Ben Snowden is a 5-year PowerBar® Team Elite® veteran and professional bicycle motocross rider. We recently caught up with Ben on a wide range of topics including how he got his start in BMX, life as a professional in the sport, his sports nutrition regimen, and advice for riders looking to advance in the sport.
Snapshot
- Age: 29
- Home base: Santa Ana, California
- Gig: Professional BMX freestyle rider
Notable Accomplishments
- A peg grind on the Great Wall of China
- First bike rider to ever loop a cement full pipe
- Featured on the cover of BMX Plus! magazine in November 2004 doing a full pipe loop
- Featured on the cover of BMX Rider magazine in June 2004
- Featured on the front of XGRINDZ-brand potato chips
- First place in the Aspire 3 video contest in 2005
- Two silver medals at the Shanghai Showdown in China in October 2007
- Bronze medalist at the X Games Asia in April 2009
Q: When did you get into the sport and how did you work your way up the ranks to become a pro?
Ben: I started riding at 16. I was just a regular kid looking for a creative outlet. I'd played team sports, but I really wanted to do my own thing. I got involved in both skateboarding and BMX, but ended up falling in love with my bike. From there, I practiced every day and tried to emulate my favorite BMXers. By the time I was 20, I had landed my first paying gig on my bike! Now I ride as many different disciplines as possible and I'm always trying to push the limit to reach new levels. What's enabled me to succeed on the bike is that I won't quit. Straight up — there's never been a trick or a goal that I've given up on.
Q: What do you love about BMX?
Ben: I love the freedom. There are no rules and there are no guidelines. I'm free to do whatever I want, however I want. I express myself and show my emotions through bike riding. And no matter what mood I'm in or what's going on, I can always jump on my bike and ride.
Q: How do you carve out the time required to maintain your status as an elite professional in this sport?
Ben: I make time to ride my bike by making my bike my life. BMX freestyle has provided me with a family of friends worldwide. Riding is my full-time job and it's also my favorite hobby!
Q: What's the toughest thing about BMX?
Ben: The most difficult aspect, by far, is self-motivation. There are no coaches telling me how to achieve my goals or how to correct my mistakes. I am my own coach. I have to motivate myself. To excel at this sport, you have to be determined.
Q: Would you give us a snapshot of a day in the life of Ben Snowden?
Ben: Tons of riding! Tomorrow I'll wake up bright and early — 5:50 a.m. — and drive to the bike park. I like to get in an early session to beat the heat, and I'll spend at least a couple of hours riding. Then I'll head home for a snack and a swim to cool off. I'll follow that up with a few relaxed endurance runs in the BMX park we've built in the backyard of my house. But the best session of the day by far is from 5 to 8 p.m. in my backyard. That's when I invite friends over to ride. Riding with friends gets you pumped up, and that's where we work on perfecting new tricks. Sometimes after dinner I'll head back out to the public bike parks to have a mellow session for an hour or so. Then it's home to chill with my roommates.
Q: You've been a Team Elite athlete for almost 4 years — what has that partnership meant to you?
Ben: It's been a great asset to my health and physical conditioning. I've been able to continually push the limits in my sport without having to worry about my body holding me back. Paying attention to nutrition and staying hydrated is critically important, and something that many riders ignore. But I couldn't last a day without it. It's what enables me to keep my energy level strong all day long. That's what I need. In this sport you can't necessarily depend on a daily routine schedule. I need to be ready to go at any time. So throughout the day I make sure that I have more than enough fluids on hand and that I'm drinking fluids regularly. I also carry
PowerBar® Energy bars with me any time I leave the house. I usually eat one or two for each of my three riding sessions every day.
Q: What's your typical nutrition regimen before and during a riding session?
Ben: I’m usually up an hour before I ride, and I typically drink about 20 fl oz of water to make sure that I start the day hydrated. Then I'll have cereal for breakfast and eat a
PowerBar® Nut Naturals Energy bar on the drive to the bike park. The
Nut Naturals Energy bars work for almost any occasion. They taste great, give me sustained energy, and don't melt all over the place! The new
PowerBar® Energy Bites are my favorite to snack on the entire time I'm riding. They keep my energy levels topped off, are quick and easy, and again they don't melt. It gets hot in Santa Ana!
Q: How about before a competition or event — do you have a typical fueling and hydration regimen?
Ben: I keep it on point! I find out my contest schedule, and work from there. In fact, I start with my exact contest time, and work backwards up to four days prior. The few days before are pretty basic. I focus on drinking extra water and replenishing everything that my body uses to practice. The night before is important. I try to eat a small complex-carbohydrate meal. I'm very careful not to overeat. The morning of a competition, I start breakfast with fruit and finish with wheat toast. I try to keep my breakfast light and adjust my eating accordingly during the next few hours. For the venue itself, I'll stock my backpack with a variety of PowerBar products. From then until contest time, I only eat apples and the various PowerBar energy bars I've brought along. Which bar I pick just depends on what looks good at the time. This regimen works great every time!
Q: Do you do anything in particular after a competition, event, or training session to promote recovery?
Ben: After training sessions, I make sure I get the carbohydrates and protein I need to recover. And I also drink lots of fluids. After a competition, I indulge myself with pizza and beer. Hey, no one is perfect!
Q: How do you cope nutritionally with travel?
Ben: I hate it! But I have a rule: When I'm traveling, I don't put a spending limit on my meals. Eating healthy on the road is way more expensive than fast food, but totally worth it. Road trips are hard enough on the body, and one way to offset the negatives is to eat healthy food. Another thing is that I don't depend on there being food, or the right kind of food, once I get to my destination. I always travel with some PowerBar products in my backpack — that way I always have control over what I'm eating and when I eat it.
Q: What words of advice can you offer to up-and-coming BMXers who will read this?
Ben: Anyone who's ever ridden a BMX bike knows how much fun they are. My advice is, don't quit having fun. Yes, competitions can get serious, and struggling with new tricks can be frustrating, but always remember why you ride in the first place — for the pure fun of it. Also, if you aspire to be a professional, keep in mind that it's not just about talent and hard work on the bike. You also need to learn and know about marketing, public relations, and the business side of the sport. Finally, regardless of what you do — whether it's BMX or something else — if you find a job you love, you'll never work again.
Q: What are your goals in the year ahead?
Ben: I have new ideas that will push the limits of BMX freestyle, but they are top secret. You'll have to wait and see!
If you're interested in learning about PowerBar® Team Elite™ athletes or how you can join the ranks, click on the Team Elite link at PowerBar.com.
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