01-03.04 first stage of European Downhill Cup in Croatia, Losinij. It was my first time in Losinij and before I had only seen the track from Youtube. Track’s history goes back to 2018 when Losinij hosted World Cup and two years later on 2020 another World Cup was planned, but because of Covid, it never happened. This time, the track was the same as it was during World Cup- short, probably shortest in European Cup, but very rocky and unique, because there is no other track that would be similar to Losinij.
On the first day, Friday, we were lucky to have track walk without rain, but during training we got some heavy rain which made the track super slippery. Bike could easily go in the wrong way if you missed a line or touched brakes in the wrong place. Because of the weather, first responders had their hands full of work and most of the time the track was closed with red flags, which meant that somebody had made a nasty fall and needed help of the medics.
On Saturday, the day of qualifications, the weather decided to change, sun came out and track was no longer muddy or wet. I felt really good on the bike and wished to gain more speed with each ride. Qualification ride didn’t go as planned: at the beginning of the ride, after a jump there was a left curve, but because of my speed I couldn’t make the turn and went straight out of the track. Medics ran after me but luckily there were no obstacles next to track which could have been dangerous to me and I managed to walk away on my own and finish my ride. Thanks to the fact that my number was 7 and I got to be a protected rider, it didn’t matter how my qualification ride goes as long I get to the finish.
On Sunday, day of finals, the weather stayed good and we had sun with a dry track. Both my bike and myself were ready and the training before finals went also really good. After a long time I had positive little nerve before my start which said that everything is exactly as it needs to be. Because of the fall in the qualifications I was the first rider of Super Final- overall ride was pretty good, I didn’t make any big mistakes, but like always, there is something to do better every time. All in all I am happy with the results: my time was 2.28,771 and 11th place in super finals. I missed podium place by 2,331 sec and lost 6,995 sec to the winner and my final time would have been second place in qualifications. So far it is my best result and definitely a huge bang for the first competition of the season!
Now there is only room for getting better and climbing higher!