We landed into LAX and drove down to Chula Vista where we would be based for the next week building into the weekend’s race. The Californian sun didn’t disappoint as usual and was good to be back into some predictable weather. The normal pre race preparation of training for a big race went down with a primer session in the gym and a shred on the ABA track with all the hitters on Tuesday night.
Practise came around on Thursday and i must admit, with the wind up and it being the biggest track in the world, i was a little uncomfortable out there having a few close calls down the second straight almost leaving my front and back wheel printed into the landing. But I did survive which was the main thing.
Fridays racing I stuck to my game plan and warmed up perfectly and felt good out there. Racing came around and I felt untouchable going 3 races for 3 wins not having too much hustle and bustle in trying to do it and qualifying 1st equal for Saturdays racing
Saturday came around and it was a totally different feeling and day. My prep went off plan, things didn’t align up and I started to let little mistakes creep in where it matters the most, up on the gate. First moto I had an inside lane and didn’t utilise that with leaving too late and getting the squash down the hill being spat out the back finishing 6th.
Moto 2 I drew lane 7 and slipped being too aggressive on the first pedal once again being cut off down the hill, race over.
Moto 3 I finally came out strong and on par with the precious days racing and was competitive for once into the first turn but being stuck on the outside of another rider allowed another to come underneath me and hold me up finishing the lap in 4th or 5th. Too many points meant I was unable to transfer through to quarters and shattering my hopes of making the top 8.
I’m still learning how to take good and bad results emotionally as any athlete knows, the quicker you can get over a bad performance or the quicker you can get back on track from a big victory the better. The hardest thing to swallow in this case for me is I know I am capable of more and Saturday didn’t reflect that. But what it has done, is given me and shown me a glimpse what i can do and achieve. The plan no is to head back home to New Zealand and have a few weeks off the bike to freshen up these knees and body. I will then be racing north islands and getting back into the full swing of things over all of summer based in Cambridge ironing out all these little areas that keep popping up and surfacing at these big races ready to take on next year’s world cup series from the get go.
Over summer I will be running coaching clinics all over the country teaching and mentoring the sport we love BMX. These camps vary from the absolute beginner to the elite level talking and going through the motions of what is expected at the top end level of BMX. I will be hosting camps down in Christchurch, Invercargill and all through the Waikato in my private coaching I kicked off last year. If this interests you or your club, please don’t hesitate to contact me through my Facebook page or email me on: matthew.cameron49@hotmail.com
Practise came around on Thursday and i must admit, with the wind up and it being the biggest track in the world, i was a little uncomfortable out there having a few close calls down the second straight almost leaving my front and back wheel printed into the landing. But I did survive which was the main thing.
Fridays racing I stuck to my game plan and warmed up perfectly and felt good out there. Racing came around and I felt untouchable going 3 races for 3 wins not having too much hustle and bustle in trying to do it and qualifying 1st equal for Saturdays racing
Saturday came around and it was a totally different feeling and day. My prep went off plan, things didn’t align up and I started to let little mistakes creep in where it matters the most, up on the gate. First moto I had an inside lane and didn’t utilise that with leaving too late and getting the squash down the hill being spat out the back finishing 6th.
Moto 2 I drew lane 7 and slipped being too aggressive on the first pedal once again being cut off down the hill, race over.
Moto 3 I finally came out strong and on par with the precious days racing and was competitive for once into the first turn but being stuck on the outside of another rider allowed another to come underneath me and hold me up finishing the lap in 4th or 5th. Too many points meant I was unable to transfer through to quarters and shattering my hopes of making the top 8.
I’m still learning how to take good and bad results emotionally as any athlete knows, the quicker you can get over a bad performance or the quicker you can get back on track from a big victory the better. The hardest thing to swallow in this case for me is I know I am capable of more and Saturday didn’t reflect that. But what it has done, is given me and shown me a glimpse what i can do and achieve. The plan no is to head back home to New Zealand and have a few weeks off the bike to freshen up these knees and body. I will then be racing north islands and getting back into the full swing of things over all of summer based in Cambridge ironing out all these little areas that keep popping up and surfacing at these big races ready to take on next year’s world cup series from the get go.
Over summer I will be running coaching clinics all over the country teaching and mentoring the sport we love BMX. These camps vary from the absolute beginner to the elite level talking and going through the motions of what is expected at the top end level of BMX. I will be hosting camps down in Christchurch, Invercargill and all through the Waikato in my private coaching I kicked off last year. If this interests you or your club, please don’t hesitate to contact me through my Facebook page or email me on: matthew.cameron49@hotmail.com