(working on some tricks in Egypt the week before www.i-c-u.net)
On arrival I realised I wanted to pick up the buzz of other competitors. I wanted to feel their energy, desire and dedication to succeed. Without competing against these people who are similar or better then me, over time it is much harder to stay motivated and push myself to improve, so I entered the contest. It was wierd going back to the PKRA and the same old routine. Its robotic! Same people, same conversations, same concerns! To be truthful its a little boring and for me Im sure there are better ways for me to be spending time and promoting my sponsors, but the moment I hit the water everything is far from boring and the trip to Morocco was worth every moment.
(me entering the compatition area for the start of the heat)
In the single elimination of the contest I found myself on the good side of the draw for once. I was against the girls who I had a hard time beating when I was competitng full time, but I wasn’t to come against the two girls who I knew were landing more tricks then me. For the singles I had a mix of good riding and a bit of good luck and I excitably found myself in the final against Gisela Pulido. I couldnt believe it and was super excited which turns out not conducive to riding in the final. Instead I triped over my own feet and spent a lot of time chatting to fish and I didnt bust out a single mve that I was proud of! I was really disappointed in myself and although everyone was congratualting me for 2nd place I didn’t feel all that proud of myself!
(The competition board as it stood after the single elimination)
Anyhow over the next couple of days while waiting for the double elimination I didnt have to compete – more time standing around not doing anything useful! The conditions were 30+ knots in massively gusty, so it wasn’t a good time to train, so I chilled and helped everyone else including Jalou Langeree who is ripping. Jalou had some bad luck as she rips and what I considered to be an unfair decision she lost pretty early on in the doubles, but definitely deserved to be in the top 4.
(sitting around, contemplating life and generally given up on avoiding the sand blasting)
By the time it was the last day and I was going insane with Morraccans plus the sand in my eyes, ears, nose and everywhere else it was my chance to compete again. I had to go against Asia Litwin to keep my 2nd place and for sure no one thought I could do it as she is super good. Anyhow, i was ready to redeem myself after the singles final and had created a small square in my mind in amongst a much larger circle. The square represented my heat and the circle my kitesurfing world. I was focused to throw out the best heat I could starting with an enormous handle pass and moving on to a blind judge before a big kite loop, railey to blind and more. Normally these tricks I’ll save to the end of the heat if I manage my averagely hard tricks beforehand, but I was there to show people what I could do and most of all make myself proud of my riding.
Sure enough I threw out the best heat ever against Asia managing to hang on to my 2nd place. I then went out with the same focus in to the final with Gisela and again I was on fire. I was riding, fast, hard and as much power as I could handle. I threw out a full on energetic heat once again landing all my best tricks early on and I could even see Giselas dad pacing the beach! It was the best feeling.
I came in knowing I would only get 2nd place as Gisela is far beyond my riding at present, but I was buzzing out of my mind and stoked that I had given it my best. It turns out that I had been winning the heat for the majority of it, but in the last 2 minutes Gisela pulled out a couple of fab tricks sealing her the deal!
Prize giving was ace and I was proud to be standing between Asia and Gisela on the podium. I was even more happy to hear two of the judges tell me that they had never expected that riding out of me!
Im back home now full of motivation and inspiration and a new outlook on kitesurfing. The event was amazing and not only did I achieve my goal to come home inspired, but I left with my highest podium placing yet. I have a house full of my new 2011 kites and a forecast which is rocking!
Im ready to hit the water now with more thought and less brute strength. I have no intention to compete further but I have a new set of tricks that i would like to work on which represent speed and power – the side of kitesurfing which drives me and I love. Im bored of the low technical tricks that seem to be required if you want to wind the Ladies World Champion Title, but Im ready to take on my kitesurfing further.
The pics are from Ellen Langeree and Johara Sykes Davies unless otherwise stated.
Happy riding
1 comment:
Well done Jo very inspiring to me.
lewis
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