After a season in which her upward progress was tempered by its share of crashes in major races, a move to the big city is bringing beneficial results for downhill mountainbike racer, Bex Reilly.

The recently turned 18 year old from Auchencairn, near Castle Douglas, Dumfriesshire, finished 2009 second overall in the national rankings.  She came first in the Scottish Series and second in the Scottish Championships. 

It was a great season by any standards, yet two blots stick vividly in her memory:  “I set my goals high and I wanted to be selected for the World Championships in Australia. I was selected for GB to do two World Cups and put so much pressure on myself that I messed them up.

“At Fort William, on one of my favourite tracks, I crashed in qualifying.  Then in Slovenia I put on too much pressure, crashed, and didn’t qualify again. 

“I showed I had too many weaknesses, there were too many inconsistencies and I also struggled with the whole mental game of racing. 

“But I learnt so much from a national point of view so it was the most successful season yet and I know what I have to work on.”

It’s an honest assessment from an athlete who has been racing in the uncompromising sport for less than a handful of years and has improved rapidly as a result of being “incredibly competitive”. 

In 2008 she had been selected for the Scottish Development Talent team, and spent that year “learning about how everything works”.  It’s still early days.

Moving forwards, it’s mid January and she has been at Glasgow’s Strathclyde University studying Product Design and Innovation for a term. 

She is on the University’s Elite Athlete Sports Bursary Program and has been supported by the West of Scotland Institute of Sport since 2008. Her move north brings her closer to WSIS headquarters, the Palace of Art. After two blocks of winter training she is stronger than ever.

“I had been working at the David Keswick Centre in Dumfries, mainly learning correct lifting technique,” said Bex, who is sponsored by atg UV Technology, Science in Sport, Uplift Scotland and 2026 Distribution.

“But I was injured a lot through last season, having hit several trees and rocks, so it was hard to get into a good programme. 

“When I came to Glasgow I was injury free and have had the last four months to concentrate on working really hard. 

“Strength is very important for downhill racing and I have been getting world class support from the WSIS.   Through them I receive physio, nutrition and lifestyle coaching, which is helping me to get the balance right between an athlete and student lifestyle...and ultimately become a better athlete. 

“The biggest difference was when I started Strength & Conditioning training with Tim Silvester.  After the gradual build up for three months there was one day when I got on my bike at Innerleithen and my strength had just changed and it totally changed how I was riding.   

“I found I could just ride really well and strong.  I had extra control, I was more stable and more aggressive.   Something just clicked - hopefully it will carry on clicking into place.” 

The season was due to start informally at Innerleithen last weekend had it not been for snow clinging stubbornly to the forest roads.  The race was cancelled yet two more are planned as pre season warm ups before things start in earnest in April.

Bex has learnt from some hard lessons in 2009 and is tempering her approach, whilst taking a longer term view of her ultimate goals. 

“By the time I finish Uni I’d like to be consistently qualifying for World Cups.  Long term, I want to be the best I can be on the international World Cup circuit and a regular on the podium. 

“This season I’m taking a new outlook on training and treating this more about experience.  I plan to do the Scottish and the national races but won’t do the international races unless it goes really well.

“After a fantastic New Year I'm set to gain as much experience as possible in the new season and make it the most successful year yet.”

RE-J