Xterra Malta

the start of the season was relatively early for me, but a race weekend in the South's just hard to resist, and it  was the first implementation of the Xterra Malta stages of the European Tour. Got there there as early as Wednesday, due to flight connections between  ZRH  and Malta. On Thursday , relatively bad weather,  with a group of Hungarians, Sandra Koblmüller, Karin Hansen and Jan Pyott on the Preride. very nice route discovered by a natural park without much altitude. In the afternoon checked the fantastic running track . Friday short swim in the bay to get used to the 2 m high waves. Sunday Raceday: As announced  very nice, sunny weather, at 9 30 am on the beach, jetski with buoy rope tangled in turbine drifts, still very big waves in Maui caliber, everyone being impatient, I suggest to Nico Lebrun to start far left and use just use one buoy! After two minutes, then the starting gun, diving through the waves and then  out  to the single buoy, around me only white swim caps, a good sign in the middle of the Pros, Beach Run and again through the surf and a faster second round, me as  first age grouper out of the water, 86 stair steps up to the transition area to the parking lot of the Golden Radisson and on the fast track bike, on the second climb I am getting passed by the first pro Females mutual cheering is mandatory; on the I am still lacking power, as I was not on the Canarias this winter..exactly 30 k on the bike and together with  with female neo Pro Karin Hansen of Aloha Racing in to transition area. A few meters on asphalt and then  on a fantastically beautiful singletrack along the coast .. 2 rounds of 5.5k with quite some D + ... And finish  just under three hours  without knowing if  if it was enough to win the Age Group..at the awards ceremony   everything was clear:..Dave Nicolas congratulates  with a :Champion, you did it again.

All in all a very successful event with a few details available to improve: timing, marking and communication. but by far the most beautiful run track for a long time ... Now Recovery and serious bike training during Easter Holidays  in France.