Oceanias (Rotorua)

After the final cup round in Napier, the last event on the calender was the biggest on my list... the 2012 Oceanias being held in Rotorua.  We roll up to the carpark where the start is and get ready to check out the track and the much talked about rock garden. All week I had been telling myself and others, I will just roll around the track until I get to the garden and just hit (I had seen enough photos and videos to know my line).

As we cruise up the road I was shocked to see the rock garden on my right! (It was the end of the loop but you had to go past it before looping back to it). David, Cam and Simon from Timaru where standing checking it out, apparently they had been there for 15mins. I checked it out for a mear 15 secs told them to move and hit it! I shat myself but made it... and got faster down it.

Checking out the rest of the course, I was pretty happy with it, fast and punchy.

Race day came round and our start time was shifted back an hour to 3pm. After what seemed like a long wait until the start, it was all go!  I had a good start and made the singletrack in around 7th spot. I pushed hard but the legs didn't responed as well as I wanted them too. By lap 3 I knew it was game over, the legs and mind just didnt want to race. As I look back and reflect I feel I was over the season. It had been a rough one, with no consistancey, a bike that wasn't mine, not meeting some of my goals and a cold coming on. I wasn't ever going to have a good race, I should have just enjoyed my time riding in Rotorua with friends. I managed to gain 11th spot, but got lapped out. The Aussies were fast, and claimed the top 4 spots with Carl Jones taking 5th.

The experience was good, and once again I learnt a lot. Time to chill out and have some downtime.... Something I never had last year......

See you on the trails with some Fat Tires on!