I TOOK part in a Speedway Grand Prix qualifier in Germany on Monday this week and although I didn’t score quite as many points as I would have liked, overall it was a really good experience.

I went there aiming for six points, which would have been double what I got in it last year, but I wasn’t helped by a bit of bad luck and a few little mistakes, so I ended up only getting five points, which was an okay result.

In one of my heats, I got taken out and the referee excluded me as well, which I wasn’t happy about, and then I had another fall in another one of my rides.

They’d just watered the track so it was so slick and I came into the corner and hit a bit of a bump and it shot me out wide and I had to turn really quickly.

The track was really icy and I came off when I was in third place, so from my two falls, that was three points that I missed out on.

I wasn’t going there expecting to qualify, that wasn’t really the goal, I know am still a few years away from being at that sort of level. It was just about gaining experience and trying to enjoy it.

I did what I wanted and next year, the goal will be to qualify from that quarter-final into the semi-finals.

It was a long way to go and the travelling does take it out of you but we made sure we were there a day early so we could have a bit of time to relax.

I think it took 16 hours in total from my place in the UK but, thankfully, I had Lee Kilby from Swindon with me so we shared the driving, which made it a bit easier.

After those couple of falls, I have been left feeling pretty sore and I took a good whack to the head too.

It was a pretty big crash, full speed at the end of a straight, and then another guy just rode straight into me so I went right into the fence.

I am pretty sore but the bike was probably a lot worse off than I am, it’s pretty much destroyed. It’s a pain when you go all that way and then end up ruining a bike. It’s something you don’t need.

It’s just one of those things and I am fine and racing tonight up at Redcar with my Championships side Peterborough.

We don’t ride again with Swindon until next Thursday so I will be back fully fit by then.