The short beach run half way through the swim gave little chance for a breather!Xterra Germany was brutal. A tough 2 lap swim saw me exit in the mid twenties. Once onto the bike I set about pushing as hard as possible on the opening flat sections before hitting the mountains for 3000ft of climbing. This was followed by some rocky descents which had already had me on the back foot during practice. After working with Sam Gardner and a small group on the main climb and pushing as best I could on the technical sections, I'd worked up to 14th place and felt happy holding that. A puncture saw me drop a lot of places and despite riding my ass off over the last part of the course, when I exited the transition zone for the run I was in 23rd place, not quite what I wanted! I was running well in the early stages and had moved up to 16th by the half way point. A lack of focus and tired legs on one of the tricky sections of rocks and all the hard work was then in vain, as I fell badly and smashed my knees up. I finished as strong as possible but was forced into a much slower running pace for the last 4km by my swelling knees.
Crossing the line in 18th place in my first Pro Xterra has given me mixed feelings. I'm a little disappointed with my finishing position in the race, but pleased at how I was going and what my potential is within the sport.
Last night was my first Xterra party, live music, beers flowing and lots of friendly top racers sharing their stories, it was a great way to end this first race weekend. I'm super excited about Austria next weekend, and will be pushing harder than ever for a top 10 placing!
Catch you later in the week, Macca
