Sun Peaks (cont'd)

After I gathered my gear I went over my bike once more and then headed up the lift for my run. I had a peek at the very top of the course and it was looking pretty haggard. I had a super good warm up and visualized a few more times before it was my time to go. The whole weekend was pretty surreal just drinking in the atmosphere of the race scene at home with all my friends around doing my favorite thing, and the entering the start gate was no exception. The start official counted me down and I was OFF! My race run went really well. The very top was SUPER FUN… pinning loose corners and drifting like mad. I had a few close calls and a bobble in the steeps because the track was falling apart so bad, but held it together and pinned into the high speed middle section. By the time I entered arm pump I was starting to feel the effects of all the sprinting over the flats, but managed to nail all my lines through the tech section so I was stoked. After arm pump I started to really feel my lack of cardio training over my super busy coaching season catching up to me, and hammering across the ski run started to get pretty painful. Upon entering home run I just dropped into my tuck and held on, flat out. I landed the container fall away turn pretty much flat, bottoming front and rear suspension hard, and then had a super fun drift entering into the last couple corners, which all went really well.

The sprint to the finish was one of the most taxing exercises I have ever partaken in… coming out of the last corners I was just yelling at myself to pedal, and my screaming quads listened just long enough to get me through the finish. I finished 11 seconds off 1st in 20th. The results were super tight and the field was stacked…this race defined good competition and makes me want to train my ass off. The result also earned me a 4th overall in the BC Cup Series for Elite Men which I am super pumped on. Overall I was satisfied with my run and the end to the season. I definitely feel being able to focus on training much more next year will benefit me immensely, and I feel I have room to find more speed, so I am excited to do both. After the race everyone was celebrating in the pits, saying goodbyes and planning fall trips to visit eachother. It was a surreal end to an epic race season and I feel so lucky to have had the opportunity to experience it. Other years it has felt like the race community goes its separate ways after the last race, but this year it feels like a big offering of road trip opportunities to visit my best friends, so I am stoked. After the awards Katy, Candace, my buddy Steve and myself went for a super nice dinner at the Delta. It was a perfect chill cap to the weekend, and a nice celebration and good chance to reflect on the season and all I am thankful for.
All the best.
Justin Terwiel