2012 begins

The first near 3 months of 2012 have gone by very quickly and a recent update is more than overdue.
The year has got off to a rocky start for me health wise. I have had a few on and off illnesses that have prevented some important training over summer, however the only thing that we could do was to be smart and do what I could and try to keep my fitness as best we could. My sickness has all been to do with chest and chronic sinus infections which makes it really hard for me to breathe.

Team's Pursuit with myself, Alysha and Racquel.

At the start of February I headed down to Invercargill to the Elite Track Nationals to compete in the U19 Omnium champs. This trip was to get a good gage of my fitness and have some tough track training. I finished up in 4th place overall, getting 3rd in the flying lap, scratch and points races and 4th in the , pursuit, 500m and elimination. I was pleased at the end of the day with what I had achieved considering my health and it sure was some hard and close racing.

Racquel, Myself and Devon

Then at the end of February start of March I was back down to Invercargill again for the Age Group National Track Champs. Again it was a tough champs but I was pleased with the way they panned out. In my IP I ended up in 4th place but I went 3seconds faster than 3weeks before which showed that things were looking up so that was pleasing for me to see. In the 500m I did a PB which was another positive of the week! I got 3rd in the Scratch race, 4th in the points and my Auckland team of Racquel Sheath and Devon Hiley won the Teams Pursuit! This is the second year in a row that my team has won the U19 TP. The racing was so tight and hard like last time which is always exciting. I came away from the week with some clear goals in my mind and areas to work on for the future.

U19 Team Pursuit podium

Today it was announced that I will be in the team for the 2012 Junior World Champs in Invercargill in August of this year. I am so happy about this news and would like to thank everyone who has helped me in one way or another to get there again this year. I would also like to thank Avanti for putting me on some great bikes both on the road and on the track. I am loving riding my new Questa Team Road bike http://www.avantibikes.com/womens-race-performance-road/questa-team.aspx?bid=526 and can not wait to get on to my new Time Trial bike which is coming soon!

 It is a fantastic experience being in a Junior Worlds team. This year we have a great team again and I can't wait for the racing, especially since we have a fantastic home advantage being on the track down south. I know this will fire the team up and we will have another successful year I'm sure!

For now its training for my school holiday of tours and camps and making sure Dio Cycling has a great start to the school cycling season.

Georgie :)