It’s Thursday night, I landed in Canberra last night and I am doing anything and everything possible to stay awake!! So here goes my blog! Travelling east to west or vice versa is always tough and with an eight hour time difference from Cape Town it takes it’s toll.

I finally found my feet late this morning, headed for some coffee with Benno and then up to the race venue, which is awesome, except the crowds are missing! Let’s hope it builds up over the weekend. I managed to see everybody apart from Rafa and all seem to be well and gearing up for their biggest race of the year. Burry “The Kid” is first up tomorrow in the Under 23 race. On paper he is favorite, but we each agree that anything can happen, which he is very mindful of. It ain’t over till it’s over!

Benno and I walked the XC course today. There are some little changes from last year but all in all it’s pretty similar. My biggest concern or message to the riders will be in relation to the locations of the feed zones. From the start to feed zone one could be 3.5 – 4 km, with some fairly hairy rocky drops and some jumps. If risks are taken and a mechanical ensues it’s a long run to the feed and covering that distance on foot will most certainly cost somebody the race. From the start the course quickly enters a long single track section, where passing will be a near impossibility. Being near the front is crucial. Getting caught behind a crash or mechanical could mean a lead group getting away. That happened last year and the break away was never seen again. So it’s also important to be near the front early on and into that single track.

So there’s a busy weekend of action to head. I will keep you updated.