World Cup #3: Germany

DH: This weekend I finally managed to pull things together and get myself on the elusive World Cup DH podium. It had evaded me for the last 2.5 years. Not anymore! The weekend did not start out as a great one for me. I had problems with my chain coming off and I had no idea how to fix it! I lost my chain in my qualifying run and I crashed, giving me a horrible qualifying time. However, when the final race came I pulled my head together and decided this was the race I was going to feel the podium again. I was having a great run until about half way down the course when once again my chain came off! I wasn’t going to let this nagging mechanical ruin another run of mine so I put all my pumping practice into play and had a go at it anyway. I managed to keep most of my speed along the course and I even found the courage to jump a huge road gap at the bottom that I normally had to pedal like mad to clear! As I was coming to the bottom it was frustrating to watch my time tick away knowing that I couldn’t pedal to speed myself up! However, my smooth run was enough to keep me in 5th place and get myself on the podium with a time of 2:23:47. Too bad about that chain problem…I was only 4 seconds off the top step.

4X: Once again my lower qualification result gave me a rough 1st heat. I drew Joey Gough and Tara Llanes. I came out of the gate in 3rd, but this time I was able to cut some inside corners and pass both of these fast girls. I was in the lead for most of the course until I made an error in one of the last turns that let Tara catch me. We came at the last jump, which is a difficult road gap with a small take off, at exactly the same time and I was suddenly aware that if we both took off at the same time, we were both going to crash hard. I pulled back and let Tara clear the jump: a split second decision that cost me dearly as I finished the heat in 3rd place, not enough to advance to the semi finals. My overall result was 9th.

Next up now is a trip to Canada’s East Coast to teach a riding clinic in Newfoundland. I have seen photos of the area and the trails and I am excited to have a chance to check it all out. Both courses sold out months ago, so I expect everyone is excited to have me out there and it will be a great opportunity to work with some up and coming riders. You can check out the Newfoundland scene at www.newfoundlandmountainsports.com
After that it is off to Mont Ste Anne, Canada. I am glad that the Norco Team will be there for a bit of extra support and hopefully we can sort out this mechanical issue.