Caroline Buchanan: Steadyrack Brand Ambassador & Dual Athlete

8 x World Champion and dual Olympic Australian athlete, Caroline Buchanan is a force to be reckoned with - both on and off the track! Born on our home soil of Australia, Caroline has accomplished the unthinkable. As the first woman to land a front-flip during a competition, to mentoring and encouraging upcoming female athletes to achieve their dreams, Caroline is an inspiration. In this blog post, we are going to delve into the life of Caroline Buchanan, her adrenaline-fueled world, where creativity meets grit, and passion fuels purpose. 

What challenges have you faced transitioning between BMX and mountain biking, and how have you overcome them?  

Initially at 15 years old after doing BMX since the age of five. I lost a bet to a friend to come and try mountain biking.  I was so stiff on the mountain bike, learning to trust my tyres and suspension took me a while. It also took me a long time to learn how to corner properly. But I did have a huge head start with jumping and base skills from BMX. I struggled to find my niche and career path in mountain biking initially, as coming from a BMX background, it was the 4cross and pump track disciplines that were really the only cross over points of entry into MTB. Downhill was the only career path I could see and I knew that it wasn’t my passion and skillset.

It’s so amazing now that there are so many mountain bike disciplines to enjoy and make a career out of. From slopestyle and freestyle to enduro, dual slalom, e-biking, pump track, Crankworx, Freeride, Rampage, World Cup downhill…the options are endless!

What steps do you take to prepare yourself physically and mentally for competing at the elite level? 

Over my career I have had many blocks of focused training as well as many diverse chapters of cycling disciplines. Competing over the past 18 years I have raced and competed in... BMX racing, Freestyle BMX, Slopestyle, Freeride, Pumptrack, Dual slalom, Downhill, Air downhill, four cross, E-biking, Enduro and Speed and Style. I currently prepare myself physically and mentally with trail riding, running, ice baths, saunas, pump track, local and international races, Slalom cone drills for cornering and having a strength and conditioning coach, admin / book keeping and a manager who helps co ordinate 17 contracts per year.  Over the years of my career I have helped prepare, level up and overcoming injuries with psychologists, nutritionists, biomechanics, mechanics, spiritual retreats and meditation workshops / personal and business retreats. 

If you hadn’t pursued a career in BMX or mountain biking, what path do you think you would have chosen? 

I wish I was a good snowboarder and did boarder cross racing, but I’m a dirt girl and love the summer. I have a strong interest for marketing and management and have always thought that I would make a great athlete manager.

What’s on the horizon for you in 2025? Any exciting plans or goals in the works?  

This is my 2025 calendar which is an exciting blend of mountain bike racing focusing on dual slalom, enduro, air downhill and pump-track events, and also some broadcast events doing field reporting interviewing like at Redbull Hardline.

🇦🇺 February 1st  //  Thredbo gravity series weekend
🇦🇺 6-7-8th February  //  RedBull hardline field reporting (broadcast)
🇦🇺 10-15 February // Cannonball MTB festival Thredbo
🇳🇿 4-9 March // Crankworx World Tour Rotorua
🇦🇺 March 23rd  //  Thredbo gravity series
🇨🇦 April   // Canada signature brand shoot 
🇺🇸 April  // Seaotter classic USA April 10-15th
🇺🇸 April  //   Hard MTB league Idaho USA
🇨🇦 April  //  Canada signature brand shoot 
🇦🇺  April 26th  //  Chain less champs Thredbo
🇺🇸 may 13-17th  //  MTB hard league qualifying IDAHO
🇦🇺 21-25 May // Crankworx World Tour Cairns
🇨🇦 August 1-4 // Summer Series Crankworx Silverstar (Broadcast)
🇨🇦 8-17 August // Crankworx World Tour Whistler
🇨🇦 August 22-24   // Sugarloaf Crankwrox - Summer series
🇦🇹 September  //  Swatch Nines Freeride event Austria
🇺🇸 10-12 October // Red Bull Rampage (Broadcast)
🇦🇺 17-20 October // E-Bike Enduro National Championships Perth
🇦🇺 24-26th 25th October   // Seaotter Classic Mogo Australia

Cycling history: what made you start cycling, how old were you, what was your first bike? 

I first started at five years old when I followed by brother into the sport, and I quickly started climbing the ranks in BMX from club to state to national and international events racing the world champs at nine years old. I turned professional at the age of 14 and also discovered mountain biking. By first BMX bike was a pink Kmart one and my first race bike was a Mongoose Superpose Pro. My first mountain bike I owned was Tara Lianes custom giant hardtail.

Goals and ambitions: What goal or impact for you want to leave on the sport of mountain biking? 

I have always wanted to be a world champion and Olympian and it's such an honour to say I am a 5 x Mountain Bike World Champion and 3 x BMX World Champion, 2 x Australian Olympian and 2 x Queen of Crankworx. With my Ignite scholarships and mentoring, that has always been apart of my drive to give back to the sport, support the future girls in the sport and lead by example.

"It inspires me daily to stay true and strive to continue to be a bit of a rebel role model who does things differently, breaks the sporting mould, and helps up and coming female athletes in the sports they love.”

I first launched my female mentorship program in 2014 with the dream to be the bike role model I wished I had growing up. Since then, the program has evolved and in 2021 IGN!TE was born! I have proudly supported 19 girls with personal mentoring plus over $140,000 in raised funds, helping them achieve their goals and compete in BMX, Mountain Bike and Motocross. For more information on my IGNITE scholarships: https://www.carolinebuchanan.com/ignite

What are your top achievements across your career so far?  

Besides winning eight world titles, two Queen of Crankworx titles and representing Australia at two Olympic Games, one of my most proud achievements was coming back to sport after an almost life ending injury where I was in an off road vehicle accident and punctured and collapsed my lungs, punctured my heart wall, broke my ribs and broke my sternum. Returning to the elite level competition level of sport after two years out of the sport is definitely my proudest moment. I am also really proud to say I was the first women in the world to land a “front flip on a mountain bike" and first women in the world to also land a “superman seat grab and superman seat grab Indian air".

Any personal information that you are willing to share/what your life looks like outside of cycling.  

A typical week in the life in the off season consists of spending time with family and friends. I do a community 5-7k run every week called "Running for Resilience” and park run and I join a community ride at Stromlo Forest Park called “ Hour Of Power”. Both of these community run and ride events are for mental health and community connection which I love. I go to the gym and work on strength and conditioning three days a week, ice bath five days a week, sauna two days a week, endless admin and planning for the upcoming season, ride my local trails, pump tracks and riding Thredbo Mountain Bike Resort every other week over the summer.  The difference from off season and in season is I travel overseas and I'm away 4-6 months of the year to compete in mountain biking and work in broadcast field reporting roles.

Your favourite bike and why? 

My favourite bike is definitely my Slopestyle/ Dual Slalom Zebra bike I rode in the 2024 FMB Slopestyle Crankworx World Tour. Not only because the pink zebra pattern was epic, but I love the bike because it allows me to rip through trails, race dual slalom, enjoy technical rhythm sections, jump through dirt jumps and freestyle trick Slopestyle courses.

Favourite track/location in the world to ride and why? 

I absolutely love riding and competing in Thredbo as an Australia destination, and overseas it is hands down Whistler, Canada for its epic tracks, jumps and the mountain biking community and culture meeting a city and vibrant energy.

Caroline’s exceptional talent, unwavering dedication, and passion for BMX and mountain biking make her a perfect addition to the Steadyrack Brand Ambassador team. We’re thrilled to have her on board! Check out Caroline's team rider profile to discover what fuels her passion!