After months of training, it was finally here. It was finally time for GB Selections.
I was excited (and nervous), but, also as with all big competitions, I felt a little weird, as training has dominated every weekend since January and has been a huge focus for me.
Hurley
On Saturday, the first selection event was held at Hurley on the middle gate. I was in the third heat so after briefing I began getting changed as I didn't want to get cold.
My first ride felt good, but a little slow - so for the second ride I tried a much higher intensity. Unfortunately though I flushed on a blunt. Again on my third ride I flushed early on but had managed to get in two solid spins. I didn't quite reach the score I wanted to, but after watching the videos back, know where I went wrong and am keen to learn from it.
Watching the seniors, it really highlighted how far everyone's paddling had progressed and moves that had before been few, were now tried in most rides and often scoring. Hurley really showed off the level of Freestyle in the UK.
Lee Valley
After lots of weekends at Lee Valley, often stressful and chaotic, it was strange and a small relief that this would be the last weekend at the Olympic Course. And, if the usual time pressures were bad, these were even worse! We had just 2 hours to get through all the heats which had taken over 3 hours at Hurley.
The heats followed the same order as Hurley, so again I was in the third heat. With the escalator not working, I ended up walking round to the feature and so managed to watch a bit of the Junior Mens while I warmed up.
Then it was my turn.
Once in the eddy, something didn't feel quite right. Initially, I presumed it was due to this being my first competition on this feature and some tiredness from the day before. However, when I started paddling, my arms and legs just felt aching and heavy. I felt zapped of energy and really struggled to paddle to anything near my usual.
Although Lee Valley went far from how it was supposed to, it taught me a lot and has made me even more motivated to do everything I can for World Championships. At the end of the day, despite not reaching my personal score targets, I did enough to make it.
After over an hour of waiting for results, the team was announced and I had finished joint 1st overall! I was over the moon and am super excited to be going to the World Championships in Canada.
Photos:
I was excited (and nervous), but, also as with all big competitions, I felt a little weird, as training has dominated every weekend since January and has been a huge focus for me.
Hurley
On Saturday, the first selection event was held at Hurley on the middle gate. I was in the third heat so after briefing I began getting changed as I didn't want to get cold.
My first ride felt good, but a little slow - so for the second ride I tried a much higher intensity. Unfortunately though I flushed on a blunt. Again on my third ride I flushed early on but had managed to get in two solid spins. I didn't quite reach the score I wanted to, but after watching the videos back, know where I went wrong and am keen to learn from it.
Watching the seniors, it really highlighted how far everyone's paddling had progressed and moves that had before been few, were now tried in most rides and often scoring. Hurley really showed off the level of Freestyle in the UK.
Lee Valley
After lots of weekends at Lee Valley, often stressful and chaotic, it was strange and a small relief that this would be the last weekend at the Olympic Course. And, if the usual time pressures were bad, these were even worse! We had just 2 hours to get through all the heats which had taken over 3 hours at Hurley.
The heats followed the same order as Hurley, so again I was in the third heat. With the escalator not working, I ended up walking round to the feature and so managed to watch a bit of the Junior Mens while I warmed up.
Then it was my turn.
Once in the eddy, something didn't feel quite right. Initially, I presumed it was due to this being my first competition on this feature and some tiredness from the day before. However, when I started paddling, my arms and legs just felt aching and heavy. I felt zapped of energy and really struggled to paddle to anything near my usual.
Although Lee Valley went far from how it was supposed to, it taught me a lot and has made me even more motivated to do everything I can for World Championships. At the end of the day, despite not reaching my personal score targets, I did enough to make it.
After over an hour of waiting for results, the team was announced and I had finished joint 1st overall! I was over the moon and am super excited to be going to the World Championships in Canada.
Photos:
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