
After an amazing 12 days in France it was time to be lining up for World Cup finals. I loved the area and the course. There were 3 good climbs and some very fun technical, nuanced descending. I was riding clean and smooth in training and looking forward to using the descents to my advantage. The race started well and I climbed into the chase group with Gunn-Rita and Pauline, Jolanda having already escaped off the front with her amazing starting abilities. I was climbing well, but without my Windham fire. Whether it was a bit of the altitude, training load or just race tension I started flailing when I entered the technical sections. My ego and descending skills are closely connected:-) and I won't lie and pretend it wasn't distracting to be riding so poorly in the woods. Pretty much every lap I was making a time costly mistake or getting caught behind another rider making one. I never really found my flow but rather bridged and chased all day. That being said; on