zcvxxcvz wrote:
Nico may have underachieved at nationals xc last year because the team was unused to the humid conditions that day in Tallahassee. The demand to run with the team always affects the top runners on national contenders as well. Don't forget that he was hammering some in-season races last year before disappointing a bit at nationals. At Mtn Regionals, he was 2nd, just one second behind Conner Mantz, who became a two time national xc champion in Florida. Maybe this year Nico will push to be at his best at nationals. He should be among the favorites.
Also, if you watch the race, Nico and Drew Bosley did a lot of the middle leading of the race, they just didn’t have the finish. I assume they are training for the season properly and were not targeting this race.