Excuses.

As a MTB racer, I feel I should offer some excuses for my performance on Saturday. I probably should have laid some ground work before the race. None the less, here is what I have come up with (including some commentary):

1. It was uncharacteristically warm. But then again, it was probably hot for everyone. Even those from Vegas commented on the heat.
2. My bike still has not fully recovered from the previous weekend. My rear derailleur is limited not allowing access to my biggest cog.  I am not sure I actually needed this cog as the course was pretty flat
3. My water bottle popped open and let's be honest we were all conserving every drop on Saturday. That had to have cost me 15 seconds at least.
4. I got tangled up while trying to pass. Phast Dan was there. Or was that Terd Ferguson? Again losing up to 30 seconds. 

Honestly though I had a good race. My heart rate was higher than I have seen it for a while. (I think my recovering strategy is working.) It also remained relatively high throughout the race. I even led for a bit-after

Kathy took a wrong turn and Erica got some nasty chain suck. I kept quoting the line from Rat Race, "I'm winning. I am winning!" I reveled in it as I knew it would not last.
So now, I need to figure out how to get truly fast because right now I am not.Or maybe I am at that point in my career where I should turn into a single speeder.

Erica (2nd), Kathy (1st), Me (3rd), Jill (4th)

After the race, I attempted to do a cool down lap. I stopped to fill my bottle and then started out on the course again. I could not grab my handlebar with my left hand. My palm hurt like crazy. I thought it was odd and I assumed that due to the heat, my hand was cramping. OK, so I may have been oxygen deprived, dehydrated and hot. I shook it out after a few minutes, but could only grasp the bar gingerly. My palm was swollen and sore for a couple of days afterward. It just slowly got better. It was weird though.