World Champs Day

It's the morning of Big Day #1. This afternoon we will race the individual classic race, which is the main event for Foo, Ben, Stew and to a slightly lesser extent, me. The race is simple. It's a time trial down a 6.8 km section of whitewater. Choose your own path, go as hard as you can, choosing when to be efficient and smooth and when to exert maximum force. It's a race that combines supreme fitness with very high level whitewater skills and exhaustive self knowledge.

As Dan has decided to concentrate on the short and explosive sprint race I am taking his place in the classic event. This means I will be starting fourth last, with a likely medallist one minute after me! If I can hold him off that will be an achievement, as this will mean I have kept the deficit down to around 5%, but it would be illegal and extremely unsportsmanlike to get in his way. We'll see what happens.

I'm particularly fortunate that Dan has given up a spot for me- I originally gave up my classic spot, anticipating a good masters event. It now seems that the masters race has been watered down considerably- it will most likely be on the easiest part of the river, and possibly only 5 and a half minutes long! While the results will be broadly similar, it's not what I have trained and travelled for and asked my family, students and colleagues to make sacrifices for.

I had forgotten what nerves are like. I'm literally primed for action and must struggle to relax so I can apply this energy rather than waste it. I'm excited about the event, I'm excited about getting chased by Loic Vynisale, I'm excited by the prospect of earning a place in possibly the strongest Aussie team ever (teams race Thursday) and I am still very excited about this water. It's a roller coaster ride, with average speeds of around 21km/hr and much faster in some places. It's a challenge to take the best path, let alone judge the right pace. I am reminded of the title of the classic Wildwater racing textbook 'The Danger Zone'. The title refers to lactic acid- you must go hard to go fast, but if you push too far- into the danger zone, you risk building up lactic acid in your forearmes where you lose control and can't apply aerobic power anymore.

Good night readers, when you wake up I'll be sleeping but I'll try to leave you with something to read to start your day.