The BMX and MTB legend on how she found out she was becoming a mom, and why she can't wait
Caroline Buchanan’s first indication that she was pregnant was not a telltale sign like nausea or fatigue, but something much more unsettling to a BMX and mountain bike legend: A fear response.
She was at Red Bull Rampage as part of the commentary team, and as she went to scout the top of the women’s competition site, she was gripped by an unfamiliar feeling for someone who is frequently at physical risk in her day job.
“I remember just being so terrified and thinking, ‘What’s changed? I’m not normally this scared. This is weird.'” Buchanan recalled. “‘Risk adverse’ are not two words I’ve ever had in my vocabulary.”
My body was changing and my brain was changing before I knew what was happening.
Afterwards, she competed at Sea Otter Australia in an e-bike sprint event on her Rail+. She was besieged by leg-locking cramps in every race. When another competitor suggested that she might be under-conditioned, Buchanan scoffed at the suggestion. She knows how hard she works.
“My body was changing and my brain was changing before I knew what was happening.”
Buchanan is one of the most dialed individuals you would ever have the good fortune to meet, both on and off the bike. She knows her overstuffed calendar like the back of her hand — competitions, commentary gigs, and sponsor deadlines, all stacked and interlocked like Lego blocks.
Caroline competing at Crankworx Whistler last season.
Suddenly, for the first time in a long while, her immediate future was in flux. She didn’t know what she should do next. All she had were questions.
“I was like, ‘All right, well, how much time do I have off?'” Buchanan said. “‘When’s the baby due? How am I going to approach this season of my life and this chapter and the unknowns? How am I going to feel? Will I be sick? … When can I come back to racing again?’
“You spend your whole your whole career learning how to push your body and get the most out of it. As an athlete, you just want to maximize everything. And for the first time, it’s the other way around, and I just have to listen to my body and let it guide me through it all.”
The start of an incredible family
You could say that Buchanan hasn’t stopped feeling anxious since Rampage. But as someone who has consistently pushed herself into new ventures and disciplines throughout her career, change is part of her DNA. You don’t become an eight-time BMX and mountain bike World Champion, two-time Olympian, two-time Queen of Crankworx, and the first woman to land a front flip to dirt by never leaving your comfort zone.
Buchanan has always wanted to become a mother. That motivation underpinned every one of her endeavors. It’s part of her “why.” When she was preparing for the 2012 London Olympics, she worked with a mindset coach who asked her to define why she wanted to work so hard to be the best in the world. The thinking was that if Buchanan fully understood what she was pursuing in life, then she would be more steadfast in the face of inevitable setbacks like injuries.
I'm sure I'll relive all those same feelings and terror that I've put my parents through.
“One of the points within my ‘why’ was to have an income stream for me to have freedom as a female, and also for my future family,” Buchanan said. “Part of that hustle and the business of my career, on the bike and off, has not only been driven by the now; it was always for that future and for that family.”
Buchanan comes from a supportive family. They helped her travel to far-flung competitions, including to Paris so that Buchanan could represent Australia at the 1999 BMX World Championships at nine years old. They aligned her with strong mentors. “They set me up from quite young to support my professional career, and I think that naturally instills a desire to do the same for your own kids.”
Caroline's hustle is unparalleled.
She’s not sure yet how she’ll deal with the real possibility that her child is as much of a daredevil as she is. Her mother used to tell her, “I hold my breath a lot longer than you do when you compete, Caroline.” Buchanan is reckoning with the fact that some level of anxiety may be a daily part of her new life as a parent.
“I’m sure I’ll relive all those same feelings and terror that I’ve put my parents through,” Buchanan said.
But Buchanan is hardwired to seize opportunity, and she’s embracing the chance to see life anew. She has rarely slowed down since beginning her journey to become one of the most versatile and fearless two-wheeled athletes on Earth. That journey isn’t stopping any time soon, of course — she plans to return to competition as soon as it’s safe and feasible — but she’s looking forward to embracing it from a new perspective, when her “why” is no longer a hypothetical future, but a crying, giggling, sleeping, eating, smiling reality.
We're hyped too, Caroline!
“I’ve had the benefit of having an insane career so far — an adrenaline, fast-paced career, year after year,” Buchanan said. “So to be able to go back to just the thrills of very simple joys, of the very simple thing of riding a bike or being outside, or having those milestone moments — I’ll always remember the first time I rode my bike and started racing at five years old for BMX.
“It’s not very often in life that we get to play and explore, especially as adults. And I think that’s one part of this journey that I’m excited about, to be like, ‘I’m not going to be good at this,’ and then figure it out.”
