***This interview was done just before Troy’s routine scrub didn’t go to plan in Austria. Leogang is where Troy hadA�a big victory last year and that would have been a big confidence booster for this years World Championships. For now the important thing is that Troy gets healthy, plus we all remember what Sam Hill did in 2010 at Mont Sainte Anne coming back from injury. They say how you get back up is the true mark of a champion, something which Troy no doubt is. Read on for an insight to Troys plans for this season.***
Troy ‘TB’ Brosnan is a name that needs no introduction, two times JuniorA�World Champion, two times Junior World Cup overall winner and numerousA�National and State titles.A�He is already such an accomplished rider, all of this and still in his maiden year racing World CupsA�as a senior. We talked to Troy about his plans for 2012.
Congratulations on such an amazing Australian National Series but before we talk about that, lets go back to last year. At the start of the year you were looking for a top 20 finish at a World Cup but by the end you finished up eighth overall and podiumed at Val Di Sole (not to mention an amazing run in Champery to win your second Junior World Championship). Did your season exceed your expectations:
A little bit, it has been hard to move through the pack, going from just qualifying to trying to get in the top 30, then top 20 and it happened at the lastA�World Cup getting a podium. It blew my mind a little bit,A�by that time at the end of the season I was wanting to be on the podium. At the startA�of the season I was looking for a top 20 and then by the end of the year I was trying to win one of those things. My goals got pushed higher and higher, I just want to keep breaking them.
Once you had gotten home from six months overseas after Worlds, did you just put your feet up and have a well deserved break:
Yeah a little bit, I had some time off and then got back into the trainingA�and just kept having fun with it. I wasn’t taking it too serious, I just made sure I kept having fun with it. When I have fun riding a bike I seem to go faster.
So when you were back home riding and trainingA�you had a phenomenal Australian National Series, what were your plans going into the season:
The plan was just to ride and keep racing to have that under my belt. After the first few I got plenty of confidence and having Sam (Hill) there was pretty good. At the National Champs I was going for the win with the home crowd and track. It was pretty good, in the end for Sam to get a win to was good, it made me a bit hungrier that he did.
Moving on from the Aussie series and talking about the World Cups, there was quite a big time gap between South Africa and round 2 in Italy. Furthermore,A�with the tracks being so different did your training program change between them:
A little bit, I did a bit more leg stuff for South Africa and not as much upper body. Now I have evened it out and done as much upper body as I would normally do.A�I didn’t quit doing my upper body for South Africa, you still need a fair bit of upper body strength there.
What a lot of people didn’t realise is you actually got a flat during your race run in South Africa didn’t you:
Yeah in the last rock garden I got hung up a little bit and got a slow leak from there on and into those big jumps at the bottom. It was pretty sketchy, the tyre was trying to roll off the rim. By the time I had come to a stop after crossing the line it was flat. I don’t know how much time I lost but I was still in the top ten and in the points.
What goals have you put on the year, last year it was top 20 now you want to win won:
I want to do better in the overall this year and so far I haveA�put myself in the position to do that. I want to win a World Cup and tick that off my bucket list,A�I will see how the season goes and go into the World Champs having fun. Hopefully get the stripes three years in a row!
Thanks for the chat TBA�and all the best on your recovery!