23. June 2021

Crankworx Innsbruck – My first dual slalom and second downhill race

It has been a while, since I wrote my last blog post. The last couple of weeks/months there was a lot going on. After the Proffix Swiss Bike Cup race in Leukerbad I made a decision. On one side this decision was extremely hard to make but on the other side, I finally could throw off a lot of weight I carried on my shoulders for a long time. I finally admitted that xco racing is not what my heart wants anymore. It was definitely not easy to let it go after 10 years being in the xco scene. But I know, that this was the right decision. I found my place and that is called gravity. The last week showed me that once more.

The Event in Innsbruck was just amazing. Although it took place without spectators, it was a great experience with lots of cool and crazy people. First I competed in the dual slalom discipline. An absolutely new adventure for me. I was really nervous in the beginning but once I found my flow I could enjoy it, has lots of fun and was able to train my skills. In the evening the Whip off contest took place. During the whole evening my mouth was watering. When seeing these jumps and watching the riders I was a bit jealous to be honest ( there I was just spectator). The next days I prepared myself for the downhill race. This means track walk first and training later. I watched some track videos again and again to keep the lines in my mind. On Sunday it was finally go time. We just had one single race run. I was really nervous but managed quite well to focus on the track. During my training runs I often had a time of 03:30 min. I said, I would be happy if I put out a clean rund within this time. On my race run I had a time of 03:29 min. So I can be happy with it. Of course the ambitious athlete is always kicking, thinking about where I could have been faster and searching for faults. It is my second ever downhill race, so I should be happy with the result. But I am not a very patient person. I am happy and proud that I was able being a part of this event. I am looking forward to the next race this weekend in Brandnertal.

By the way: I took 26th place in the dh race in Innsbruck.