I had never done a national mountain bike championships before so I was nervous but excited. I had got a 15th and 17th in two rounds of the national series, with the outlier being at Dalby Forest where I came 27th (I had chain problems). I wanted a top 20 because I had never had a top 20 in a national championship before and I thought that this was my best opportunity. I rode the course the day before and found a major problem, my confidence had been scarred after my Welsh Champs crash. I rode one A-Line, while before my crash I probably would’ve ridden two or three. Apart from this the course was fine, except for one log which I had to dismount for. I was ready to go!
After the whistle blew for the start, it was rapid, and I found myself a little further back then I’d have liked. It had rained overnight and the course was now muddy, and as sections had roots it made it difficult to ride (For me to ride). I wasn’t doing very well at all, I was in 25th with 1 lap to go. On the last lap I started to get faster, I was racing a rider from Scotland which made us both go a lot faster. Usually on the last lap I fade a lot, but this time it was the opposite. In the end I beat the rider I was racing against and finished 22nd, seeing as I was 25th with 1 lap to go this meant that I was happy (kind of) crossing the finish line.