15th February 2020 – Mankele Bike Park

Antonie Joubert – This race marked the first leg of the National Cross-Country Series, and I was super keen for the start. In saying that, I had a great start until about 400m in where my chain and derailleur started giving problems. I had no choice but to get off my bike and fix it as quickly as I could.

Soon after my mechanical issue, I was back in the race and luckily caught up and got into a rhythm again. But … things didn’t go as smoothly as I had planned for much longer; the mechanicals just kept on coming! I had to stop on every lap so there was no chance for me to accomplish a good result. Nevertheless, I held my head and chin up finishing the course. It can only get better from here.