The highlight of this month has been representing Great Britain at the World Mountain Bike Championships in Andorra in both the Cross Country Relay (XCR) and the Cross Country Olympic (XCO).
The relay was first on the Wednesday and there was a thunderstorm and downpour just before the race totally changing conditions.
I started second after Max Greensill, but I had a frustrating lap with a few crashes as well as a chain off. As it was my first race at altitude I found it really hard to deal with, as it made my heart rate feel really high all the time.
My lap quite a bit slower than I was hoping for. I passed on to Isla Short for the next lap. Last rider Charlie Aldridge had a flying last lap, managing to move us up into the top 10. The result was disappointing as I did not put in my best ride. However, there’s lots of things to learn from and hopefully I will get another chance to do better next time.
Two days later I was lining up for my first ever XCO World Championships.
I was pretty nervous, especially after getting a feel for racing altitude during the relay.
The excellent course was super rocky, rough, and dusty with descents that were constantly technical with lots of line choice.
The climbs were very steep and mainly gravelly which were tough with the altitude.
I started near the back being gridded 11th last. On the first lap I moved up well, gaining over twenty places. After this, my race went downhill. I started to really struggle racing at the altitude with my heart rate high and low power. Eventually finished 63rd and a lap down on the leader.
In the end, I was pretty frustrated with my result, and it felt like one of the worst races in my life. But there were loads of learning opportunities to take forward and hopefully I can do better next time.
Between the races I discovered a lump under my chin and realised I had swollen lymph nodes therefore was probably racing with an infection which obviously did not help.
I learned loads, not just from the race but from the whole experience abroad, such as how to deal with high altitude and managing effort under the circumstances and managing fatigue throughout the week.
Racing for Britain for the first time at a World Championships has been an incredible experience and I am grateful to British Cycling for their support.
Earlier in the month I won the final round of the Scottish SXC Series at Kinneil to take the junior series. The course was decent being fairly twisty and hard to keep track of where you are.
As a junior I was gridded behind the elites and experts, but quickly moved up the front. After a lap, it was me and elite Scottish Champion Lewis Martin, who managed to get away together setting a good pace.
However, after a few laps, the race was red-flagged and subsequently cancelled. Unfortunately, someone had crashed and hurt themselves badly at a place that it was hard to evacuate them.
I also returned to school for my last year at high school. This added a bit of pressure adjusting to my new timetable and reduced my training time compared to summer. Sixth year will give me more time to train as an athlete than previous school year.
It has been an amazing month but now onto cyclocross as a second year junior and a whole new level.
As always, a massive thank you to the incredible from SORT, Pedal Potential, Braveheart Trust and last but not least, my parents the gets me to these incredible places!!
It has been an amazing month but now onto cyclocross as a second year junior and a whole new level.
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