Walking the track with the SA Team on Thursday morning, really got me excited. The track was absolutely insane, and was pretty rough, even before hundreds of the worlds fastest riders were let loose on it. I couldn't wait to start getting some runs in. My bike was ready with the forks having had some love from the guys at Rock Shox.
I wasn't sure how my shoulder was going to hold up so I took the first day of practice pretty easy, which you actually can't do at Worlds - I have now learnt that you have to get up to speed on the track on the first day. That night it rained, which carried on through the whole of Friday - the muds were on the bike and the tear-offs were on the goggles. I had so much fun riding in the wet. My shoulder was holding up fine and I forgot about it, and focused on the riding. The high pressure hose worked overtime that night to get our kit clean.
After one run on Saturday morning I was ready for my timed run that afternoon. It would give me a chance to see how I stacked up against the other riders. I had a good run - I knew I could go a lot faster in the top corners and on the pedal and I couldn't wait to race on Sunday. I was 49th in the Timed Runs.
The weather was a lot better on race day, with the sun making an appearance. I ended up choosing to switch to my dry tires and I am still not sure if I made the right decision or not. I got into the start gate after a solid warm up and I was ready to go.
I managed to get the top section a lot better than I did in the timed runs which I was really happy about. I dropped into the first wood section with a clean run so far. Unfortunately I slipped out and went down which was a costly mistake. I was back up in no time and I gave it my all the pedal section that followed. Near the bottom of my run I ended up getting a bit wild off the wooden wall ride, and went off-track - a very disappointing race run. After a run like that I knew I would be way off the pace. I ended up 58th.
Although I didn't get the result I wanted, I learnt so much and had the time of my life. I am so thankful to everyone who was involved in making the whole experience so awesome! It is now time to focus on the 2013 season, set new goals, and prepare myself for the journey ahead of me.
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