For the second year in a row I went to race in South Africa. I've had the chance to win the World Cup tour but unfortunately things didn't go my way.

Rad... That was the first race. Blue sky all day long. The wind was strong. Strong tailwind! The course was not so difficult but still very cool. It didn't seem to be very fast. Beni Weber placed a first called «people eating» chicane in the fastest part of the hill. One hayball had to be removed. It was tight.

Flat start (headwind) - accelerating big right hand turn - tailwind - flat straight section - steep drop - chicane (full speed, full tuck) - right hand sweeper - finish. Lenght of track approx. 950m, time 59.97sec, topspeed 83.6km/h saturday and 92.6km/h sunday!

I won the timetrials with the only time under one minute. The times were close, very close. The wind was a big factor too. It was very interesting. We were only 16 standup riders and so we had a lot of runs. After the timetrials Mike and I went to skate a freshly tared mountain pass. Nice chicanes and monkeys on the road... Unfortunately we had strong headwind and couldn't reach the speeds we excepted... What is more refreshing than a swim in a mountain river? We slept at Stuarts weekendhouse in Kleinmond.

Sunday startet with a very fast practise session. The wind was much stronger than on saturday. I didn't realize this at all. But then I slid out at the very end of the last turn and fell backwards over a few hayballs. I was totally confused! My wrists hurt. And my new helmet already has the first scratches... During the raceday this corner took down a few other guys. Stuart was on first position in his 1/4 final heat when he slid out too. Most heats were decided before the chicane. There were only a few passes after the chicken, and these where really spectacular. Ross Snowdon took fifth with a perfect run right before Kent Lingeveldt. The final: once again I didn't start very well. Side by side Luis and I are riding through the first turn. I'm drafting Tibor and then I get into Mikes draft. A little airbrake before the chicken, Tibor and Luis are very close behind me. After my crash I didn't feel so good and had problems with this fast right hand sweeper. I didn't wanna risk anything. Tibor crashed right behind me. I was lucky - Luis too!

Let's go! There's a strong wind blowing, like every day. This time it's headwind for most of the course. Spectators are here already. They're sitting in the last corner, eating hay?!? Yes - the monkeys are eating the hayballs!

Some guys love Koegelberg, some hate it. I really like it. I feel fine! I'm getting used to my new speedhelmet. We're riding single heats first. I'm battling with Stuart and Mike later. It's pure fun. As a test, i'm wearing my GPS with the heart rate meter for practise runs and timetrials.

I won the timetrials - stoked - before Mike, Stuart and Richard. Then we went for a swim in the river. We ate dinner at the Hangklip hotel: oily french fries, steak, calamari. The meat was good...

On Sunday there were no shuttle busses. They most probably got lost on the way to the race. Maybe the guys also did a nice picknick with our lunch. After a few practise runs the real race started. All the 20 riders were qualified, using the 32man bracket. I won the first two runs and met Stuart in the semi final. I started much to late but it was very easy to catch up. After the big left hand turn i passed Stuart on his left. He got wobbles. His front left wheel touched my back right wheel and then we both crashed. I slid for a moment. My suit is fucked now. grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr! That was my ticket to the final! Gone in a second!

Without the money from the Sportfonds Basel-Country this trip would not have been possible. Thanks alot!