MS BROWN’S WINNING JOYS
NEWLY crowned NutriGrain champion Harriet Brown admits she almost conceded defeat in the title race yesterday before digging deep to find the fight needed to push her way to the championship win.
Brown was on the cusp of being knocked out in the second eliminator race, a result that would have handed a fourth series title to Northcliffe clubmate Courtney Hancock.
But in what could become a defining moment of the Victorian product’s career, she made a conscious decision to fight on to the line, earning a place in the final race and eventually pipping Hancock for the title.
Brown led the series standings by four points from Hancock heading into yesterday’s final round but admitted she almost gave up in the second eliminator race – in which six of the field of 14 were wiped out.
“I think sometimes the hardest thing is to manage your head in a race like that,’’ said Brown, who knew she was in the “red zone’’ heading into the final leg. “I remember thinking to myself, ‘that’s it, I’m out, but I’ve done all right, I should be proud of myself’.
“And then I was like, ‘ hang on, I’m still in this, I can still fight’. So I just gave it everything I could in that second race and I didn’t have much left in that last race, I was just trying to hang on there.’’
Brown did hang on, crossing the line fourth just behind Hancock in the eight-woman final, enough to seal her maiden series victory.
The win caps an incredible season for Brown, who won the world ironwoman title in the Netherlands in September and added a pair of world pad-
dleboard titles in November.
“I couldn’t actually (imagine having a season like this). I always train hard, I always give it my all but I never imagined actually getting up there,’’ she said.
“I set this as my goal for the season, I had the world championships and I achieved that and after that the Nutri-Grain series was my goal.
“I kept it to myself but I guess everyone who’s training is really wanting that.’’
Brown said it was tough to be confident tackling conditions like those at North Cronulla yesterday where the swell made things a lottery.
“I had confidence in my body, I knew that I was feeling good. I think sometimes I’d turn up to race and it felt tired or sore but today I woke up and felt like I had a good race in me, so I was trying to stay positive,’’ she said.
And a new-found determination to embrace the fun of racing has helped deal with the pressure.
“That’s also something that I’ve done a little bit better this year is enjoyed it – enjoyed the journey, rather than being so focused on doing well and being disappointed if I don’t.”