Racing

Tired

We completed this season's first set of seat racing at the weekend.  The racing was all in pairs in a time trial format; it meant we raced multiple races with different partners - a total of an hour flat out.  This is a lot of intensity and so I'm feeling pretty spent right now.  Thankfully it all went well, as it hurts more if you go through something like that and it doesn't give you the result you hoped.

Overall I came 2nd in the matrix, this would rank me very well in the team.  Last season I was ranked 7th/8th and was borderline in the eight or spare.  These results place me firmly where I want to be.  There are more trials to come and the team is very competitive - things are by no means safe - but this result hopefully shows the hard work I have been putting in.  Coaches will use many bits of data when selecting boats for the World Cup races and this year's World Championships, including ergo tests, trials results and seat racing.

I normally struggle to perform on the ergo at the same standard that the other guys in the team do, and so I always feel under pressure to perform.  If you're struggling at the back of the group then there is a risk that you just arn't the standard required and will be asked to train back at your own club.  I've often felt this is a very real risk and doubted my self for long periods of time.  Results like today don't give you job security (this is sport, not your every day employment arrangement) but they give you confidence that actually you do deserve to be where you are and that the determination to keep striving forward is actually generating tangible results.