Being winter and coming back from time off I’m not racing every weekend so I was excited to be back at Tokoroa this weekend. Track work done by the club is awesome and even when the rain started to set in it held up well. I made a lot of mistakes today and got frustrated because they could have been avoided. But I’m trusting the process and believing in myself and it’ll all click again soon. 6-2-9 for today after a couple of goggle issues and a riding like a squid.
Sometimes having an unplanned break is good for you, I feel strong, healed and hungry. The down side was that I expected to be able to ride the same as before but it was a bit weird at Tokoroa today. Even though it was the best feeling to be racing again I thought I had let myself down in speed and technique until I realised I’m not out here for anyone else but me. I had a couple of good starts and got the holeshots, the new track layout was fast and has really nice flow and my hand and head are solid. Looking forward to the next round now.
It felt so good to be back on two wheels at a track today. Patetonga conditions were prime and I was under strict instructions from mum and dad to get out there and have fun. And I did. I also was surprised at end of season prizegiving with a third place overall despite missing a chunk of race says due to injury.
Woodville GP was a boys trip with Junior Nationals next weekend so the intent was to drive down, ride, drive home and put all the focus into National prep. Unfortunately things did not really go to plan. Practice was good, I had fun and the track looked like it was going to be great with some nice straights and jumps. I finished 8th in both races 1 and 2 which I wasn’t happy with. My off track processes were sloppy and hugely affected my on bike processes. I went out for race 3 looking forward to some more good battles but this was short lived when I washed out at the finish line. Dad took me off the track and I spent some time in with the medics before catching an ambo to Palmy Hospital. 8-8-26 for 12th overall and no Junior Nationals now. Time to have a break and rest and recover and get better all round.
Patetonga was awesome today. The track crew tried something different with how they prepped the clay and it was tacky for practice instead of the usual stickiness. My bike was doing weird things in race 1 and I decided to come off early in case it was badness… you can’t race if you blow you’re bike up. Luckily it was just a bit of water in the carby from being washed after practise so I was back out there for races 2 & 3. It was a bit challenging sharing the track with the Pro65s as I didn’t want to land on anyone or push them off the track so I had to check myself up a few times. DNF-3-1 for another good day at the local.
After a few average Summercrosses we decided to treat this weekend as a break away at the beach with some moto instead of a moto trip. We stayed in Opotiki for a couple of days and enjoyed some sun, sand and good company and then we went racing. It was a long day with lots of crashes in race 1 so we spent a lot of the time riding under yellow flags . A lot of people weren’t doing the right thing and I let this annoy me too much but now understand the purple flag after a good de-brief with dad. I dropped my bike in the deep sand out the back in race 2 and it took a air bit to get going again. My starts we’re good today and I was looking forward to redeeming myself in race 3 but the day was called early due to a big crash that required a chopper. 7-10 for 8th overall. Came away with a little bit of prize money and better understanding of how my emotions can affect my day.
Today was a real test to see if all the changes we have made since being on the MotoE program with Coach Robb have helped with multiple days of racing leading into Nationals. I was looking forward to riding again today after such a good day at Rotorua yesterday. The track was it usual unpredictable self for practice and hardened up nicely for some fast laps. I had a small off while trying something new and once I had figured out the better line choice I got myself a new PB lap time. I’m really happy with how consistent I rode across this weekend and it feels good to know the hard work I am putting in off the bike is starting to show.
This was the first ever KawiGirls Kings & Queens event and the first time I have ridden at Rotorua in ages and was really looking forward to checking out the new reverse track layout. It was cool to turn up and have a place reserved under the Kawasaki pit complete with reserved plaque and goodie bag. Everyone loves treats. I had a good qualifier and was happy with the lines I took and my process. Between races we got to catch up with people we hadn’t seen in some time and got to meet two time world champion Courtney Duncan. I got to have some awesome battles and push myself and had an epic race 3. I came away with 2nd overall and a massive confidence boost coming into summer.
I love my local track but Valleys is always a weekend where I make mistakes and come away feeling like I had more to put in. I have recently learned this is ‘over riding’ and because I always expect better of myself. With the VCs being part of the North Island Series they run different classes so I was riding in 11-12 85cc instead of 8-11. It was a really good day of racing, my race craft is improving and there were some solid battles resulting in 3-4-4 for 4th overall today. There are a couple of areas I need to work on before Nationals which we will focus on with Coach Robb to train my weaknesses.
This weekend I got some awesome news. I have been selected for Complete Racing Solutions Moto-E Elite team. It is a massive opportunity to work with one of sports best performance development coaches on an intense program covering physical fitness and strength, mental health and sports nutrition. Another awesome addition to the people in my corner supporting my long game. Thanks Robb and team.
Soren Staudinger 