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I don't want to call it a comeback but
riding at London Six Day felt like my comeback! It was
technically my second race back from injury, but it was the
first one where I felt like myself again.
The last time I wrote a blog it was about my trip to Canada,
which happened to also be my first races back after about a
month off the bike from injury. I picked up some decent
results and felt like I was part of a race again! Since then
everything went drastically downhill. I ended up having six
weeks completely off the bike followed by nearly a month of
limited training to build back up. It was pretty bad for my
head and legs to get that taste for racing again, to have it
snatched straight off me the moment I got back to the UK. A
mixture of the long flight home to Manchester and probably
doing too much racing too soon, left my body in a state where
it was inadvisable to continue riding. I was completely
gutted, but health comes first over everything else, so I did
exactly what I was told to do and I didn't touch my bike.
Fast forward 12 weeks from my flight home from Canada, and I
did my first track race since Commie Games at our National
Omnium Championships. It was a bit of a shock to the system,
especially as our national champs are usually just as fast or
faster than World Cups and you're racing a mass of Olympic
Champions, Commonwealth medallists, World and European
Champions rather than a handful. I made it round though and
finished in a respectable eighth place. I came away happy with
where I was at, but I knew I had a bit of a way to go to make
selection for any World Cups.
Two weeks later I raced at the Six Day in London with a chance
to race a strong international field. I felt much stronger
than at our Nationals and it showed. I picked up fourth
overall across all the events over the three days and didn't
finish outside the top 5 at any point! I also got my first
chance to race in the World Champions stripes in the Madison
events. It was a very proud moment for me, especially in front
of an extremely enthusiastic home crowd!
If I've learnt one thing from the last six months, it's that
it is easy to just go through the motions of an elite athlete.
Getting through the days and not realising how lucky you are
to be doing what you're doing. I woke up every day wishing I
could be back training. I watched all my teammates go off and
race C1's, Europeans and World Cup Track events, wishing I was
on that flight too. For months my only goal was to be back
riding, and through this I have a new found realisation of how
much I really love to train and race and how lucky I am every
day that I can.
I am writing this on the plane back from a team training camp
in Portugal. Although I wasn't allowed to do the full amount
that the other girls did, I got stuck in and did my biggest
training block yet with no ill effects!
In less than two weeks time I will be in Berlin at my first World Cup of
the season and probably super nervous for the team pursuit! It will
be my first time in the line since Commonwealth Games so I'm a
mixture of apprehensive and excited about what I can bring to
the team! I will also be racing the Madison there pairing with
Laura Kenny for the first time! I'm excited to be back pulling
on that GB skinsuit and to be getting more racing
opportunities. So bring it on!! |
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