles and squawking birds.
Where are you from and where do you live?
I am from a small town called Uxbridge, which is in the province of Ontario in Canada. I currently live near Bromont, Quebec (a mountain biking hotspot), but spent the majority of my XCO career living on Vancouver Island in Victoria, BC.
What does your average day look like?
Believe it or not, I ride a bike! Well, technically I race bikes for a living. But being a professional offroad cyclist involves so much more than just what happens on race day; it’s the training hours, the off-bike preparation, the logistics organizing, the public facing elements, the marketing things like photoshoots…. We have to wear lots of different hats as pro gravel/endurance MTB racers. I am also a graduate student, which though I don’t consider a job, is a big part of my professional life.
Favourite recovery meal?
It really depends on the season. I used to love thick slices of sourdough with fried eggs, but I’ve developed a gluten intolerance in the last year (this is extremely sad for me). Now I like anything I can put chili crisp on (rice, eggs, homemade GF bread). Can’t go wrong with a smoothie bowl in the summer, either.
Who or what inspires you?
Apart from the obvious answers (my partner, my parents, and my family – they have encouraged and inspired me my entire life to pursue this), I think my biggest inspiration is Earth/nature. I feel the most alive in lush landscapes and exploring new (to me) areas of the world. There’s no better way to do that than on a bike, and so the motivation to be outside is more than enough to keep me riding every day.
What hobbies do you have outside of biking?
I briefly mentioned above, but I am a grad student studying sport psychology. I am just coming off of medical leave after having long COVID and a host of related complications last year, but I’ll be starting again in the fall. When I’m an active student, this takes up a lot of my time! I also really like to cook and read, and – yes – watch a lot of Netflix.
How did you get into riding?
I started by tagging along with my dad and brother when they would go to the forest trails. My siblings and I all learned how to ride bikes when we were very young, but mountain biking didn’t really come onto my radar until I started tagging along in high school. I grew up playing ice hockey, dancing, and doing a ton of other sports, but I was really drawn to mountain biking because it was different – it felt unique in a lot of ways.
Which of your racing results would you say is the one you cherish the most? Why?
Oooof, this is a tough one to answer! In my XCO days, I would say the year of 2019. I had so many wonderful races that year on the World Cup circuit and the reason I cherish them is because it was a time in my life when I found the confidence to bet on myself; I went full-tilt into every race and owned my space, believing I could be at the front. It worked out – I had a world cup podium and numerous top 10s. Since leaving XCO and moving to endurance/gravel racing, I’ve been a bit on the back foot. I haven’t found my winning formula yet, but the races I am most proud of tend to have some story of adversity behind them, like Unbound 2024.
Whether racing or riding, what is the greatest challenge you’ve ever faced on a bike?
The biggest challenge I’ve ever faced on a bike…. That’s a hard one, because the challenges I experience on a bike are challenges I’ve chosen. Bike riding is voluntary, you know? Life challenges, on the other hand, don’t really have anything to do with bikes and are infinitely harder. If I had to pick one, I’d say picking myself up after the pandemic. Where some people found their love for riding during that time, I completely lost it. Climbing out of the mental and physical health holes I’d dug myself into during the pandemic was extremely challenging.
In the professional ranks, in any category and discipline, who do you have the most respect for and why?
This isn’t just a tough question to answer, I think it’s actually impossible. On the whole, I respect all of my professional colleagues. Everyone has been through some sort of challenge to get to where they are in cycling, and I tend to admire people who have worked for what they have. I’d say that I most respect anyone who is motivated to pursue excellence (not just results), and understands the beauty of what we’re doing – who looks at it like an art and races with heart/emotion.
You recently completed your first Cape Epic, from a physical point of view, how does it compare to World Cup racing and gravel racing?
I’ve done a lot of mountain bike stage racing in the past, and the Epic compares pretty well to those experiences. However, the heat and the wind certainly added elements of difficulty that I haven’t really encountered before. The efforts at Epic weren’t as sharp as World Cup racing – you finish an 80-minute World Cup race being so shattered that you need to take multiple days to recover. The intensity in those short races is just so dense – you’re either going anaerobic or descending something really technical, there is no in between. I’d say that you could fairly compare Cape Epic to gravel racing – if gravel races were multiple days and done in a pairs format. And also if gravel races had really fun single track.
The pairs element is interesting, too. There are times when your partner will have you on the rivet, and times when it will be the reverse. Unless you are 100% perfectly matched, this means that there is some undulation in the effort level within each stage. Personally, I find the first two days of any stage race the hardest, and then I start to get in the groove. I genuinely like stage race sensations, though in retrospect, you’re certainly extremely sore and tired for pretty much the whole week.
What about the mental side of the Cape Epic, how tough is it and how does it rank compared to other big races like World Cups, Olympics and so on?
For me, the Cape Epic is the kind of challenge that I am suited for mentally. The first couple of days were tough when I was suffering really badly and I was afraid that I was holding my teammate back, but after that, I found myself in my mental element.
I found that World Cups and the Olympics carried such high degrees of stress and mental load that I wasn’t able to enjoy myself. But in a race as long as Cape Epic, there is more room to think and to process. Sure, it’s a much longer challenge that requires more grit to get through, but it’s the kind that I thrive on.
Is there anything about your Cape Epic preparation you would have changed, added or subtracted? Why?
I wouldn’t have gotten sick! My prep was going really well, but then I had a nasty flu that knocked me out for nearly 10 days just a couple weeks before Epic. This meant that my heat preparation basically evaporated and I didn’t have enough time after getting healthy to add that back in. So, I was really, really under-prepared for the heat. I would have also chosen to arrive in South Africa more than five days in advance to give myself time to get over the jet lag (and two consecutive red eye flights it took me to get there) and adjust to the time zone.
Talking bikes now, you race for Trek and chose the Top Fuel over the Supercaliber, what was your thought process behind that decision?
It was my choice to ride the Top Fuel. I chose that bike because of the additional suspension, which I thought my body would need for eight days of rough riding/racing. In retrospect, I’m not sure that I needed it and would maybe ride the Supercaliber next year. The single tracks were not rough (in fact, they were MINT), but some of the farm track pedalling was gnarly… those would be the sections that would nudge me in the direction of a Top Fuel. But a Gen 2 Supercaliber with 80mm rear and 110 or 120 front travel would be a great bike for this race, in my opinion. Especially with Flight Attendant – I think that’s a game changer for these long days of riding trails, sight-unseen.
Too soon maybe, but will you be back for another Cape Epic?
Not too soon, I said I would be back as soon as I crossed the finish line on stage 7. I wasn’t ready for it to be over. So – yes, 100%.
Back home, let’s say you’ve got a four hour solo training ride on the menu for the day – as you walk out the door, what do you have in your pockets?
The saddle or frame bag has all the flat fix things, and then in my pockets I have: phone, money, homemade bars or cookies, some gels, an extra AXS battery, and possibly some Airpods.
Your favorite training loop is?
I very, very rarely repeat the same loop twice. In fact, I think the only time I ever ride exactly the same route is on my recovery spins at home (we have a perfect 90 min loop that has a café stop halfway through). Otherwise, I’m always linking trails, roads, and dirt in different ways. We live in a pretty crazy area for riding – so much variety. Some of my favourite rides that I’ve done around the globe include the East Maui loop on Maui and all the routes from the bike packing trip we did this January in Tasmania.
Your dream destination for a bike ride is? Why?
Somewhere with really lush jungle. That kind of terrain is my personal paradise. I want it to be so humid that you’re not sure if it’s you or the air that’s sweating, I want to be able to hear tropical birds squawking, and I want to feel like I’m exploring.
Who would you like to thank?
Obviously, my family and Coach Dan. Trek South Africa were a huge help on the ground and were so friendly. My personal sponsors Trek, MAAP, The Feed, and COROS allow me to live my dream life, which I will forever be grateful for.
What one thing (mantra/ ethos etc) would you like all riders to remember / embrace?
That moment when you think, “I can’t” is where the magic happens – that’s your chance to step into your capability and achieve something you haven’t before. //
| Images: Michael Chiaretta Cape Epic @live_like_lando @joeb_dedman |