The Monday Q&A with Jess Richards

Jess Richards reckons she'd crack the Gordon Ramsay cooking challenge. Photo / Supplied

Jess Richards is a customer service representative in the Whanganui health sector and a former wellbeing facilitator. A born-and-bred River City local and mother of one, she currently plays as a shooter in the Blue Balls and Marist netball teams. She answered 10 questions from Mike Tweed.

What is your favourite thing to do in Whanganui?

Me and Nathan [son] love going to the river markets on a Saturday morning. The stalls? Where do I start? I'm a big fan of the Kai Kart and there's a lady who does a mussel chowder with sourdough bread from SourBros. That is a winner. I'm a big food fan, so we are always there.

You're someone who likes to keep active, but what is one form of exercise you dread?

It's a bit of a love/hate relationship, but I would say running. It kills me, but you feel so good afterwards. It's starting a run that gets me. I walk crazy distances, around the four bridges for example, but I need to hype myself up a bit more to get into running.

How do you think Whanganui has changed over the years?

It's changed hugely, but in a good way. There used to be one place to go out but now we've got Porridge [Watson] and all these funky little cafes and restaurants. I think we're luckier than people realise. There's always something to do.

How has the Covid-19 pandemic changed your outlook on life?

I think it's a reminder to just slow down and appreciate what we have here in New Zealand. Nathan and I were supposed to go to Rarotonga last year, but instead we have been making the effort to do lots of trips away around the country. Being locked down at home with a 10-year-old was fun times. We really got into exercise together and we would go out on our bikes to get out of the house. That was the most enjoyable part of the whole thing.

What is currently on your work-out playlist?

There's a whole range of different stuff, but it has to be pretty upbeat to get me out for a run. Two big ones at the moment are by Motiv8 by J Cole and My City by ELHAE. I've also got a bit of Katchafire and Jazmine Sullivan.

What advice would you give your 15-year-old self?

Just believe in yourself. It's only in the last few years that I've found my self-confidence, and I really wish I had recognised that and loved myself a whole lot more in my younger years. In saying that, I wouldn't change anything. I'm loving my 30s.

Gordon Ramsay is coming to assess your culinary prowess. What would you cook for him?

I can do a pretty good chicken curry - a Penang with kumara. You have to have coconut rice with it as well. I think I would pass his test, I back myself. Bring it on.

What is Whanganui's best kept secret?

There's the Waitahinga trails out past Bushy Park. That is epic. The dam walk is on my bucket list, but I've done a couple of the shorter ones. You have to follow marking on trees to keep to the track and being away from the busyness and out of reception feels really organic. I think it's on the Chicken Run track that you can take a moment and look out over all the forest.

How do you see Whanganui in 50 years?

The housing market has already gone crazy, and I guess that's a sign of the economy doing well, but I love Whanganui as it is. We have a great "big little city" vibe. One thing I've always envisaged is having something similar to the Festival of Lights at Pukekura Park in New Plymouth. Maybe we could do it at Virginia Lake, which is a really cool spot. How about some more community gardens too?

What other country would you like to live in? And why?

I would love to go to France and experience Europe as a whole. I studied French at high school and Nathan has started learning French at school and doing some one-on-one lessons. We've been studying together, which has been really fun. It think that would be a really cool adventure.