diff --git a/src/app/dashboard/maintainer/PipelineBoard.tsx b/src/app/dashboard/maintainer/PipelineBoard.tsx
index 07fe85e..c34b030 100644
--- a/src/app/dashboard/maintainer/PipelineBoard.tsx
+++ b/src/app/dashboard/maintainer/PipelineBoard.tsx
@@ -41,7 +41,15 @@ export const ESCROW_LOCKED_EXCLUDED_STATUSES: BountyStatus[] = [
   "expired",
 ];
 
+// Cap per-column rendering so a busy repo's pipeline (potentially hundreds
+// of bounties in one status) doesn't render an unbounded, unvirtualized
+// list of cards on every dashboard visit (#226).
+const MAX_VISIBLE_PER_COLUMN = 8;
+
 function PipelineColumn({ label, bounties }: { label: string; bounties: Bounty[] }) {
+  const visible = bounties.slice(0, MAX_VISIBLE_PER_COLUMN);
+  const hiddenCount = bounties.length - visible.length;
+
   return (
     <div className="min-w-0 flex-1">
       <div className="flex items-center justify-between px-1">
@@ -51,10 +59,11 @@ function PipelineColumn({ label, bounties }: { label: string; bounties: Bounty[]
         </span>
       </div>
       <div className="mt-3 space-y-2">
-        {bounties.map((b) => (
+        {visible.map((b) => (
           <Link
             key={b.id}
             href={`/issues/${b.id}`}
+            title={b.title}
             className="block rounded-xl border border-slate-200 bg-white p-3 shadow-sm transition-colors hover:border-indigo-300 dark:border-slate-800 dark:bg-slate-900 dark:hover:border-indigo-700"
           >
             <p className="truncate text-xs text-slate-400 dark:text-slate-500">
@@ -73,6 +82,14 @@ function PipelineColumn({ label, bounties }: { label: string; bounties: Bounty[]
             Nothing here
           </p>
         )}
+        {hiddenCount > 0 && (
+          <Link
+            href="/issues"
+            className="block rounded-xl border border-dashed border-slate-200 px-3 py-2 text-center text-xs font-medium text-indigo-600 transition-colors hover:border-indigo-300 dark:border-slate-800 dark:text-indigo-400 dark:hover:border-indigo-700"
+          >
+            View all {bounties.length} in Bounty pipeline
+          </Link>
+        )}
       </div>
     </div>
   );
diff --git a/src/app/layout.tsx b/src/app/layout.tsx
index 2c7882d..672b4ed 100644
--- a/src/app/layout.tsx
+++ b/src/app/layout.tsx
@@ -42,11 +42,19 @@ export default function RootLayout({
         <script dangerouslySetInnerHTML={{ __html: themeInitScript }} />
       </head>
       <body className="flex min-h-full flex-col bg-[#fbfbfd] text-slate-900 dark:bg-[#0a0a0f] dark:text-white">
+        <a
+          href="#main-content"
+          className="sr-only focus:not-sr-only focus:absolute focus:left-4 focus:top-4 focus:z-50 focus:rounded-lg focus:bg-indigo-600 focus:px-4 focus:py-2 focus:text-sm focus:font-medium focus:text-white"
+        >
+          Skip to content
+        </a>
         <ThemeProvider>
           <AuthProvider>
             <WalletProvider>
               <Navbar />
-              <main className="flex-1">{children}</main>
+              <main id="main-content" className="flex-1">
+                {children}
+              </main>
               <Footer />
             </WalletProvider>
           </AuthProvider>
diff --git a/src/context/AuthContext.tsx b/src/context/AuthContext.tsx
index 76c5bd9..a5cb079 100644
--- a/src/context/AuthContext.tsx
+++ b/src/context/AuthContext.tsx
@@ -49,9 +49,13 @@ export function AuthProvider({ children }: { children: React.ReactNode }) {
 
   useEffect(() => {
     // Session hydration on mount: reads the JWT from localStorage and
-    // resolves the current user. Inherently async, not a render-time value.
-    // eslint-disable-next-line react-hooks/set-state-in-effect
-    void refresh();
+    // resolves the current user. Deferred by a tick (#223) so it runs after
+    // the initial commit instead of on the critical path to interactivity —
+    // every route mounts this provider, including static marketing pages.
+    const id = window.setTimeout(() => {
+      void refresh();
+    }, 0);
+    return () => window.clearTimeout(id);
   }, [refresh]);
 
   const handleTokenChangedElsewhere = useCallback(
diff --git a/src/context/WalletContext.tsx b/src/context/WalletContext.tsx
index 82e2761..22ab53c 100644
--- a/src/context/WalletContext.tsx
+++ b/src/context/WalletContext.tsx
@@ -35,9 +35,14 @@ export function WalletProvider({ children }: { children: React.ReactNode }) {
   useEffect(() => {
     // localStorage is unavailable during SSR, so this can't be a lazy
     // useState initializer — it must run after mount on the client.
-    const stored = window.localStorage.getItem(WALLET_KEY);
-    // eslint-disable-next-line react-hooks/set-state-in-effect
-    if (stored) setAddress(stored);
+    // Deferred by a tick (#223), same as AuthProvider's mount hydration,
+    // so this provider (mounted on every route) doesn't add to the
+    // critical path to interactivity for routes that don't need it yet.
+    const id = window.setTimeout(() => {
+      const stored = window.localStorage.getItem(WALLET_KEY);
+      if (stored) setAddress(stored);
+    }, 0);
+    return () => window.clearTimeout(id);
   }, []);
 
   const handleWalletKeyChangedElsewhere = useCallback((newValue: string | null) => {
