A Step Into 2014 With New Colours

A long drive up to Epic Sports to collect my new gear to get me going for 2014 but to arrive to the site of my Pinarello Dogma XC all kitted out for me made the wait to get there way worth it! The hardest part of collecting my ASG colours and gear was doing the Ergo Fit set up in my kit and then not being able to leave the shop and RIDE. However the trip back flew by because of the excitement of the whole new set up. It felt like a late Christmas!

Friday morning was an early start because the idea of waiting to ride didn't seem right, so I did a quick spin and then did some minor tweaks just to make the ride perfect. Later I was off to the KZN XCO track at Hammersdale to see what the track was looking like for the next days race. 

It looked really good with a few open flat sections, some awesome single track and a steep long hill at the back of the course! I also got to experiment with some High5 nutrition to find the right performance booster for me. I felt ready and at home getting onto the Pinarello which gave me some extra confidence for the race.

Luckily I woke up to overcast weather which had a promise of holding out but everything was soaked, I knew I was racing later in the day which meant the track should of dried out a little by then. It did and the weather held out perfectly. After getting all kitted up in the lumo gear, I climbed onto my bike and started my warm up, feeling quite good and ready to go.

We all lined up a while later on the steep incline, then we were off and the rotor Q ring helped me get a fast start and to the front of the group from the back. A very fast 1^st lap but I was in 4^th overall behind the top U23’s and elites in KZN. The lighting changed a lot during the course which was where my Rudy Project photochromic lenses assisted me with vision. It was a case of buckle up and flat out. The course turned out very brutal with the back climb being so steep and 6 laps of the course became quite a challenge but luckily I had some High5 Isogels to boost me up and get me to the line still in 4^th overall and 1^st Junior. My Pinarello made me fly around the track with its aggressive style for descending and its super stiff design made the climbs feel easier. It's the perfect combination with the 29er wheels!  

I felt it was a good start to my 2014 season, just a few more tweaks and African XCO Champs here I come! Hope to see you there!