After a long day in the car we crossed through the foggy alps and wound our way into Albstadt, Germany. That evening we strolled around the neighborhood to stretch the legs and settle in. The course was a convenient three-minute ride from where we stayed which made it easy for us to get directly on the course. The energy was high and the focus was on for that weekend’s race. We were able to practice on the course as early as Wednesday which gave all of us plenty of time to dial in our lines and gain confidence on the technical sections. Conditions were super slick and muddy on the rocks and roots with the recent rain. The course was super fun but extremely challenging with long, steep climbs followed with technical and slippery descents and few places to recover. Race day greeted us with clear skies and high temps. After warming up with my teammates and some goats on a quiet country road I was ready to go. I rolled to the line in time for the 3 pm start. It was the heat of the day with temps in the 80s as I rolled to the line right behind the current world champ for the biggest race of my life. The gun blew and we were off. Up the first climb my legs screamed as I pushed to stay at the front of the pack. By the top of the first climb my legs were just not feelin’ it. I used the descent to recover as much as I could and pushed hard on the next main climb to maintain a good position. I was able to settle in a bit more by the second lap and my legs began to feel better. I watched as girls began to blow left and right and I focused on picking off riders one by one, climbing hard and descending smooth. The course was even more fun to race on and with the vibes coming from the crowds on the sidelines I put my head down and dug deep, coming down the last descent with a smile on my face for finishing my first world cup. Team USA had an impressive day with Christopher Blevins winning the Junior Men’s race and Haley Batten with a solid seventh place. Flying home as I write this, I’m reflecting on my past two weeks in Europe. I’m very happy to be able to say the racing was a positive learning experience of gaining confidence and experience of racing at this level in a European environment. I’ve definitely learned a lot about myself as both a cyclist and person in this short amount of time and couldn’t be more excited for what the future holds. It’s a bittersweet feeling coming home after two phenomenal weeks with the people who made it so great. I am beyond grateful to have had this opportunity in my first year as a 17-18 yr old junior to travel to Europe, represent the United States, and gain the experience of competing against some of the world’s best. An endless thank you to my coach, Dario Fredrick, for always being there with advice and encouraging words, my family, my team director, Julia Violich, friends, teammates, and the biking community for their constant love and support.
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AuthorSavilia Blunk, 20 | XCO MTB racer for Liv Racing Archives
March 2020
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