It was awesome to get a chance to race Val Di Sole World Champs this year. Wearing the Aussie jersey is always a highlight for me during the race season. The track this year had a few changes, but it still remains the gnarliest track of the year. Dry conditions all week made the track even more blown out and rougher than usual. The schedule for the World Champs is a bit different from a normal World Cup race. We had an extra day of practice after the timed run on Friday. This means that we have more chances to ride the track and dial it in for a final run.

The other cool thing about World Champs is that the sponsors make custom kit/bike so the first day feels like Christmas. I qualified 33rd with a pretty smooth run but was just lacking a bit of intensity to be further up the result sheet. I had a goal to finish top 20 in the race so on Saturday I focused on finding more time on the track and I found a few key sections where I could improve and shave some seconds off. On race day, I felt nervous but confident. I put together a really clean run without any mistakes which I’m pretty happy with, it’s such a gnarly track so it’s really hard to make a clean run. In the end, I finished 23rd just a bit short of my goal but I was still happy.

My goal was to go all-in for a medal but unfortunately, I had a big crash at the top (everything’s ok). I had a pretty solid qualifying run, where I ended up in fifth place. But when it came to race day, I struggled to find my flow and get a clear mind. I hope this will change soon with more race experience since this is pretty much my first race season. I felt really good on the bike throughout the week and I know the speed is there too, so I’ll just trust the process. 

That schralp felt pretty good though haha.