Xterra South Africa - Sizzled on Debut

After training like stink the 20^th February signaled the early season test, the South African round of the XTerra World Tour.

I had thought about this race a lot and although I knew it was merely a tester I had started to think that I really might mix it up…. but in fact it was like three hours in hell! 

Here are some snippets of what happened: Record temperatures of 46 degrees (115F) on course, absolute terror in the swim, panic on the bike with crashes aplenty, dehydrated run.. 14^th place. Disappointment but lots to encourage.

With record temperatures due the idea to run a race at 11am seemed foolhardy to say the least.. but upon arrival the village was packed so it looked like it was on! Cometh the hour and 500 competitors across various categories lined up on Grabouw Lake and started edging forward as a helicopter swooped in low… I stood there with trepidation. The gun fired and then all hell broke loose. I swam for dear life.. all my technique out the window… I was pushed, dragged, bumped and kicked despite my swimming right on the outside. It seemed to last forever…. I wanted it over… I really hadn’t expected it to be so physical and also for everyone to be so good! When dry land finally arrived I had been off course and all over the show… competitors seemed to stretch ahead forever.

I had known that this would happen and my best-case scenario was to lose 3-4 minutes in the swim. I had actually lost around 5 and got onto the bike in around 40^th. By this time however I was shaken up, panicked and completely out of focus. I tore off on the bike, passing rider after rider as I hit the first big climb. But I simply wasn’t right; that lack of focus meant silly crashes and mistakes and the heat and nerves had sent my heart rate sky high.. it actually transpired that I was riding slower than my practice lap. Simon said he had never seen me riding so badly and that he could see that I had no focus at all.. he was right and this on a great technical course that suited me. Yet half way round the loop I had passed the lead woman Carina Wasle from Austria and then Jean Paul Van De Linde who’d been 7^th in 2009.

Just as I was on the move I had a 25mile an hour crash from which I was extremely lucky to come out from unscathed. Not only did this shake me up even more but a few minutes later I realised that I had lost my water.. which in 40 degrees plus is an absolute no no. The last 15k involved stopping and getting water from bystanders, blundering and getting lost on the singletrack and generally feeling miserable. Great start.

Despite all the calamities I came into transition to find just a handful of bikes and it turned out I was still 9^th quickest on the bike. I headed out on the run – Hot!

It was a furnace out there but I knew that this was my strong card. I quickly caught 4 competitors to move into the top 10. But with no shade, reflective rocks and endless climbing I was really struggling to stay sane. With just two kilometers to go I lost it and started weaving terribly. I was helped under a small bush for a tiny bit of shade and then I finally crawled to the finish. I lost 15minutes.

The freak weather saw 3 people hospitalised and also meant big time gaps. I was so frustrated to have lost my head but will learn for next time so that I can really enjoy the whole experience. On reflection a 4^th place was definitely on the table and Nico Pfitzenmeier in 3^rd was 5^th at last years European Championships. I have to remember that first 24-hour mountain bike race which shares the need for mental strength and logistics – things go wrong at first and you get better!

The swim however will have to be worked on – it represents everything I shy away from in life so to conquer it would be fantastic. Bring it on!