Harriet Burbidge-Smith: Powerful Tools and Techniques for Injury Recovery

Today, I’m joined by Harriet Burbidge-Smith, better known as Haz, one of the top names in women’s slopestyle and freeride. But the past year has been a challenging one, as she suffered a serious neck injury that forced her to step away from riding and focus on recovery. In this episode, we dive deep into her journey, what it’s like to face injury as a professional athlete, the mental and physical battles of recovery, and how she’s navigating the uncertainty that comes with time off the bike. Haz also shares some of the tools and techniques that have helped her along the way, from mindset shifts and meditation to nutrition and support networks. We also talk about the evolution of women’s slopestyle and the importance of sharing experiences to help others. It’s an open and insightful conversation about resilience, growth, and what it really takes to come back stronger. So, it’s time to sit back, hit play and listen to this episode with Harriet Burbidge-Smith. You can watch this episode on YouTube here . You can follow Haz on Instagram @haznationbikes and on her YouTube channel here . Podcast Stuff Supporting Partners A big thanks to Bikmo for supporting this episode of the podcast. Bikmo makes bike insurance simple, with cover you can trust when you need it most. Founded by riders for riders, Bikmo gets what we need. If you’re based in the UK, Ireland, Germany or Austria, you can get yourself and your bikes insured by Bikmo. What’s more, if you head to bikmo.com/downtime and use the code ‘ downtime ‘ at the checkout, you’ll get a free mountain bike strength programme from our good friend Ben Plenge over at the Strength Factory worth up to £148. So to get covered, visit bikmo.com/downtime and use the code ‘ downtime ‘ at the checkout. Terms apply. Listener Offers Downtime listeners can now get 10% off of Stashed Space Rails . Stashed is the ultimate way to sort your bike storage. Their clever design means you can get way more bikes into the same space and easily access whichever one you want to ride that day. If you have 2 or more bikes in your garage, they are definitely worth checking out. Just head to stashedproducts.co.uk/downtime and use the code DOWNTIME at the checkout for 10% off your entire order. And Just so you know, we get 10% of the sale too, so it’s a win win. Patreon I would love it if you were able to support the podcast via a regular Patreon donation. Donations start from as little as £3 per month. That’s less than £1 per episode and less than the price of a take away coffee. Every little counts and these donations will really help me keep the podcast going and hopefully take it to the next level. To help out, head here . Merch If you want to support the podcast and represent, then my webstore is the place to head. All products are 100% organic, shipped without plastics, and made with a supply chain that’s using renewable energy. We now also have local manufacture for most products in the US as well as the UK. So check it out now over at downtimepodcast.com/shop . Newsletter If you want a bit more Downtime in your life, then you can join my newsletter where I’ll provide you with a bit of behind the scenes info on the podcast, interesting bits and pieces from around the mountain bike world, some mini-reviews of products that I’ve been using and like, partner offers and more. You can do that over at downtimepodcast.com/newsletter . Follow Us Give us a follow on Instagram @downtimepodcast or Facebook @downtimepodcast to keep up to date and chat in the comments. For everything video, including riding videos, bike checks and more, subscribe over at youtube.com/downtimemountainbikepodcast . Are you enjoying the podcast? If so, then don’t forget to follow it. Episodes will get delivered to your device as soon as it’s available and it’s totally free. You’ll find all the links you need at downtimepodcast.com/follow . You can find us on Apple Podcast, Spotify, Google and most of the podcast apps out there. Our back catalogue of amazing episodes is available at downtimepodcast.com/episodes Photo – Graeme Murray