Master the mental side of your mountain biking with brain-based coaching and courses.
Work in the calm zone away from the trails to build cognitive skills and strategies you can use in multiple situations, on and off the bike.
September offer: book an 80-minute Extended Brain Tune-Up session for the cost of a 50-minute session.
Mountain biking requires a mix of physical ‘know-how’ and mental precision. Intelligent Action focuses on the mental skills that support your physical abilities: focus, control, overcoming overthinking, excelling under pressure, building your flexibility and problem-solving abilities for when you reach a plateau in your development or a race or ride doesn’t go to plan.
Traditional mountain bike coaching teaches you what your body should do. Intelligent Action focuses on the mental architecture of how your brain supports your body to do it.
I leverage twenty years of elite racing, a PhD on mountain biking in Performance Studies and postdoctoral research in Cognitive Science, to decode, and support, your unique mental approach to mountain biking. Whether you are breaking through a technical plateau, navigating post-injury anxiety, or learning how to support your autistic and/or ADHD mind as a mountain biker, we’ll find strategies that improve your speed, control and flow on the trails.
Why your biggest improvements can happen off the trails
By stepping away from the pressure to ride a specific section of trail in a specific moment, we take the coaching conversation into the “Calm Zone.” Meeting for a video session via GoogleMeets allows us to:
- De-code the drama: Isolate exactly where your working memory jams, your brain feels overwhelmed, where sensory overload triggers fear or mental blocks, or where a thought habit that’s worked for you in the past is no longer serving you.
- Maximise efficiency: Develop precise, personalised strategies and cues that let you ride faster and smoother with less physical effort—a game-changer for high-stress professionals, if you’re working with injury or fatigue, or want to maximise the session time over travel time.
- Adrenaline-free analysis: Review riding footage or unpack mid-ride thought processes without managing adrenaline, nervous-system overload, or pressure to perform at the same time. Build strategies that apply across a variety of obstacles, not just one.
September offer: book an 80-minute Extended Brain Tune-Up session for the cost of a 50-minute session.
Pick your pathway
OPTION A
Brain Tune-Up – Express
- Format: 1:1 video session (50 Minutes) + follow-up strategy summary
- Investment: $130
- For riders (personal focus): Best for updating your mental approach to 1-2 trail features, a pre-race mental reset, or checking in on a cue you are already testing. We dive straight into specific bottlenecks to keep things punchy, low-fatigue, and highly practical.
- For coaches (professional focus): Recommended for a professional check-in on 1-2 aspects of braining and biking, or troubleshooting 1-2 complex client cues or mental strategies.
OPTION B
Brain Tune-Up – Extended
- Format: 1:1 video session (80 Minutes) + follow-up strategy summary
- Investment: $190
- For riders (personal focus): Best for first-time clients, riders navigating more frequent bottlenecks (eg. wider-ranging anxiety, post-injury confidence, plateaus in racing improvements), or wanting a deep-dive into a performance problem or goal. This session provides time to map out interconnected habits, address deeper patterns and influences, or untangle multi-layered challenges without feeling rushed.
- For coaches (professional focus): Recommended for a fuller professional development session, where you want to unpack multiple client case studies or expand your coaching expertise to better understand cognitive processes on the bike.
OPTION C
‘Mastering Cues’ Course
- Format: Self-paced video lessons and 1:1 live lesson
- Investment: $269
- Prefer to learn at your own speed? Get instant access to Mastering Cues for Riding Well Under Pressure. This 6-step course, built on my original research into mental skills for mountain biking, teaches you how to direct your attention, manage overload, ride with more intention and regulate anxiety on the bike.
- The course includes a 1:1 live lesson for personalised strategy development and talking through how you’re taking the insights in the course and making them your own.
September offer: book an 80-minute Extended Brain Tune-Up session for the cost of a 50-minute session.
How it works
Select your path: Click a booking button above to see my live calendar availability or enrol in the course.
Lock it in: Choose your time slot and complete your payment securely via Stripe in under 60 seconds. (1:1 live lesson times are booked within the course itself.)
Meet online: We meet via Google Meet to unpack what’s working well – and not so well – with your riding, and co-create practical strategies you can use straight away. You will also come away with a deeper undertstanding of your unique processing style that you can apply and adapt in future situations, on and off the trails.
Integration: You will receive a follow-up email summarising core strategies and any additional resources we chat about to use as a “menu of experiments” on your next ride—no high-pressure to-do lists, just tools to explore at your own pace. Get ready to have (even more) fun on your bike!
Grounded & Thoughtful Support
“Your coaching style feels really grounded and thoughtful – like chatting with a friend who totally gets the mental ups and downs of riding. You give simple but powerful cues that actually stick.” — 1:1 Online Coaching Client
Breaking the Plateau
“A place to go if you feel like your cycling has plateaued. Engaging, easy to access and a source of heaps of simple techniques you can apply immediately.” — Online Course Graduate
Flexible & Tailored to You
“I really liked being able to dip in and out at my own pace, when I had both the time and the right mindset to apply the activities to my riding. Also the 1:1 with Kath was absolutely brilliant – she was so generous and tailored it to exactly where I was on the day and what I had coming up.” — Online Course Graduate
In development: two new online courses
Sustaining Resilience and Wellbeing – on and off the bike
The Focus: We start with a goal you have, learn about why certain strategies have worked well for you in the past, then build on these with original research-backed insights and approaches to overcoming unexpected obstacles in the future.
What You’ll Learn: How to work with anxiety rather than fighting it, build sustainable confidence in your own unique strategies, and bounce back more quickly when a ride or race doesn’t go to plan.
Status: In Development for late 2026.
Refine Your Racecraft
The Focus: Translating training gains into peak performance when the clock is ticking—whether you’re aiming for a local midweek series, beating your own PBs on Strava or national gravity or cross-country events.
What You’ll Learn: Mental strategies for extending your physical strengths, simplifying decision-making and problem-solving at high trail speeds, and pre-race routines to execute your best under pressure.
Status: In Development for late 2026.
Testimonials
(Anonymous, because not everybody wants their personal thoughts or challenges plastered all over the internet.)
“Kath is highly skilled and a good listener. She will always listen or see someone’s own way or approach then guide them.”
“Kath’s approach to coaching is very relatable and relaxed, with a gentle but real feel to it. She is able to tap into people’s inner negativity and make them realise it’s OK to not be the best or get something straight away. But gently!”
“Alongside learning to corner, you should do Kath’s course to learn about the mental skills that work with the physical skills.”
“Our session this week was incredibly helpful and affirming for me and I’m really keen to continue.”
“It complements physical teaching – learning the mental side alongside it is so crucial in sport.”
“The course is awesome. It got me thinking intentionally again.”
“Kath has such good info about so many topics. She’s so passionate about lived experience and learning from what we’ve done well in the past.”
“I’d say it’s a great session for any level of rider – whether you’re just starting out or have been riding for years. There’s a really nice balance of practical takeaways and more reflective mindset work that gets you thinking differently about how you ride.”
“You’re a great listener and create such a chilled, supportive space that makes it easy to be honest, take a breath, and reset.”
“Really, really, really helpful.”
“I found it really interesting to think about riding a bike, instead of just riding a bike.”
“Kath has a very relaxed and positive mindset. She’s easy going, relatable and works with real scenarios.”
“Kath really helped me to clean up my thinking when I’m on the bike. Self talk is so powerful and she gave me the tools I needed to control my thoughts so that my riding experience was a positive one, focused on enjoyment followed by progress.”
“Knowing you’re neurodivergent and what we have in common gives me encouragement and courage…So relatable to see someone like me who can ride well, and who is transparent about themselves.”
“Dr Kath is an absolute boss lady! She’s got neuropower lived experience and formal qualifications to match.”
“Kath is so easy to talk to and made me feel super comfortable.”
“Your coaching style feels really grounded and thoughtful – like chatting with a friend who totally gets the mental ups and downs of riding. You give simple but powerful cues that actually stick, so when I’m out on the trail, I find myself coming back to those little mindset shifts. It’s helped me stay more focused, and be more present on the bike.”
FAQ
Why mountain bike mind skills training?
I’ve studied the ways mountain bikers and other athletes rely on a mix of focus and awareness, and more automatic processes since 2007. Most people talk about managing anxiety, fear, and overthinking as the mental parts of riding they want to improve on. Our minds do so much more as well: choosing, deciding, remembering, predicting, anticipating, pacing, adapting, monitoring, strategising, planning…. There’s so much to be gained in terms of understanding how to use your mind to get more out of your time on the bike! I want to see more riders stoke, excited and really proud about how much their brains contribute to riding well.
How does your coaching work alongside MTB skills sessions out on the trails?
Think of these sessions as a way of stepping back from the trails, and understanding more about what your mind brings to riding well. This will help you expand your toolkit for higher pressure moments, troubleshoot aspects of riding that are causing blocks or holding you back, and to know how to regulate your thoughts with more focus, awareness and control.
Coaches running MTB skills sessions on trails around Australia have been some of the biggest supporters of Intelligent Action since we launched in 2023. Our methods complement each other well and support you in developing your mountain biking in different ways. I definitely recommend getting in touch with physical MTB skills coaches in your area to keep working on your technique and to meet other riders in your community.
Can I do a session with a friend or a group?
Yes, we can run sessions with a maximum of four people. The cost will be the same as a single person session. To do this, you will need to email hello@intelligentaction.cc at the time of booking letting me know the names and email addresses of the people attending. Our current booking system is pretty simple, so one person will need to be responsible for payment and forwarding confirmation and reminder emails.
Tell me more about supporting autistic and ADHD mountain bikers?
I believe that autistic and ADHD folk are much higher represented in mountain biking than in general population groups, whether that’s for the self and sensory regulation the sport provides, the way social interaction develops around a special interest or hyperfocus, differing attitudes and processes toward risk, the balance of joy/dopamine and repetition that moving through favourite trails provides and other fun factors. These traits can also mean different avenues for understanding, and preventing, overload and overwhelm.
As awareness of neurodivergent experiences and research grows, there’s a huge need for people to be able to process what this means for them, and how to apply it to overcome sensory, social, emotional and executive function challenges at home, in sport and at work. I completed a certified Neurodivergent Support Coach course in 2025 as it offered something differently beneficial to my PhD and skills coaching background in mountain biking. I love the strengths-based approach of the neurodiversity-affirming movement (which I think a lot of other people can benefit from as well) and I wanted to formalise skills I’ve learned through lived experience and my academic background.
Do I need an ADHD or autism diagnosis before booking a session with you to understand more about this aspect of my riding?
No! Firstly, self-diagnosis is valid and not everyone can afford a formal diagnosis.
Secondly, if you’re wondering if you fit various criteria, we can talk through that and look at the pros and cons of going through the diagnosis process. We can also explore strategies to draw on that are supportive in the meantime.
Do you do mindset coaching for people from other sports?
Yes, if you’re interested! Most of the techniques and concepts that I use to support mountain bikers also apply to people coordinating mind and body in other activities. What usually happens in these conversations is each person brings sport-specific insights and enthusiasm, but the point of connection is around skills that enable you to increase your mental skills.
Are you a health professional?
No. The Dr in my title is from a PhD in Performance Studies. As a support coach, my role is to provide you with strategies and tools you can use to understand mind-body-environment challenges and work toward your goals. I bring a supportive, encouraging, and collaborative style to coaching to help you uncover your own solutions and expand your toolkit for navigating challenges. It is not a substitute for clinical therapy.
What’s your cancellation policy?
Please note that as a *very* small business we have a strict cancellation policy.
If you need to change your booking time, you must do this 48 hours before the session. Except in the case of an emergency, failing to rebook before this time or failing to turn up for the session means you forfeit the session.
Please also note that by confirming your booking, you agree to our Terms and Conditions.
Contact us at hello@intelligentaction.cc if you have any queries.
I have more questions! Why aren’t they here too?!
Contact us at hello@intelligentaction.cc or via the contact page on this website. Chances are someone else might be wondering the same thing, so your question also helps us to keep this page updated for anyone else.
About Kath Bicknell
Kath is a researcher, writer and educator with a deep connection to cycling. With over 17 years’ experience in academia spanning performance studies, cognitive science, and anthropology, she brings a unique perspective to skill learning and expert performance. Her research, including a PhD on the lived experience of mountain biking, focuses on real-world training and performance techniques and individual processes for excelling under pressure. She worked as skills coach with Australian Mountain Bike clinics during her studies.
Whether its racing, riding with friends, or enjoying the lifestyle aspects of MTB, the sport has been a central part of Kath’s life for 25 years. She lives with several invisible disabilities including Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (hEDS) and Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome (POTS). These have driven her professional interests in minds, bodies, and movement, and her inclusive approach to teaching and coaching.
Kath has shared her expertise through hundreds of articles for national and international cycling media, including six years with SBS Sport, her ‘Mind, Body, Bike’ column for Australian Mountain Bike, peer-reviewed journals and a co-edited book with John Sutton, Collaborative Embodied Performance: ecologies of skill. Kath founded Intelligent Action in 2023, offering personalised performance and resilience training through courses, workshops, and neurotype-affirming coaching.
Beyond coaching and courses, I collaborate with fellow skills coaches, clubs, and corporate teams to expand our collective understanding of skill learning, resilience, and performance under pressure. If you would like to discuss a co-led clinic, a guest workshop, or public speaking engagement for your organisation, contact me to discuss your needs or brainstorm ideas.
