Spicak Race Report

Well here I am again, this time it is the Spicak European IXS Cup in Cjech Republic….

The weekend was good and bad for me, I will now explain J

We arrived on Friday morning before practice, we got tent up and got sorted for practice. It was going to be a good weekend weather wise and I super excited to get things done J I did around 6 runs on Friday and was loving it, I felt fast and confident again. I knew I had some speed again and was ready to put it together.

Saturday was the seeding run and I was ready, I put in 4 runs in the AM before hand. I set off and had a really good run, not amazing but good. I did make a few mistakes but I was happy to have a solid run in on the super tech track. The run had me sitting in 33^rd spot which again was a big improvement, so good for the confidence.

In 2011 it poured with rain here and I really battled with the track, so the fact that I felt really good was awesome, I was really loving the track! I had a look at the split times after seeding and saw that I needed to pick it up on the top section, so Sunday morning before the race I put in 3 timed sections to the first split which saw me do it 5 sec quicker just to there! So I was really confident that I could go way faster in the race run and was excited J

Finally it was time for business and I set off…. I was having an amazing run, really, it was one of those where everything just worked, I hit all my lines and was giving it everything on the pedalling. However coming into the final 30 sec of the track there was tight line between 2 trees and the main line was out left and to turn in late. I don’t know why but I decided to come in on the right which left me heading straight towards the inside tree at 30kph…. Suddenly I was ripped off the bike as I hit the tree with my right shoulder and then it was a cart wheel into the some more trees.

As I was lying there wondering if I was in one piece or not I felt so mentally drained and could not believe that this was happening again. I really felt that this was the weekend and result I had been waiting for, but it was not meant to be. I was unable to finish as my shoulder was too painful, I rolled down slowly after the last rider and that was that.

At this stage I am just so disappointed and yeah I really want things to turn around now, I feel like my riding speed is back to where it should be, now I just need some luck on race day J

IT WILL HAPPEN SOON I PROMISE YOU! I WONT GIVE UP!

Once again thanks to my awesome sponsors, LE CANNABIS CANFIELD Factory Team, Seattle Coffee Co, Virgin Active, Leatt, Adidas eyewear, my trainer John Wakefield @science2sport, Csixx, Evoc and flexfit!

On final note: BIG SHOUT OUT TO MY FRIEND AND TEAM MATE JOHANN POTGIETER FOR WINNING IN SPICAK!

Until next time….

Pila Race Report

One week after the World Cup in Val D Isere was the IXS European Cup in Pila, Italy. Last year I really enjoyed the track there and was really looking forward to the race, I felt I could do really well there and I thought the weather would be good because it was in Italy. We drove down on the Monday after the World Cup, I got a lift with the MS Mondraker team, so huge thanks to them for that! The drive was around 4 hours in the big bus which was pretty cool, it has a PS3 upstairs and 8 beds too J

Tuesday we headed out for some runs on the tracks in Pila, it is really amazing to ride there with many different tracks and one which is about 15 minutes of full on dh, super fast and loose. It was awesome, I was just finding it really tough to hang on. We also did a few runs on the race track and I was feeling better and better, however on my 3^rd run I entered the steepest section of the track that was used in the 2005 World Cup there. There was a tricky high line which I was doing and I just made a small mistake by getting my weight slightly left of where it should have been. I crashed hard over the bars landing on my injured wrist in the process, it was really painful and it felt really week afterwards. I was pretty sure it was just a hard knock and not serious but it was still a bummer. I attempted to ride on the Wednesday, but I could bairly get down without crashing, it was so disappointing. I gave myself a rest on Thursday and just hoped that it would be better on Friday for the start of practice.

Friday came around and it did feel better, not perfect but good enough to ride. The track was dry and rough but still really fun, I felt good and was ready to go. I got in 5 runs on Friday and 3 on Saturday morning, I felt good for seeding. Finally I went up for my run but as it so happens in Europe it started pouring with rain just before my run. I could not change anything then so I just set off and hoped for the best. I had a pretty solid run without pushing overboard but as I entered the last few hard pack birms I felt the front wheel let go and down I went, it was just so slick. I got up and cruised to the finish, I was not too bothered as it was just seeding. I had a time of 4:32, the leader was a 4:03 but he went in the dry and didn’t crash so I wasn’t too worried about that. I knew I had loads more in the tank.

Sunday came around and it was race time, the track was very wet after loads of rain on the Saturday night, but on Sunday morning it wasn’t raining, just overcast. I did one run and the track was a bit lick but not bad at all. However it started raining again and then it was very wet, I did two more runs and it was super slippery but with spikes it was ok. It stopped raining and by the time finals were starting the track was on its way to being dry again, so I felt confident that I could go fast! J

I got up to the start and yet again about 10 minutes before me it started raining, this time it was really coming down. I knew it was going to be slippery I am not the best in mud but I had to give it my best! I set off and it was like ice skating, super glossy but I guess you have to get a bit loose in those conditions. I made a few big mistakes which cost me some time but I was just happy to get down without crashing and getting a race run into the books. I ended 55^th and had a time of 4:50, the winner was a 4:17 but in almost dry conditions so I was not happy but satisfied with the way things went. A few days before I wasn’t sure if I would be able to race so in the end it was a good start.

Thanks to my great sponsors: LE CANNABIS CANFIELD Factory Team, Seattle Coffee Co, Virgin Active, John Wakefield @science2sport, Leatt, Adidas eyewear,Evoc and Flexfit.

SPECIAL THANKS TO MARIA ULRICH FOR GIVING ME A LIFT  BACK TO SCHLADMING!

Val D Isere World Cup Report

Here is how my weekend in Val D Isere world cup went down….

After 44 hours of travelling from Mankele to Val D Isere, yes that’s right, 43 hours!

I left Mankele at 8:30am on Monday morning, 3 and a half hour drive to Jo burg, 9 hour wait at the airport, 10 hour flight to Munich, 2 hour bus trip to Salzburg, 7 hour wait, 9 hour train trip to Geneva, 3 hour drive to Val D Isere….. Arrival time: 4:30am Wednesday morning.

It was quite a trip but I made it haha! So Wednesday we registered and walked the track etc, and I knew it was going to be tough to qualify after my injury. The track looked super fast and super rough, but not too long which was good.

Anyway Thursday came around pretty quickly and practice got underway, the track had some big drops, really fast sections and some insane off camber sections which made it tough to hang on, but I was just so happy to be back in Europe and racing again it didn’t matter J I did 6 runs on Thursday and felt ok on the track, it was tough to hold on but otherwise not too bad. I was happy with it and thought that if I get in a few good runs on Friday before qualy I could qualify for sure.

Friday came around and I was out early on track, conditions were bone dry and good for racing, I put in some fast runs and was ready for qualifying. I got myself ready and went up for my run, I was 100 riders into qualifying and at about rider 30 it started pouring with rain! The weather in Val D Isere is crazy, rain, sun, rain, sun….. It can’t make up its mind. Anyway it rained for about 20 minutes pretty hard but then it stopped and the track was still in good race condition, not very wet. The track also dries out super quick there so it wasn’t a problem, however about 5 minutes before my run it started pouring again! This time it really let rip and the track got so slippery, it was insane and because I had dry tires and the track was super wet. I just thought, open mind and do my best, I started out my run and it was slip and slide from the get go; I was like an ice hockey puck! I came into the last really straight forward section on grass and I literally just slide off the track sideways into the bushes J I knew then that it was over and just cruised down, when I crossed the line I was in 82^nd spot. I was so frustrating because about 30 mins after my run the sun came out and by the last 80 riders it was almost dry again which was a bit unfair in a way but there is nothing you can do about the weather J

The weekend was a little bit of a letdown in some ways but in others it was great to just be back on the bike and racing again! I just feel like I have let my sponsors down this year by getting hurt and not being able to get up there on where I know I should be. Just hang in there; I will be back up there asap!

A big thanks to the awesome companies behind me, LE CANNABIS CANFIELD Factory Team, Seattle Coffee Co, Virgin Active, Leatt, Adidas eyewear, my trainer John Wakefield @science2sport, Flexfit and Evoc, you guys are awesome!

Lastly I would like to thank my team mate Johann Potgieter for fetching me from Geneva!

Until next time…..

SA CHAMPS RACE REPORT

As I write this I am sitting in the pit area for the Val D Isere world cup, but we’ll get to that later…

This is a run down of how my SA national champs went J

Myself and my dad flew up to Jo-burg on Thursday morning and then we had a 3-4 hour drive from there to Mankele. We finally got there at around 6pm and then checked in to our lodge around 15km from the track.

Friday morning was Registration and track walk, I was pretty keen to see the track because everyone was raving about it. The track consisted of 2 main sections, a fast open top piece and a tight tech forest piece, almost like 2 tracks linked together…. After track walk I was excited and nervous at the same time because I hadn’t raced for so long. I knew it was going to be tough to win considering the circumstances but I was determined to do my best!

Friday we some practice on the track and I was feeling terrible, slow, not confident and struggling. I had just not ridden anything this tech or steep or rough since before the injury so it was an eye opener for sure. However I brushed it off and looked forward to Saturday practice. It was quite a lot better on Saturday, although I still wasn’t feeling myself, I did a timed run and the best I could do was a 2:41 which was way off the pace and I knew it, but I just didn’t feel ready to go faster. So again I brushed it off and Saturday eve myself, Jaco, Duran and my dad went to see a movie to try and get my mind off things, it was nice and relaxed which was good before Sunday.

Sunday morning came around and I squeezed in 2 runs before seeding, they were both pretty solid but still not quick enough, it was down to the seeding and race runs, I knew it was a long shot but I just gave it my best. In seeding I managed a 2:36 which I was please about considering how I felt on the track. I also felt way more confident which was good for me, I was sitting in 3^rd spot after seeding, 9 sec back.

Anyway it was time for finals, I felt way better and was determined to put it together. I set off in my race run and was way more aggressive with pedalling etc, but unfortunately only 20sec into the track 1 of the wooden birms had broken, sending my over the bars into the dirt. I quickly shouted to the start for them to stop the race. I demanded a rerun and pushed my bike back up to the start. I was pretty tired but still felt ok. I set of once again and had a solid run, I pushed harder and was more aggressive. I had a few small mistakes but overall not a bad run with a time of 2:32. It was good enough for 3^rd overall and 2^nd elite so it wasn't too bad, I really wanted to win and know that if I was 100% I could have won for sure but considering the circumstances I was not too disappointed. I was only 3.5 sec back from winner Tiaan Odendaal and after 4 months of not racing and 3 months of no riding it was a good starting point. I had also only ridden my Canfield for a few weeks prior to the race so everything was new to me.

I would really like to thank my parents, friends and my awesome sponsors, LE CANNABIS CANFIELD Factory Team, Seattle Coffee Co, Virgin Active, Leatt, Adidas eyewear, Flexfit, Evoc and my trainer John Wakefield @science2sport. Without you guys I wouldn’t be able to race my bike and compete all over the world, so thanks so much for sticking with me and you’ll see me back on top very soon J

Until next time…..