The Relay.

My mountain bike skills are slanted towards the twisty and rooty side of the spectrum. Rocks and straight have never been a strong suit. TSE and Bear Creek have done a fantastic job in reminding me of how wide a range of skills are required to be a complete bike racer.
Luckily "the farm" was built for me. Fast, flowing but difficult corners, logs, and plenty of Nintendo style combo moves... those are the skill efforts you make when you have to say, set up for a turn, while hopping a log over, while thinking about braking for the next turn, while planning an acceleration out of it all. Plenty of linking little moves together in the pursuit of fast. These things are the most fun for me.
Steve gave our relay team a great start and came through with 3 or 4 guys ahead of him. I got the handoff from him.
In 14 minutes and 33 seconds I unleashed every ounce of harbored anger and frustration I had stored up since August 21st. I translated every frustrating minute on the trainer. Every second of doubt I maintained regarding my fitness, every missed race, every time I questioned my capabilities and ability to regain what was taken. I wanted every missing watt back, right then. Revenge on time off. Revenge on a man who I wouldn't trust using a pencil let alone a 4000 lb car, revenge on time wasted with insurance companies, revenge on every little twinge and ache we feel. 
For 14 minutes and 33 seconds I fought my bicycle as if it were at fault. Admittedly I focused less on line choice and more on applying the most force to the pedals as I could. My heartrate closing in on a few ticks shy of 200 bpm on the second climb I knew I was at full gas. 

I crossed the line, threw Craig into his lap as hard as I could (with the good arm). The funny part was at the time, I wasn't thinking about any of this. In reflection upon the efforts did I realize why I was doing what I was doing. Motivation is a huge thing in bike racing. Often times the most fit rider does not win the race. Sometimes the more motivated prevail. Here's to hoping I didn't drain the entire tank in less than 15 minutes. See you out there.