This week has been amazing, beyond what I could have ever hoped! The Belgium team has been so comforting, treating me like one of the team riders; together we have been going training, eating, sleeping, learning the track, hanging out, swimming… I have even been receiving massages and the mechanics – they cleaned me bike!!! I can’t believe all of this!!! The Jr XC coach – Filip Meirhaghe (former world champion, world cup series winner and multiple world cup winner) is helpful, always offering advice, taking us training and making sure we have a good time. It has been fantastic getting to know all the friendly Belgium team staff and riders. Thank you Belgium team I have had the best week ever!!!
The course here in Val di Sole is quite different to Champery and to the course that was here for worlds two years ago. Here the course has heaps of short steep climbs, plenty of grass and the down hill sections are not very technical but still tricky enough when you are trying to go fast. The laps are slightly longer than in Champery so that is good too. It will be another tough race tomorrow, fast and furious for sure. My bike is clean and working perfectly, I have had the best week training, recovering, preparing and just now, Ankel – one of the lovely masseuse, said my legs feel super… So I am ready.
This was my first ever world cup and it was wild! Tapped out off the line and then BOOM! It was just nuts, fighting for position the rest of the way. I loved it – this is how racing is meant to be. Tough as! All the thick mud forced everyone on and off their bikes, for the first two laps it was a running with bike race. People were just crashing everywhere, pushing others off the track and causing pileups it was mad.
I was quite far back in the starting grid so was caught up in this chaos from the start. After the short start loop, laps were just over 4km long. After a couple of laps I was able to start making my way through the field but since the race format was a short start loop + just over 4km length laps I didn’t have much time. I had one big crash when I lost it down a rutted shoot, head and shoulder into a tree and cracked my helmet – bugger! In the end I was lapped out in 65th place (18th U23), only 46 riders finished from the 100 + starters.
This race was a really good experience and I learnt a lot. Definitely I can think of things to improve on, mainly to do with the start as it is so crucial. I hope to learn and learn fast as this Saturday is another WC round in Val di Sole, Italy. I think I am capable of riding further up the field I just need to make it happen, mtb racing here is not a TT.
Meanwhile I have been adopted by the Belgium team – they are the best! I was stuck for a ride to Italy from Champery and they said I could go with them! Now I am staying with them too and have been training with their riders. I am stoked – how lucky am I??!! 
The amount of support laid on to the Belgium riders covers everything they could ever need, the environment is perfect for getting top results which is of course their focus. Les Belges sont tres bien!
I have arrived in Morzine where I will be for the next couple of weeks. The 36 hours of traveling to get here wasn’t even that bad – Pip was on the same flight over with me and from NZ to LA I scored a row of seats to myself! The AirNZ hostesses were also very kind in letting me have left over meals so I didn’t go hungry. Only downer was breaking my phone somehow? So this will be an interesting nine weeks without texting!
Morzine is beautiful. All the roundabouts, roads, gardens and everything really has been manicured for the Tour de France which will be passing through this weekend! (Pics up soon) Morzine will host three days of the tour Sat – Mon. Today I went and rode the 13km climb up Avoriaz to check it out, heaps of campers were all ready parked up along the road sides getting ready to see Lance. It will be pretty exciting seeing the tour live, I can’t wait!
Over the next 9 weeks I will be taking my bike for an educational tour through Europe and Canada. Morzine in France will be my base, this is a small town surrounded by mountains full of ski/mtb trails. It is summer there now so an ideal place to stay and get some good fun training in… Not to mention a chance to see the TdF LIVE!!! I have four races lined up – the Champery and Val di Sole World Cup, a Swiss Power Cup and the World Champs in Mont St Anne, Canada. These will certainly be tough races with the World’s top riders lining up… I have so much to learn so why not learn from the best? The experiences and UCI points I hope to gain will be a huge help for my final race – the 2010 World MTB Champs (2nd of September). I will keep my site up to date with all the goss so watch this space!
