The 22-year-old Palmerston rider leaves for Belgium next week where she will be based during her third tilt at the Women's Motocross World Championship title. With an ounce more luck, Duncan could have had two titles to her name by now.
Her rookie campaign was scuppered by an errant photographer who had strayed too close to the track. The collision left Duncan injured and it ruined her championship prospects.
Lady luck deserted her in the opening race of the final leg last season as well. Duncan had a comfortable 15sec lead but hit a fence on the final lap after swerving to avoid a pile-up.
Duncan is not planning on leaving it to luck this time. She hopes to race more consistently, and collect enough points to survive any calamity which may befall her.
Speed will not be a problem. Duncan has certainly proven that during the past two years.
When she stays upright, she generally wins. But striking the balance between risk and reward has caused the Palmerston flyer a few issues.
''I need to take that into consideration a little bit more this year,'' Duncan said.
''Winning is still the goal but the ultimate goal is to have the No1 spot at the end of the final round.
''I still have the same mindset I have always had - I want to win races. But I'll also be thinking a lot more carefully about the risks I might have to take to achieve that.''
It is a point Yamaha racing team manager Josh Coppins picked up on.
''It would have been fairly clear to everyone involved that Courtney was the world's fastest female these past two years,'' he said.
''If she can minimise her mistakes, she can win the world title. She has to realise that finishing second or third is better than not finishing at all.''
Easing back on the throttle will involve fighting every fast-twitch fibre of her being, though.
''Every athlete is different and for me to ride defensively is not something that works for me. I need to have that mentality where I go out there to win but at the same time limit the risks.''
Duncan had operations on her knee and thumb during the off-season and has spent the past six months rehabilitating. Now she is just hungry to spend more time on the bike and get herself back up to speed.
''I'm back on the bike as of last week. That was step No1. It is a good feeling to be back on the bike.
''When I get over there I will still have four or five weeks before my first race, so that should give me a bit more time to get my bike set up right and to build up some speed and intensity.''
Duncan will look into competing in ''a couple of pre-season races'' before the series gets under way in Trentino, Italy, on April 8.
