Mesa Verde Again

We headed down to Cortez, CO this past weekend to partake in the 12 Hours of Mesa Verde. It is no secret that Chris and I enjoy the 12 hour duo format, but this is one of our favorite courses. It is held on Phil's Word and that Phil guy knows what makes for good great mountain biking. And to make it even better, there is a big contingency of local riders that also skip out on the ICUP race for this event.
My first lap was rough. I have had more lower back pain on the bike lately and it started screaming really early. I crashed about five weeks ago and messed up my shoulder pretty good. It ranges from achy to painful, but I think the soft tissue damage might be contributing to this. I had taken some ibuprofen, but I knew I was in for a long day. Luckily though we have great friends. Per the usual, we camped with Matt and Josh (2nd duo) and the compound expanded to include Larry (6th solo geezer), Dan and Chuck (3rd duo), and Bryan, Derrick, and Steve (15 men's team). This meant that Joan was there too.
Joan is great. And as a massage therapist (see J Mower Massage), she always offers to work on us. I have never felt the need, but this time I was willing to give it a try. The difference between my first and second lap was phenomenal. Not so much time wise, but I felt so much better. I barely felt my back and my shoulder felt better also. There might be something to this whole massage movement. My third and fourth lap definitely slowed and I was cooked by the end. I felt badly that Chris had to go out for a fifth lap.

Chris-KC

There was some stiff competition this year too. Not just for the overall but even within our category. I was pretty nervous the whole day. Chris was able to get us some cushion and I was able to not lose too much. Congrats to the many Mad Dog, Revolution, and other local teams.
And it has been raining all day today...just saying.