Long Qualification - 16th one more time
Dienstag, 18. August 2009 um 21:56 Uhr
Yesterday was the qualification race for the long-distance competition, my main goal this year.
My shape is quite good at the moment and I am very satisfied with my running speed, but due to some mistakes I kicked myself out of the final.
I had a good start into the race, choosing the right route choice to the long first control. The next controls also passed without severe problems.
I passed the spectators control on 12th place but just a few controls later the troubles started. To the first control in the area with a lot of single trees I misinterpreted my actual position which led to a 2 minutes mistake and running a lot of meters in vain. A bit influenced by this mistake I hesitated a lot to the next controls in this area and had to reduce my running speed.
To the 15th control I made another mistake, about half a minute, turning into the forest about 150 meters too early.
Two controls later, to number 17 I lost another minute. My expectations of the control area where a bit different from the real situation. I tried to find the control in a lime burning place somehow on top of a small hill but in reality it was a depression I should have been looking for.
The rest of the course was OK again.
After 65 minutes and 14 seconds I arrived at the finish in 11th place but a lot of good runners were starting behind me.
Minutes of anxious waiting started during which the speaker announced very good intermediate times of Ionut Zinca, Graham Gristwood and Andrey Khramov. Just before the last starters came to the finish I was in 15th spot, only Jan Prochazka left. As he approached to the finish I knew that I am out of the final right now.
One more time, after 2007 in the Ukraine, that I missed the final by just one place.
Next year, next chance for the long-distance, now my concentration is on the relay and maybe Austria can surprise the other teams with an outstanding performance.
Splits Long qualification Men A
