Team rider Chris Guest reports from the UK upon the conclusion of the BSA races. Here's what he had to say about it.
After an intense 6 national events in 7 weeks, gradually darker evenings and positively cold water the end of this year’s season has come, and what a season it’s been! With everything from light wind pumping on Raceboard to being absolutely stacked on slalom kit, I’m pleased to say it has also been good on results: my national series rankings now stand as 4th and 11th in Raceboard Men’s and Pro Slalom respectively. (The latter rank was despite me missing two events and having a counting 29th place).

Being a student and stereotypically strapped for cash, it was a rather uncertain start to the year concerning kit, but just when I needed it I was lucky enough to be offered sponsorship by Hot Sails Maui. After trying out the 2010 GPS sails kindly lent to me by my team mate Andy Freeman I was confident HSM would help me climb the national rank ladder. Soon I had three 2012 models on order and was blasting around my local reservoir, pleasantly surprised at how much faster the new sails felt. For someone used to sailing a mismatch of kit, having such consistently stable and fast equipment was the dream.

Whilst I am pleased with my results, this year has mostly been about training: pairing up time on the water with a lot of fitness and gym work. Regular cardio has served to keep my weight down and improve endurance when pumping on the Raceboard and pairing it with strength training (rather than bulking) has helped me reach top speed on the slalom course. Each event was almost a small experiment when it came to my body, but by the end I had it dialled: I would be loading up on Carbs the day before an event and every evening, then consuming high levels of protein throughout and getting a lot of quick release energy from sugar / glucose based snacks and drinks during the event. Regular stretching before, during and after racing along with a high salt and protein intake meant I could give my all at every race without worrying about muscle fatigue or cramps.

Team work is so important, Chris started the season on Andy's old sails before his were available. 

I have learnt a lot this season, notably that experience really matters when it comes to starts and tactics on the race course. Knowing the theory is only the beginning. So now time for winter training! The plan is to get out on the water most weekends, improve and come back next season on top form, beat this year’s ranking and see what more I can learn.  Obviously I’m also looking forward to getting my sexy new GPS13 sails, potentially some new boards and some more of the incredible Black ProjectFins to match.

Thanks Chris, sounds like a great first season in the BSA, we look forward to following closely as the season opens up again.

More to follow...

Labels: BSA, chris-guest, GPS, gps 2013, slalom, UK