Two 麻豆社国产mountain bikers took to the narrow valleys of the Pyrenees in the UCI Mountain Bike World Championship.
On Thursday, Sept. 3, Rhys Verner and Sean Fincham where in Andorra 鈥� a small country between Spain and France 鈥� pedalling against athletes from around the globe. Both Verner and Fincham competed in the Junior Men鈥檚 Cross-Country (XC) race.聽
Wet weather led to a muddy, slippery 21-kilometre course. At one point during the race, it started to hail.
鈥淚t was pretty much hell out there. Right when it started, it just went biblical rain and freezing cold,鈥� Verner said in a YouTube interview after the race. 鈥淵ou鈥檝e got a hundred juniors on the start line all fighting for the trail, it gets pretty hectic.鈥�
Off the mark, the 18-year-old was at the head of the pack among the top 20 riders. But he said he struggled to get into a rhythm.聽
鈥淓very time I did, I would crash or I鈥檇 slide out. It just, like, put a damper on things,鈥� he continued. 鈥淚t was really hard to get a good grove.鈥�
Verner was satisfied with his efforts on the climbs during the race, but said he didn鈥檛 ride to his potential during the descents.聽
鈥淭his is the worst condition of a race I鈥檝e done in a long time,鈥� he said.聽
He was 35th across the finish line.聽
鈥淚t鈥檚 still a pretty good result. I beat my result last year,鈥� Verner said.聽
The championship marked the end of racing season. This year Verner got off to a rough start as he had to fight infectious mononucleosis.聽
Next year Verner will start riding in the under-23 age pool, which has some stiff competition, he told The 麻豆社国产.聽
鈥淚t will be hard to make it to the worlds in the first year,鈥� Verner said.聽
The championship marked Verner鈥檚 second year in the big race and Fincham鈥檚 first. Fincham finished 47th overall at the world championships.聽
鈥淚t was really tough,鈥� Fincham said in a YouTube interview.
The first lap was slow and the course was slick.聽
鈥淚 have never really done a race with that many people, so it was pretty insane,鈥� the 17-year-old said.聽
Fincham said he enjoyed the experience. The championship race was a lesson in getting out early and not getting stuck behind other competitors.聽
鈥淭he first descent, it was piled up. We were walking down it, basically,鈥� he said.
This season was a breakout year for Fincham. The Grade 12 Howe Sound Secondary student finished 11th overall at the Test of Metal in June, earned three gold medals at the Western Canadian Games and finished fourth at the nationals to secure his spot in Andorra. He hopes to race in the Junior XC championships next year, which will be the last time he can qualify for that age group.聽
鈥淗opefully I can improve quite a bit,鈥� he said.聽
