Since the last update quite a few things have happened. I got invited to attend a High Performance Camp (HPC) down by the Stellenbosch University Sport Center from the 2Nov-9Nov. Should be really cool!
Then this weekend was the Karkloof Trail Blazer, possibly the BEST course I have EVER ridden! I pitched at the race hoping to do a chilled race but was then told by my coach to race. Off the start it was all very chilled and it was then I decided to ride at the pace of the person going the fastest on the day. After the exit to the polo fields, I followed the wheel of Jedson Tooms and had a tail of 4or so riders behind me.
Entering the first bit of single track he pushed hard and I just followed his wheel and opened up a gap on 3 of the 4 riders behind. I continued to ride at his pace and soon the other rider dropped off. At about the 15km mark I put in a few hard surges just to test the waters. I began riding next to him and made conversation a few times, usually about the absolutely mind boggling single track we'd just gone through! At around the 34km mark we hit the main climb of the day and I saw he was tiring. I rode at a comfortable pace, but made sure I had a consistent cadence the entire time. By the time I reached the top of the climb I entered the single track with a really good gap, and continued to ride at the same pace until the end. I got to the finish in 1st overall, with a gap of around a minute to 2nd place.
This race was one of the most amazing courses I've ever ridden, there was so much effort put into it and it really payed off. Single track had huge built up burms, jumps, amazing rock gardens... YOH words cant describe it! Welldone to Andrew Nicholson and his team! good job guys!!!
KZN MTB Awards Evening
Well this year it was a very classy event :) Jackets and ties, which definitely made the event feel very important. It was held at the Tala Game reserve restaurant, which looked absolutely spectacular!
The evening was very well set out, and the food served was great! I was fortunate to achieve the KZN Most Improved Super Classic Rider, XC Youth Champion, Super Classic Youth Champ and achieved my KZN Colours.
It was really cool to have high class athletes like Greg Minnaar present which also added to the high!
