After a long day of travel, I landed in Toronto, Ontario. They had just experienced some thunderstorms and the clouds glowed a luminous purple as I made my way through the airport to my baggage. I quickly met up with the rest of the US Team and we loaded our bikes into the trailer to start the drive to Barrie, Ontario. After the pre ride the next day I was feeling more excited than nervous to race. The course, although pretty short (~3.5 miles) was full of rocky sections, wooden ramps, smooth flowing turns, and plenty of steep, hot, gravel climbs. Most of the course was shaded by leafy maple trees which was really nice because the humid temperature was steadily rising. It was a great feeling to be pre riding with the three other US girls and the girls coach, and feeling the support from them as we checked out technical sections and worked on lines we would take. I soon found out my category would only be doing 2 laps, a race totaling about 7 miles. Although shorter than races I was used to, the speed and intensity of the race would not be dampened. The night before the race the girl’s coach, Ann Trombley, Olympic athlete and physical therapist, led us in a visualization exercise of our race. I found taking the time to visualize my entire race and how I wanted it to go was a very helpful tool. Race morning rolled around quite soon, and although I was still sore from traveling and carrying my 50 pound bike box around the airport, I was feeling more ready than ever to race. After a good warm up we lined up at the start. I could make out about ten other fast Canadian racers in my category. The whistle blew and we were quickly making our way around the start loop. I felt smooth on the technical sections and strong on the climbs. The course, having lots of turns, narrow singletrack, and punchy climbs, was demanding and required constant focus. I was feeling surprisingly great throughout the race, considering I had been pretty sore. I was super excited to find out I had finished 6th, and 2nd for the US team. The week sailed by and we were all enjoying the extra down time we had without the stress of school. We had lovely rides through the Canadian countryside, past green fields, and old barns covered in ivy. On Wednesday we were able to get on the new course to pre ride. Originally we planned to go in the morning, but a tornado warning that came with some of the heaviest rain I have ever seen, postponed our ride till the afternoon. We were all excited to get on the new course. This was a more competitive UCI level race. The course started out with one long fire road climb, soon entering into sweeping, twisty single track with constant slippery roots, rock formations, and plenty of steep punchy climbs. We carefully chose our lines and practiced the built in drops and wooden wall rides. I was really excited to be racing on such a technical course that required constant focus and confidence. Race day came and I was more excited than ever to be racing on a course so matched with my skills. In the morning a steady rain began to fall as we were eating our breakfast. It didn’t last very long and we were able to ride to the course without getting wet. After a substantial warm up I rolled to the start as it began to drizzle again. The race started and I got behind the top riders as we paced ourselves up the first major climb. We entered the single track and I found the roots freshly slippery from the rain and the dirt dampened perfectly. In the second lap I felt the rain steadily increase. Through the trees I could hear the droplets splashing against the leaves and out into the exposed air it slapped against my arms and I was quickly soaked. Throughout the lap the rain just got harder, and I had to pay extra attention on the slippery sections as I could tell they were only getting wetter by the lap. I finished completely soaked in fifth place just as a heavy downpour started.
I was so happy to finish up an amazing week with a fifth place in the final race of the camp. It felt unreal to be racing and representing the USA in Canada. From gaining my first international race experience to meeting new friends and racers at my level. I felt that being around so many strong athletes, supporters, and coaches, I gained more confidence in myself as a person but also a racer. I learned so much about nutrition, visualization, tactics, and optimal performance from the experienced coaches leading the camp, as well as honed my abilities and limits as a racer. Thank you so much to the NICA Booster Club and Velo Development Foundation for generous donations to my camp fees and everyone who has donated to my GoFundMe and outside of it for making this all possible for me. I’d also like to thank my family, my coach Dario Fredrick, and Black Mountain Cycles for the support they have offered for me this season.
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AuthorSavilia Blunk, 20 | XCO MTB racer for Liv Racing Archives
March 2020
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