Hey folks…
Cant believe I’ve not got around to posting this yet, but a few weeks ago we had the Nationals, and I became champ!!
Woohooo!
The day kicked off early with the qualification rounds, and it was ace to see that plenty of girls had entered this year. It doesn’t sound much, but the 7 girls in Open Ladies was a record amount, and I was stoked to see more girls stepping it up. The guys were looking great too, with an unbelievable standard of riding in both the Open Men and Open Men 2 divisions.
The contest took place at Quayside, my home lake, so I was feeling pretty confident from the start, and knew I could take the victory if I just kept my cool and did what I need to do. I’d been working this year on being consistent during contest runs; staying calm and not panicking. It’s crazy how you can stand up your pass every time during practise, but as soon as you apply the pressure of a contest, it all goes up in the air.
I took it pretty easy in the qualifying rounds; I had pulled a stomach muscle the week before and knew I had to watch out I didn’t do it again, not least in my first ride of the day. Despite falling on a toeside jump (doh!) I managed to pull it together and come out in the lead, meaning I would be last off the dock in the finals. :)
A few hours later, after watching the Open Men and Masters tear it up, the girls were back on the dock for the finals. The other girls all rode pretty good, with Megan Barker and Katie Batchelor tearing it up to take 2nd and 3rd. I was pretty stoked with my final run; I threw down a bunch of clean inverts and spins and stood up a pretty decent pass! So stoked to be able to say that I am National Champ; it’s definitely a good feeling! After winning the Junior title back in 2007, its something i’ve had my eye on, so i’m pretty chuffed to have achieved that goal. That sounds so cheesy, but its true HA! It was awesome to see my fellow Quaysider, friend, and O’Neill rider Sam Carne to also take his first National Title too, congrats!!! WOHOOOO
A big thanks to everyone involved in putting on such a great event, and to everyone who came down to support the riders! Also cheers to my amazing sponsors Hyperlite, O’Neill and Quayside for all your support!
Thanks for reading, big love
♥
