Up until I went to the Mega I was one seriously hardcore dude. I would ride everything on my hardtail without a care in the world, even the rockiest descents couldn't phase me and were handled with aplomb......OK, OK,I may have exaggerated a little.
But, alas, it couldn't last. After getting back from the Mega (where I rode my bouncy bike, purchased for the occasion) I didn't ride for nearly a month and, when I finally did, it didn't feel right. I've been out pretty regularly since the first ride and one common factor seems to be that I'm getting terrible pain in my right hand (non-braking fingers) and the arch of my right (back) foot, where the edge of the pedal is. Now, normally this wouldn't bother me, arm pump is normal, but it's the fact that these are descents that were previously dispatched without any pain at all. Something must have changed.
I've tried adjusting bike setup. I did service the forks when I got back from the Mega (may as well while I was doing the other set) but I don't see how that could have affected it, if anything they would be better....right?. I've added a bit of rebound damping to reduce pogoing and flipped my worn grips around to give a larger surface are, but none of this seems to have helped. My tyres are about the same as they always have been.
The pain in my hand is like a stabbing pain, along the fingers/palm, and is often so bad that I can't open my hand from being clasped around the bar after a particularly bumpy descent (Hope Cross springs to mind). The foot pain is more of a burning ache, like my shoe (five ten baron) is flexing too much around the pedal, though again, this has never been an issue before.
Does anyone have any ideas as to what might be going on? It's really affecting my confidence and, sebsequently, my riding. I don't want to cause any permanent damage to myself.
Cheers,
Andy