Result: 2nd Category: 17-18 UCI Junior Women Teammates: Haley After an awesome week relaxing in LA with the team, I felt ready for Fontana. Preriding the course, I was pleased to find it significantly more rewarding than Bonelli: full of fun rock faces, swooping turns, and deep sandy corners. I was definitely a little intimidating entering my first ever UCI race but also felt confident in the downhill as it was reminiscent of my home terrain. I knew the key to the race would be attacking on the two climbs and staying smooth on the technical descents. Race morning found Haley and me lining up with a very small category which was slightly disappointing but also took some pressure off. It was announced that we would only be completing 2 laps, which would be about an hour long race; a distance shorter than I was used to. This meant that the whole race would be a faster pace than usual. “Go!” and we were off. I hung back and let the other girls pull through the initial section and then Haley and I attacked on the climb. I felt strong and hopped in the lead entering the 500 feet singletrack ascent. I was riding carelessly and it wasn’t long until I didn’t fully commit to a basic rock section and was forced to hop off, beckoning Haley by me. Haley put the hammer down and by the time I was back riding, she had gapped me. For the rest of the lap, I could see Haley in the distance, but couldn’t quite catch her. I wasn’t riding smoothly and kept dabbing over basic sections. Entering the second lap, I focused on relaxing and staying in my head in order to find a rhythm on the course. I had a much better final lap and pushed the last tempo section feeling powerful and fresh. I hit the ending climb at a sprint and finished feeling good. In hindsight, I realize that I failed to pace myself effectively in such a short race. I finished with another lap in me which was a mistake on my part. Even though this weekend wasn’t my best performance, I was happy to come away with some UCI points and stoked to see the team be so successful. A huge thanks to Osmo and Stacy Sims for working with me in dialing nutrition in so I can be optimally fueled. The support of the team never wavered once this weekend and I couldn't ask for a better gift than them. Training down in the beautiful park in our backyard between Bonelli and Fontana with the team.
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