Park City Mountain Tour

Saturday Mark N. and I did a nice tour of some of the best trails in Park City.

We started up Armstrong. Most of the leaves have fallen but a few bright patches remain.



Then south on Mid Mountain. This spot in the Pines with the Aspen leaves carpeting the trail and decorating the trees like ornaments was striking.



About half way to Deer Valley this stand of Aspens glowed with sunlight and leaves.



We went up Team Big Bear and did the Flagstaff loop. We decided to explore more of the trails over on Bald Mountain so we took Deer Camp over. We found a stunt trail off Homeward Bound and played on the tamer stuff. I rode the log shown below (that's not me, I stole this photo).



We goofed around on Lila's Lair and Dog Pound then headed back on Mid Mountain.

We took Johns 99 (first time for both of us, it's a nice trail) then descended through the Aspens of Johns trail.





We finished up with Sweeney Switchbacks. My legs were drained and I was tired. But what a great ride. Cool air, stunning scenery, tacky dirt, an excellent mix of trails, and good company.

The meal at Tarahumara capped off the day.

Columbus Day Moab

I headed down to Moab on Columbus Day with the guys.

Dug and Brandon made videos.

We carpooled down in the Mad Dog van. Then transferred to the shuttle van for the ride up Sand Flats Road. A storm a week or so ago had put snow in the LaSals so the Whole Enchilada was out, but we could still hit UPS, LPS and Porcupine Rim.

Dug wearing his sunglasses-of-many-colors.


A little snow up top.


The crew.


The views into Castle Valley never get old.


Jesse descending a ramp near the end of Porcupine Rim.


I didn't ride very fast or aggressively so I was always last. Kinda bugged me, but when I'm riding my bike instead of working I can't be too upset. UPS and LPS were new to me and it had been years since I last rode Porcupine - the trail has changed some.

We still had some daylight so we rode Pipe Dream. I liked it but it's a butt kicker. Riding from town it has a lot of steep ups. I was cramping so I bailed when we got to the south end and rode back on the road. They told me it was easier the other direction so I should have taken the trail back.

Finished the trip with a burger at Rays. Good times.

Park City Addiction

Three Saturdays, three Park City rides. I may be an addict. Knowing the snow is coming I can't resist getting in mountain rides. And it's so good right now - cool temps, good trail conditions, Fall colors.

The route was: up Armstrong, north on Mid Mountain, then Ironman to circle Iron Mountain counter-clockwise, Mid Mountain over to and down Empire Link (my favorite PC trail), Down Daly with Ginas and South Sweeney Switchbacks. 21 fantastic miles.

Up Armstrong with a carpet of leaves.


Oh the colors.


Jolene threads a rocky spot on Mid Mountain.


Just wow.


The new section of Mid Mountain along the east face of Iron Mountain is rocky.


Mid Mountain Aspens.


Color everywhere.


Is this forest enchanted? I say yes.


Down in Daly Canyon we came upon this bull moose. Note my shadow, this was a little too close for comfort.


If I could I'd be up there riding right now. Worth taking a day off work.

Jamie's First Car

Another life milestone today: Jamie's first car.

It's been coming for a while. Most days Jolene and Jamie were able to juggle the van, but some days left Jolene stranded at home. Jamie's been working and saving her money. Jolene has been surfing KSL Cars for weeks.

So here's the new addition to the family, a 2002 Toyota Camry with power sunroof, seats, mirrors, locks and windows.



We split the cost with Jamie. She has the option to buy us out. She's going to get a loan for $1-2,000 to boost her credit score.

Jamie is very excited, it was fun to watch her. Suddenly I feel older.

Shortyz - Favorite Android App

I've had an Android phone for about a year. Overall it's been good. It's nice to always have a camera, notepad, contact info and games.

At first I went nuts downloading apps, now I've weeded out the duds and only add a few new apps a month.

For games, Angry Birds was fun for a while then I got bored of it. Stupid Zombies is a similar style game but deeper and more fun. Jolene likes Jewels. Alchemy is interesting but it got weird after a while. Flight Control is fun and I still play it. The Moron Test is clever but got old. Doodle Fit is a nice puzzle game, as is Unblock Me. Kade plays matching games once in a while. But there's one game that gets played way, way more.



Shortyz. It's crossword puzzles and I play it daily.

It downloads a bunch of free crosswords every day - I like Washington Post and USA Today best. For most puzzles it will tell you if you typed the wrong letter which makes the puzzles more friendly but I imagine purists are outraged - relax, it's just a game, play it how you want.

Nothing is deeper than language so it's no surprise that word games have long-lasting appeal. I've learned some new words along the way, of course some are just crossword fodder.

Most of the clues are adequate, some are really clever, and a few are such a stretch I groan. After a while you get to know the clue style of each puzzle writer.

I feel motivated to finish each puzzle yet it's easy to stop and pick it up later so it's perfect for on-the-go. Shortyz has kept me entertained through many waits and when it's my turn it's easy to put it away.

I enthusiastically recommend Shortyz. I'm sure there are good crossword apps for the iPhone / Touch too, go get one.

Park City Again

Park City was so good last Saturday we hit it again, now with more Fall colors.

We started where Mid Mountain crosses Guardsman Pass road. Went south on Mid Mountain then climbed up Team Big Bear to the Flagstaff loop - it's really nice up there.

The new Road to Ruby trail seems unnecessary, but this section through Aspens was pretty.





Jolene at the south end of the loop. Look at the mountains, trees, clouds and blues skies - gorgeous.



Jolene just came up a steep spot on Flagstaff.





We took some trail over to TG but ended up on some trail above TG. The trails connected so it worked out. I like TG, narrow and rugged. Some good color along the way.



Surprised to see flowers up so high this time of year.



Then we took McConkies (a ski resort double track, unfun grind) up to Black Forest which started out OK but then got steep. Jolene's leg (the one she broke) was hurting and she didn't like the hang-your-butt-off-the-back descents so we bailed and walked the bikes down a ski run. My bad for not checking the elevation profile.

We finished off with Mid Mountain back to the car then ate a late lunch at El Chubasco.

On the way home we stopped and watch 20+ kite boarders zoom back and forth and get airborne at Deer Creek Reservoir.



I'm loving this warm Fall weather. I know it won't last so I'm trying to get out all I can.