This was my most memorable of the year so far. The two days of course practice leading up to the start of the racing the weather was intensely hot. Everything on the course was more than easy to ride as the track was dry and grippy. I learnt a lot in those two days of practice and really pushed my boundaries. However... on race day it was a completely different story. It was pouring with rain all morning which turned the track from the awesome, fast flowing course to the now nearly impossible track. My first lap took me a painstakingly long 46 minutes to complete as the clay literally stopped my tires from moving. As the race went on the track became a little more compact on each lap. I was unfortunately pulled off on the second last lap ( 3rd lap of 4 ). However, due to the horrid conditions the race officials removed the 80% rule allowing me to keep my 13th position and improve my standings on the overall log.
Keeping my spirits high and enjoying the opportunity to learn how to handle such bad conditions.
60km Marathon (Sunday)
I had entered into the marathon to get a full training weekend out of my trip. I started off fast keeping with the leading bunch for about the first 5km. I proceeded to fall back as I could feel the XC race in my legs and would not make it to the end at that pace. I got into a very comfortable pace with a chasing group and continued to enjoy myself. Unfortunately a fellow rider cut his hand pretty badly on route and had to receive stitches. I stopped to make sure he was okay to get to the next medic point. I informed the medics and continued with my ride. I joined up with my good friend Cobus for the remaining 45km. We stopped at every water point to fill up with sweets and water. We pushed hard on the climbs and enjoyed the down hills.
It was a really memorable experience teaching me a lot of good lessons. The most important being that it doesn't matter how bad the conditions are, if you have a positive attitude you will always have a good race.
One of the rare pictures of me riding upright at cascades
Crossing the line broken but more experienced
Giving it all we have to get to the top
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