More Nationals...

     The past month or so has been pretty full on with 3 national circuit races and 3 scottish omnium rounds in 5 weekends. The omniums for me have really just been a learning experience as they were my first proper taste of track racing. By the glasgow round though I felt at home on the boards and was able to really mix it up in the racing finishing 6th overall on the day.
     The Milton Keynes national was the first of the three and after a fair drive south and lots of delays for the race we started just before 6. This was partly due to previous races running on but also as a result of a pile up on the warm up lap bringing around 15 riders down. The race itself was quite quick on a reasonably tight and twisty circuit. With around 15 minutes racing to go I made my way to the front and attacked on the slight descent with no one willing (or feeling the need) to chase. The gap grew and I was out alone for over two laps before being reeled in and from there I sat on wheels trying to recover before narrowly avoiding the big crash on the final corner and rolling in 25th.
     Hillingdon was next and although not by much London is even further away than milton keynes. Thankfully we were able to stay with friends the night before the race meaning we could watch the lions scrape their victory in the morning before trudging through london traffic to the race. After a series of heavy showers the under 16 boys were up and with a wide smooth track and a relatively small field (around 60-70) the race had quite a relaxing feel for a national. I was able to keep to the front for most of the race with one or two digs off the front but no one was allowed more than a few metres off the front of the bunch. I went again with 3 laps to go but again was only away for a minute or so before being swamped by the riders behind. In the final sprint I finished 20th.
     Yesterday was definitely the worst of the three nationals (from my perspective anyway). Birmingham felt like a short drive after the previous few weekends and after a few rushed visits to service stations I arrived early and got signed on. Again qualifiers were needed to wittle down an entry field of 111 to a final of 60. I was up in the first heat of around 55 and the race was really frantic with everyone desperate to stay to the front and more than a few hairy moments but I managed to qualify with not much hassle. A long wait in the sun eventually lead to the final at 20 to 6. There wasn't much to say about this races with my legs feeling horrible from the start. It was really strung out on the tight circuit and just staying on a wheel was a challenge for me, getting held up by a crash with 3 to go and rolling around just behind the bunch to finish.
      Next weekend is the national championships which should prove even harder than yesterday and then I'm off for a weeks racing in belgium. Cheers for reading, over and out. x