19.10.08 - Ishikawa, Sena
The last round at Sena was the most challenging yet, for many reasons. The Friday just before the race I was testing my bike out after some tuning. But while going down a hill quite fast on my mountain bike, at about 40km/h, I saw some people up ahead on the foot path and needed to go around them. But I couldn't go on the road on the left due to cars on the road in peak hour. So I spotted a car park that looked clear on the right and decided to take it. But because it was getting dark, I didn't see a big thick metal chain across the back of the car park. I only saw it when I was about a metre away from it. Too late to even press the breaks or turn. The end result - I went over the bars and face first into the ground. Luckily no broken bones, but a few stitches, lots of bruises, grazes, and cuts.
I made my way to hospital, which was 10 minutes ride and luckily mostly downhill. They cleaned and stitched me up and I went home to rest. I decided not to race, as I could barely walk. But I still wanted to make the trip to support the team. The next day we drove north to Sena and it was a nice day. Then I saw some of the track they were using. It looked awesome. I wanted to try and ride. So I got ready and rolled away. It hurt a lot, but I was enjoying the technical singletrack and fast sections down the bottom of the hill. I was confident I could put up with the pain and get through the race. Especially once the race adrenalin kicked in.
So on the Sunday I lined up mid-pack to give it a go. There was a battle for the series win, with Onodera out to give it a shot. The start was conservative, perhaps because no one wanted to blow up too early in the race and lose the series. Everyone seemed to be watching each other. This gave me a chance to move up the field and into the top 5. There was a lot of traffic, but the track had plenty of overtaking spots. This track reminded me of German courses in layout, terrain, length, and conditions. Probably the best one yet in the JCF series.
But I was hurting as soon as we hit the bumps. My wrist, hip and left leg were struggling. I was compensating with my right leg, but things weren't feeling good. Cramps in my right leg took over. I kept pushing each lap, but by the time we got to lap 4 and I realised we have 3 more to go, I knew I wouldn't make it. I was also mentally exhausted from taking the pain, so it wasn't only physical.
So for the first time in years (as long as I can remember), I pulled out of a race. Not a good note to end the season on, as it'll be a while until I get to race again. Time for a month-long break before the Australian season gets underway. I'm hoping for a fresh start with some better luck back home.
