Today's ride felt like the first fully recovered from Leadville ride all week. I rode through Mill Valley and connected to the old railroad grade that goes up to the top of Mt. Tam. It's a monster of a climb topping out with 2k of climbing over five miles. It's not steep, but it's gradual and long.
I escaped the San Francisco fog and was greeted with glorious sunshine the moment I crossed into Marin. I was burning up, and by the end of the day I acquired a new sun tan, the helmet vent tan line. I thought it was dirt at first, but I had been in the direct sunlight for so long it burned a nice little pattern on my forehead.
Having my full-suspension was great, and it made me think twice about having a hard tail again, but there were many moments where I wish I had a lighter rig. However, the Coastal View descent was not one of them. I was flying today. At around mile 30 I started to feel the fatigue in my legs and decided to back off the power a bit. I really threw myself on the railroad grade.
Feels good to have my power back in my legs. Just need to recover a bit more after this ride, and I should be back to top shape. The racing season is coming to a close. September has a bunch of races in the area, but I don't know how many I'll be able to do. One or two more would be great.