This picture says it all..

It had been a perfect day up until thirty minutes before the start. Racing at 4:30 in the afternoon is something that i am not accustomed to, and after this experience, i would have to say that its not my favourite thing in the world. 

After living in Pietermaritzburg for a month in order to prepare for this race, things turned out differently to what I had anticipated. All those hours I had spent perfecting lines and braving rocks suddenly all went down the drain. The cards changed in a matter of minutes, and the race became one of survival. Survival of who could remain un-injured. It was all about who could manuevre themselves and their bike through the treacherous conditions in the fastest time. The Europeans immediately jumped at the opportunity to shine after racing cyclocross in these conditions. For me, it was another story...

In an attempt to remain warm for the longest possible time, everyone kept their jackets on until 1 minute to go. Whipping my jacket off and chucking it to James, I embraced the conditions and decided to give it a shot. It was just a mindshift.

The course was absolute madness!I have never experienced such dangerous and slippery conditions. It was definitely a new experience. It felt as if someone had placed dishwashing liquid all the track and instructed us to ride. The first of many crashes for me began about 5 minutes into the race. I realised that I better get used to this sensation of my wheels sliding, if I was going to get anywhere in this race. For safety reasons, the organisers had closed off all the A lines, which took away the excitement for the spectators, but the riders were grateful! It was such a demotivating thing to hit the floor every time I tried to up the intensity, making it a mental battle more than anything else.

On this day with these conditions, I could not compete with the skill and experience of the European girls. I took a lot from this race though- the key lessons I learnt from this race will be carried with me in into the future. Mountain Bike racing is an unforgiving sport and you have to be able to handle many aspects. Its all part of becoming the best. After fluctuating between 9th and 12th the entire race, I finished 11th, just outside the top 10, but was happy to be in one piece!

Thank you thank you thank you to the people who remained on the course to support me. You are my true supporters, and it was evident. And to Johann who stood in the pouring rain to give me a bottle and receive my "angry" glare each lap, you are a star. Thank you.

So currently I am sitting at JHB Airport, ready for my next adventure:) Im excited to be competing in some European cat 1 and 2 races with my BMC team mates. Can we have some dry weather please...