8th of July : Open Roads
The EuroTour started with some open roads during 3 days: Col de la Bonette, Col d'Izoard, Stelvio Pass in Italy... all mythical roads ! We also had the honor to ride those pass with Aaron Hampshire, Chase Hiller and Candy Dungan from Colorado.
13th of July : King's Gate - IDF race (World Cup)
Now let's go to Austria for the first race of the year in Europe ! King's Gate was pretty wet, but we were lucky, the road became dry for our last quali run and for the final day.
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Photo: All Year Long
I managed to get 5th among the women for quali day, with a time of 2:25.10. The day after I raced in the B bracket and got to the final ! Which made me skate in the A bracket the next day, but it didn't last long.
Finally, the women final came. We were 21 girls and I made it to the podium with a 2nd place :) !!!
Photo: Janto Just
18th of July : Kozakov Challenge - IDF race (World Cup)
Czech Republic looks so flat compared to Austria !! Yet, this country has one of the most epic IDF event.
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Kozakov was great like every year. The weather forecast was good and I really enjoyed the two first days of freeride. Shared some runs with the french crew, Marjorie Romeo and other girls.
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During the race, I managed to grip every corner for the first time, but my qualitime didn't improve from last year. Maybe because I used different wheels... ? I'll find the answer next year !
This race was very challenging for me with my light weight. So I finished 6th in women, but i'll do better next year ;) !!
Photo: IDF
Photo: Arne Valen, CGSA Downhill
26th of July : Verdicchio - IDF race (WQS)
Now let's drive 1 300 kilometers to reach the 3rd european race: Buongiorno Italia !
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Storms, rain and hail welcomed us the first day of the race, but the 3 next days were completely dry and super hot. The track hasn't change since 2015, or maybe a bit more slippery.
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We were 14 girls racing this road, so a bit less than King's Gate and Kozakov. I was super stocked about my performance on this track: finished 3rd at the quali time, 4 seconds behind the fastest Melissa Brogni, but only 0.01 second behind Lisa Peters :)
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Then race daaayyy !! I did a good job, finishing first of my heat at every round until the very first place ! :) :) :)
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4th of August: Teolo - IDF race (WQS)
The final stretch !
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Teolo, the last IDF race in Europe for the year 2017 also took place in Italy. The weather was even more warmer than at Verdicchio. It was quite complicated to stay focus in a leather by 40 degrees.
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The event was very well organized. We had a ceremony for the qualitimes results and the final results. The city also has the best italien restaurant ever.
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During the race, I ended 3rd at the qualitime and also 3rd during the final !
6h of August: End of the Eurotour
It's the end of a one month-trip. Tomorrow it's Monday and I have to be at work by 9am. I'll have to drive for 7 hours tonight to go back home. My mind is full of smiles, hugs, joy, pride, admiration for some new riders that I met, mountains, rivers, giggles, shooting stars, friends...
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The return to a big city, without mountains, and an 8 hours day job will be hard. But luckily I have a huge reserve of good memories to feed my soul when life will get too dreary.
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With all these podiums (2nd at King's Gate, 6th at Kozakov, 1st at Verdicchio and 3rd at Teolo), I'm now first women european Champion for the year 2017. And I must say... this is giving me even more HOPE and DETERMINATION for next year. I will definitely go in another continent to do a world ranking in 2018.
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I would like to thank you CDK shop, Riptide Bushing, Longboard Girls Crew and Cult wheels for their support this year !!