Monday, March 8, 2010

National Champs Wellington

7th Pro Men/ 3rd U23

The biggest race of the year, the one with all the meaning for selection and the one everyone wants to perform well at. This race is my most important race for the NZ season. For me to do my best and finish absolutely smashed.

This year they started everyone (U19, U23 and pro men) together to make a bigger and even race but there was two podiums, U19 and U23/pro except they started U23 5 meters back from pro… not too sure why being in the same race and racing for the same podium. Anyway nothing we could do to change it now.

This year our start was very similar to a Rotorua start with a tarmac climb up to the first bit of single track. By the first three Hundred meters I was in the top three out of everyone, basically my best start for a Nationals as of yet.

I lost a few places but that was alright I didn’t want to go nuts to keep up, the track was the kind you had to be smart about and not hurt yourself to much in the first few laps.

My fourth lap was far my hardest of five laps, I was starting to feel the hurt and knew I still had one full lap to go after finishing this one. This would have been the hardest mentally moment of the race. Once I started my fifth lap I got my coke and skulled some back, within moments I got the stitch and didn’t touch the coke anymore. I knew I needed something more to get me through this one death lap. Craig Corbett was feeding me half way through the track at the second feed zone, he gave me water and it went down without any force. I was starting to struggle and cramp had shown me that it was there ready to make the day more difficult. All this meant to me was no standing up and to get home.

Another National Championships done and dusted. Thanks to Geax for some mean tyres, Raiseys for the Hydration fluids and Waiariki!!!

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