After the success’s of the sprint I used the same warm up and relax routine before lining up to start on a podium. After getting the map we had a steep ramp down for a ride out to the map start some 150 metres away. I started steadily until I got my head into the map and then put it in big ring and gave it everything, taking the racing line through turns and soaking up the sometimes rutted tracks with my arms and knees.
As the course looped out and back, luckily when I met Alan (who started 40 mins before me) head to head on a narrow track we both thought continental and passed on the right, handlebars just inches apart, it could have been very messy !
After a road crossing I suddenly came across huge piles of rubbish and broken glass, an area of fly tipping we had been warned about but it was meant to be way off our route, and I had to get off and carry to avoid shredding my tyres. I was forced left but assumed I was on the wrong track and would have to go right to get back on to the right track for my attack point into the control.
I then spent the next minute riding along a deer track until I realised where I was and shouldered the bike for a quick climb up through the brambly forest to the open area where the control was located.
I took it easy on the next making sure I got it right before getting back on the gas for the rest of the course. Towards the end I got into a head to head with a Frenchman and and Italian, ducking and diving on different route choices. I unlocked my front suspension for the first time in the race for the flat out decent down a rocky track to the last control and then the slog out the bumpy finish field to the line.
I felt I had a good race and probably only lost 2-3 mins to my rubbish driven deer track adventure so was a little disappointed with 47th but looking at the results it would have only taken me to the mid 30s if I had rode that control cleanly.
So no World Cup points today (top 30) but another solid mid table result.
