Rosalyn - Junior World Championship Tour, 24 June - 19 July 2006

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Old Bonalbo, Australia

20 July: Back at home
Well it was an awesome trip but now its back to winter in Australia, and studying hard for my H.S.C! Read my wrap-up for the trip here.

Ivrea, Italy

16 July: Race
The race at Ivrea was casual and fun. The course was set in the morning so we didn't have long to memorise it before racing. I don't normally race well in races with this sort of format, so it is good to get more experience. The water was highly unpredictable to race on, which made it more exciting. I came 5th , it's a wonder I didn't paddle faster to get away from the swarms of thousands of mosquitos that were there.

Bourg Saint Maurice, France

14 July: Carnage!
Yesterday the team travelled two hours through the mountains to Bourg Saint Maurice in France. We arrived on the eve of the French National Championships and so were lucky to be given training slots. The boys came off the water absolutely buzzing after their session and couldn't slow down to take a breath between sentences at telling us how wicked it was. Then the girls were up next - the water was fast and powerful and I managed to get trashed in a couple of holes and break my boat.

The C2 boys CJ and Karl managed to get their boat pinned against a rock and attracted a huge crowd! However awesome the crash looked the boys were very lucky to have come out with just a grazed bottom and a few cracks in the boat. All was fine in the end and the French onlookers applauded. Everyone had a great time!

On the way back to Ivrea we stopped in the mountains near the border and had a quick snow fight before moving on! We will compete in an international C-class race tomorrow. The weather is lovely - 35 to 40 degrees!

Ivrea, Italy

13 July: Getting ready to race
Well an hour on the water was sufficient for a number of team members to break their boats! The mosquitoes will eat you alive, but apart from that the course at Ivrea is great and I am looking forward to the race this weekend! (C-grade International race).

Ljubljana, Slovenia

10-12 July: Training in Tacen
We spent a fun couple of days training at the course in Tacen, near Ljubljana - the course here has a steep ramp at the top ending in a large stopper, making for plenty of entertainment!

Solkan, Slovenia

Junior World Championships Website: www.msp.soca2006.si/en/

9 July: Semi-final
Today I raced in the Semi-final. I was very excited but a little bit nervous as well. I didn't race as well as I wanted to, with two touches. I placed 30th, which was a bit disappointing, as I'd hoped to improve on my qualification result. I had lots of fun racing anyway, and am looking forward to training on some great water in the next week. I'll be travelling with the Junior Team to Tacen, Slovenia, and Bourg St Maurice, France, which are two awesome whitewater courses.

7 July: Qualification
Last night I met up with Jacqui and Kate who have travelled here for the weekend to watch the race. We went to the opening ceremony for the Junior Worlds, which involved a march through the town and we got to see some acrobatic dancers performing. Today was qualification for the C1 and Womens K1. I qualified 20th, with the other Aussie girls coming in at 26th and 35th. Top 40 go through to the semi-final on Sunday, so all three Australian girls have made it through.

1-4 July: River trips in Bovec then back to Solkan
Well the river trip at Bovec was a refreshing change with some great 'rock splat' opportunities! Now we're settled back in at our accommodation in Solkan, getting ready for the race that is just a few days away!

30 June: Bovec
This morning we did full length runs before trekking off to Bovec in the Soca Valley. Bovec is a small town at the base of the mountains, with loads of cute cafes & fantastic ice creameries. We are looking forward to a good night's sleep and what will hopefully be an awesome river trip tomorrow on the beautifully clear water. A few days here will have us refreshed for when we travel back to the race site at Solkan.

29 June

27 June: Training in Solkan
The Junior Team is training at the course in Solkan in preperation for Junior Worlds. The weather is exremely hot, its getting to about 39 degrees here in the middle of the day! Before we came here we spent a day in Oetz, Austria, which is one of the nicest places I've ever been to. Unfortunately we didn't get to paddle any of the white water there because it was all in flood - it has been really hot in Austria and the snow melt has made the Oetz River a raging torrent.

Am very busy at the moment, basically we just train eat and sleep, most of us are still jet lagged. I keep waking up early in the morning and being very tired at night, but I'm getting used to it and will soon be good as gold. On Friday we are going to Bovec to have a change of scenery before we come back for the race. We may also be going to Bourg St Maurice in France some time after the race. This wasn't on the initial program but I really hope to go there because its got a reputation for fantastic whitewater.

24 June: Arrive Europe
Well Rosalyn should have arrived in Europe but we haven't heard from her yet!