We had Buckley’s chance of keeping up with him in the race itself, but Cyclist managed to pin down Richie Porte for a quick chat off the bike during our trip to the Shimano Gravel Muster in August. Here he talks gravel riding, family life, and connecting with the fans who used to be up at 2am to watch him ride.
Interview: Imogen Smith Photography: James Tudor
Cyclist: How is life different now that you’ve been retired for a few years from your professional career?
Richie Porte: A lot less stress. And more time at home with the kids living back in Australia, which is, you know, a massive part of bringing up the kids and is the kind of life we wanted for them. I don’t miss a single thing about it. I’m thankful for everything I got from cycling, but I don’t miss the stress and living in Europe, and I guess being told what you can and can’t do. I don’t miss any of that for a second.
Cyc: What drew you to gravel racing after your professional career?
RP: I’m in a good position that I still love riding my bike, which is a big part of it. I know a lot of guys that, once they retire from professional cycling, they don’t want to see a bike again, but I enjoy it. My best mates in Tassie, that’s how we catch up and have coffee and enjoy ourselves. And it’s a nice thing to come and do events like this, which are just so far from road cycling. I wouldn’t say it’s easier though. Gravel racing is hard and the corrugations – I have more respect for the guys who do Paris-Roubaix and end up with blisters and stuff on their hands. Plus, it’s just awesome to come to events like this one and see different parts of Australia. I rode at Beechworth last year and really enjoyed that. I did The Devil’s Cardigan in my backyard in Tassie – didn’t really enjoy that at all, but it’s a fantastic event. It was probably a little bit too close to racing and I wasn’t ready for that at that time.
Cyc: How does the atmosphere of gravel racing differ from your professional road races?
RP: Yeah, the thing is, you get to meet people from all walks of life, and it’s just so friendly. You sit down at any table after the event for dinner and chat with good people. I enjoy that side of it. And obviously, back in my racing days, you wouldn’t be having beers after stages. This event has been so well run and it’s just fun, you know? The riding’s hard, as hard as you make it, but it’s just enjoyable. Everything from the get-go has been so enjoyable.
Cyc: Is it weird being a celebrity at an event like this?
RP: That’s the thing with Australians. Australians are very, very respectful. I always found that when I did Tour Down Under, Aussie fans were respectful. I think here too, these are the people that stayed up till 2am to watch myself, or Cadel, or Ben O’Connor and Jai Hindley – they’re real fans. So it’s kind of nice to chat with them and get to know the people that supported us our whole careers.
Cyc: What are the things you enjoy the most about gravel events like the Shimano Gravel Muster?
RP: It’s that time of the year when down in Tassie the days are starting to get a little bit better, but it’s still pretty cold. But when you come up here, it’s warm and there’s just that pleasure of riding in shorts and a jersey. Also, I like catching up with people. I’m a father with two young kids, and just to be able to – like, I love my kids, and I miss them and my wife – but just to be able to relax and socialise, which you don’t really get to do at home, or even so much at this point in life.
Cyc: Is there anything that surprised you about this race?
RP: The corrugations and how brutal they are. And the landscape out here is absolutely spectacular. It’s like nowhere else I’ve seen in the world, but geez, those corrugations have you looking at the road pretty much the whole time. Sometimes you aren’t able to take in the red dirt and the gorgeous stuff.
Cyc: And what about off the bike?
RP: Just staying in outback stations, it’s probably a pretty unique event in that respect. Where else in the world would you get to do that? All us Aussies remember learning about Burke and Wills when we were at school and then you see the actual terrain that those guys had to traverse. It was a different generation. It’s such harsh landscape, and to be riding through here very well looked after makes you think about what they must have gone through. It gives you a whole lot of respect.
Cyc: What’s the essential equipment you rely on when you’re doing a gravel race like this one?
RP: I’ve got a (Specialized) Crux, which was a gift from my old manager who owns the Trinity Cycling Team, but I had the 11-speed GRX, so now I’ve got the new 12-speed GRX Di2 with the double chainring. I never really got my head around the one-by, but the two-by is absolutely brilliant. I had a bit of a bingle on the first day and, you know, it’s been absolutely bulletproof. It’s made it a little bit easier, having a bit more gear selection for those roads.
Cyc: How do you balance the fun aspects of racing and riding with staying fit? Is it important to you to stay fit for the bike these days?
RP: I swim a lot and I bike a lot. That has been my life since I was a kid. And I think once you have kids, you sort of want to set that example. That’s how my parents were. We grew up swimming down at the beach and my parents were very fit and healthy, and it’s also just for life. I just enjoy it. I guess I’m a fitness fanatic, and to be able to get out now with my mates and have coffee, it’s so much more social than it used to be while I was racing. I just love that.
Cyc: What advice would you give to ordinary cyclists who want to try gravel racing, maybe for the first time?
RP: I think the thing with gravel racing is it’s just such an awesome vibe. I think it’s probably much more friendly than what the road racing scene is, and probably the same for mountain biking too. You know, it’s like everybody’s pumped for each other. Like, here we’ve seen people from all walks of life that come in, you know, three or four hours after we finish. And that’s where you get your respect. It’s for people of all different abilities who have the willpower to go and suffer like that. I mean, you can’t beat around the bush – gravel racing is about suffering. But I think it’s a great suffering, you know? If you want to embrace that, it’s a massively rewarding thing and an event like this where you get to sit around in winter with temperatures in the 30s and drink beer and reminisce about what happened – it’s pretty awesome.
Richie Porte
Born: Launceston, Tasmania
Notable career results: 2021 1st, Criterium du Dauphine 2020, 1st, Tour Down Under 3rd, Tour de France 2018 1st, Tour de Suisse 1st Stage 3, Tour de France 2017 1st, Tour Down Under 1st, Tour de Romandie 2015 1st, National Road Championships Time Trial 1st, Paris-Nice 1st, Volta a Catalunya 1st, Giro del Trentino 2013 1st, Paris-Nice 2012 1st, Volta ao Algarve 2010 1st, Young Rider Qualification, Giro d’Italia.
For more about Cyclist’s experience at the Shimano Gravel Muster in Australia’s Red Centre, check out our article here
