Not The Best Day To Ski Alta

The snow that hit around mid-day was welcome, but the single-digit temperatures and winds were not. Actually, the snow was a problem too. And to be fair to Alta, I strongly suspect the skiing anywhere along the Wasatch Front wasn't good.

Mark and I had planned to Ski Free After 3 at Alta. I left work at 2:15 with the wind blowing and the temperature at 27 degrees. The sign at the mouth of Big Cottonwood Canyon warned that chains or 4-wheel-drive were required, but I ignored it and drove on. Near Snowbird the roads got snowy, but below that they were clear. I saw Mark's car in the parking lot. The temperature at Alta was 7 degrees! I parked, got my ski clothes on and skied to the lift at 3:02. I tried to call Mark, but no answer - no surprise - he latter confirmed my suspicion: there was no way he was taking off his glove to answer his phone. I met him at the lift after my first run so no worries.

It's nice that Alta has this Ski Free After 3 program, but they aren't fools. You're limited to one lift (Sunnyside) and the terrain there is not very exciting. I was surprised that the Sunnyside lift is a high-speed triple, but this is just so they can get paying customers back to the Sugarloaf and Supreme lifts, and better terrain. Still, it's hard to argue with free, but I'll try.

The first thing that got our attention was the cold. After the first run I went back to the car and put on my balaclava and another pair of thin gloves to go under my fleece ones. I should have put on my ski mask, but I (stupidly) toughed it out.

The next inescapable feature was the wind. It wasn't bad when at our backs going up the lift, but having it in our face on the way down was cold and slowed us down - way down. The runs down from Sunnyside are not steep to begin with, then add the wind and you could easily stop dead on the near-flats. Here's the data:

Month         Base   Base   Base   Base   Hour  Since
/ Day  Hour   Temp   Dir    Spd    Gust   h2o   0400
--------------------------------------------------------
1 15   1500    8.5   13.6   12.2   29.0   0.01   0.06
1 15   1600    7.7   12.4    8.0   22.1   0.00   0.06

Wind 8-12 mph average with gusts to 29 & 22. And temperatures of 8.5 and 7.7 degrees - my car said 5 degrees when we left. The wind chill was -10. I humbly recommend higher temperatures and less wind for skiing.

Lastly, the snow. Skiers like fresh snow, right? Usually. But when it's drifted and blowing in your face, it's not so nice. Many times I'd be skiing down a run scraping the edges through an icy patch only to lurch forward as I hit a drift and nearly go over the front. One time a drift caught my right leg and wouldn't let go, spinning me in a circle and forcing (yes, the snow made me do it) me to fall down.

So it wasn't the day of skiing I'd hoped for. Still, we got to make a few turns for free and, from the initial reports, no one had any frostbite.

It was too cold to take pictures, but I snapped this one from inside the car:



So that was our 1.5 hours of free skiing. Here's Mark's report. I'd be willing to try it again and see if the experience improves with better weather.

New Snowshoes

The Red Feather - Hike snowshoes I ordered arrived yesterday and I took them out this morning for their maiden voyage.



I picked up DJ and drove up American Fork Canyon to the Pine Hollow trail head to join the Utah Velo Club group snowshoe hike at 7:15 AM. We arrived just as they were heading out, so we got geared up quickly and started up the trail. The bindings on these shoes are fairly basic, but cinched up fast and didn't need any adjustment all day.

The group had a pretty good gap on us so we upped out pace to try and catch them, and get warm. It was in the 20s this morning and partly cloudy with little snow flurries and sun off and on. The trail is good for snowshoeing. It's a good climb, but not crazy. There was side-hilling, flat stuff, straight-up climbs, and winding through trees - a really good mix. We caught up with the group just before the first meadow.

We continued up a section of Pine Hollow that is a good climb on the bike, but was no big deal on snowshoes. At the top we stopped at the second meadow for a group photo. I'm in the middle of this zoom-in wearing the red jacket and DJ is in yellow (click on the picture for the full group).



We continued on, generally following the Ridge 157 trail heading south back toward the summit parking lot. With snow cover and snowshoes you don't have to follow the trail and the leader picked a passable route that took us in the direction we wanted to go. Here's a view from the ridge toward the back side of Mt. Timpanogos - notice the wisp of a cloud in front of the minor peak.



Along the ridge we found this steep slope and several of us slid down it. It was fun to try and stay up on the sliding snowshoes.



Here's a photo of some folks threading through the Aspens - that's Stan, the group leader, out front.



At the summit parking lot, most of the group went on up to Horse Flat and down through the Pines, but DJ and I and a few others headed down the drainage along the road to Salamander Flat. The snowmobiles had been here so the going was easy on their tracks. At Salamander Flat we took the trail that connects over to the first meadow on the Pine Hollow trail. I've mountain biked this trail numerous times, but I was surprised how tricky it was to spot the path of the trail. I was in lead and meandered a few times before staying higher on the hillside and finding the place where the trail turns a corner into a Pine forested gully. It was more work, but fun to blaze the way and make first-tracks - and through such a lovely little spot.

Before long we arrived at the meadow and headed back down Pine Hollow. I thought these flocked Pine trees looked striking.



And here's a sample of what the snowshoe trail looked like.



It was a bit hard to get up so early, but the terrain was outstanding for snowshoes and the scenery refreshing. A wonderful day outside in the mountains.

Addendum: This afternoon we went to the Junior High near us for more fun in the snow. The kids tubed down the little hill they have there while Jolene and I did laps around the big ball field on cross country skis. I'm glad we're having a good, snowy winter this year. It's been years since we've had enough snow in the valleys that stayed for more than few days.

Cycling Plans For 2008

'Tis the season for making cycling plans for 2008. Here are mine:

Mountain Biking

• I'm going to try tubeless this year. I had a rash of flats at the end of 2007 and I'm ready to give tubeless a try. The new wheels I'm building will be tubeless.
• I resolve to mountain bike in Fruita this year. Fruita was on my list for 2007, but I didn't make it so for 2008 I'm moving it up to DefCon 5.
• I resolve to get UTRider Mark to Moab. He started mountain biking 2 years ago and it is my mission to introduce him to Slickrock this year (was supposed to be 2007).
• I plan to do a few ICup mountain bike races. Probably the St. George race because it gets me out riding early in the season, maybe Cholla (it chewed me up last year), and probably 1-3 more as I feel like it.
• I'd like to try a 10 or 12 hour race this year.
• Explore new trails. There's nothing like riding a trail for the first time. And even though I've been mountain biking in Utah for 15 years, there are still trails I haven't ridden. I'm sure I'll hit a few new (to me) trails this year. Gota hit Little Creek Mesas this year.
• Ride some favorites. Blackhawk, Slickrock, Wasatch Crest (in a loop ride), Timp Perimeter (uphill this year?), Ridge 157, Millcreek, Mid Mountain, Gooseberry Mesa, etc.

Road Cycling

• I plan to ride STP (Seattle To Portland) with a friend who moved out to Seattle and some other Utah riders. This would be my first double century. The ride looks fun, but the logistics are annoying (could be worse, could be LoToJa - zing!). I'd prefer to fly out to Seattle then fly back from Portland to save myself from the dreaded White Line Fever.
• Ride a few centuries. Salt Lake Century for sure (it's a tradition), hopefully Cache Valley and Heber too.
• More group rides. I've really enjoyed riding with the Utah Velo Club and plan to do more this year, starting with the February ride from Lehi out to Vernon and back - I hope the weather is good. I also want to try a ride or two with the BBTC.
• Try a road race. I wanted to do this last year, but it didn't happen. Mark wants me to do Hell of the North so maybe that'll be it. Maybe a time trial too.
  

Miscellaneous

• I've been out cross country skiing a few times this winter and was reminded how much I enjoy it. And with the good snow we've been getting, I plan to do more XC skiing and to do one race this year (I've been meaning to try a XC ski race for years).

So other than the above hit list, I plan to do about what I did in 2007 - ride mountain or road as the mood strikes me.

Snow Is The Word

Went cross country skiing up Millcreek with Mark after work. Conditions were good - soft snow, recently groomed track with classical tracks set, not too cold, and we got there early enough to ski during the last daylight. Mark was able to squeeze into the larger of my two pairs of boots. He did good for his first time - just the usual unsteadiness most everyone feels as they adapt to a new activity with new motions and different balance. We went up 2.5 miles or so then turned around. I think downhill is harder than up on XC skis, and Elbow Fork is on the steep side, but Mark did fine. Coming down it was snowing lightly. Just a nice evening to be out on the skis. Mark snapped this photo with his camera phone (Warning! I look particularly dorky):



Afterward we drove the few blocks to REI and looked at their XC ski gear. Mark tried on a few boots. Is Mark a new convert?

After my wife came back from carpooling the kids to school she told me we got a lot of snow overnight. We got pounded - at least 10", if not a full foot of new snow. It's been a good snow year here along the Wasatch Front, and for most of Utah.

Millcreek Ski & More

I had to run some errands today that took me near downtown Salt Lake City, so since I was in the area I decided to drop by REI then hit Millcreek Canyon for some cross country skiing.

REI is evil. I already spent a chunk of change on Christmas, and here I walk into a candy store for big kids (like me). And they had lots of stuff on sale. How does REI expect anyone to resist? They know they have me, evil capitalist pigs! What's that you say? I should have more will power? Hah, no one can resist the Siren song of outdoor gear on sale - it can't be done. Case closed. I will hear no more purely hypothetical observations - especially if they suggest I have some sort of weakness. On the up-side, I passed on more things than I bought - doesn't that count for something?

I left REI on a shopping high and headed to Millcreek. I made it to the parking lot around 5:30 PM so it was already mostly dark. I went with the light cross country gear instead of the beefier touring stuff so I could go faster - that was the theory. On my way up I passed around 10 people coming down - most had headlamps, a few didn't. I had my Petzl Tikka XP lighting my way (it's a good little headlamp). I was kick-gliding at a decent pace for the first mile, then I had to slow down. The slope turns a bit steep just before Elbow Fork, but the skis gripped OK and I was able to go straight up.

It was about here that I started feeling a pain in both heels. I knew what it was - my heel was slipping in the boot thus rubbing my skin. But I ignored it and kept going - I'd skied Granite Flat in these boots last week and been just fine. Ya, dumb. It's just like how I evidently must get a sunburn each year to remind me to wear sunscreen. I made it about 2.5 miles then the pain was just too much. I put a bandage on the right heel (it was worse), but it was too late - the top layer of skin was rubbed off and it was painful to any touch. So I headed down after snapping this picture (of dubious worth).



Going down was fun. I double-poled in the flat-ish spots and snow-plowed the few steeps spots. There were some good stretches where you could just straight-run.

This was my first time to ski Millcreek and I liked it. It gets a lot of use by hikers, snowshoers and skiers, and the snow was well packed, but only icy in a few spots (that may change with the weather). Hopefully I can drag UTRider up to Millcreek and introduce him to cross country skiing.

But the story isn't over. With two painful feet I was NOT happy with those boots. So I went to REI looking for solutions and I found two. I bought some heel inserts that will hopefully prevent the slipping/rubbing. And I bought some new boots that were on the closeout rack. Ya, I went nuts at REI today. So the REI haul was: new cross country ski poles, boots and gloves, a new long-sleeve cycling jersey, the heel inserts and an insulated tube for my CamelBak.

5 Things

Thanks, UTRider, for spreading the infection, and stupidbike for kicking it off because you were bored. My first impulse was to blow this off, but to slow my inevitable slide to grouch-hood, I'll play along.

1. I was born in the OC - Anaheim to be exact. We moved to Utah when I was 6, but my grandparents still lived there and us kids (my brother and sister and I) would go back and spend a month with them during the summer. It was great fun. We spent a LOT of time in the pool and playing pool (they had a billiard table), and catching snails. They lived a block away from Disneyland and owned a hotel. Many hotel guests would leave their unused tickets so my grandma would fill her purse with these leftover ticket books and we'd spend a day at the happiest place on earth (do I have to include a trademark to say that?). I think we drove her crazy asking for yet another E ticket, but what good memories I have of Disneyland. There used to be rolling, grassy hills and orange groves and strawberry fields in Anaheim. All gone now thanks to urban sprawl. But on a recent business trip to southern Cal, I was pleased to see some untouched hills and farmland - I guess some of the old SoCal still remains, that makes me happy.

2. When I was 16 I went to Maui to pick pineapple for 6 months. I've never worked AND played so hard in all my life. We went to the beach at least twice a week. I made a skimboard out of an old sheet of plywood and got pretty good at it. I got the darkest tan of my life. At the end we toured three other islands (Hawaii, Oahu, Kauai). I came home with a few hundred dollars, but the experience was worth the hard work.

3. I have a scar on the bridge of my nose, and every scar has a good story (I hope this one is good). I was about 8 when my friend got a boomerang for his birthday. We went down to the park to try it out. We took turns throwing it, but the stupid thing wouldn't come back. We got tired of running after it, so we got a good ways apart and threw it toward each other to save time/steps. This worked fine, but we still couldn't get it to return. I suggested to my friend that perhaps we needed to throw it harder. I think you can see this coming, just as I saw the boomerang coming right for my head at high speed. I had one of those cool, slow-motion moments where the boomerang slowed down, but for some reason I couldn't move fast enough to get out of the way. The thing nailed me right between the eyes and knocked me down. When I got up I could feel something wet on my face (blood). My friend ran over and looked terrified. I think he was sure he'd killed me. He helped me get home and my Mom drove me to the hospital where they stitched up the gash. This was a frightening and surreal experience. First, they had to inject some local anesthetic so from my point of view (my eyes) I see this shot needle coming right toward me (I don't like needles, at all!) as he pokes me a few times in a fresh, still smarting, cut. Then they come in with the needle (shaped like a J, like a fish hook) and thread and come down, poke through my skin on both sides of the cut then pull the thread through then pull it tight. I couldn't feel any pain, but I could feel the tug of the needle and thread. Still gives me the willies to think about it. It was all so cinematic, shot in the first-person perspective - and the memories are still quite vivid.

4. I had a few good friends in High School (in Spanish Fork). We did a lot of hiking, riding snowmobiles and motorcycles, playing basketball and general horsing around. One day we were down by the river lighting off fireworks. A bottle rocket was tossed up in the air, but the timing was wrong and the thing shot down to the hood of the old station wagon lighting the bag of fireworks and we all hit the dirt as bottle rockets shot everywhere. We scrubbed and scrubbed, but couldn't completely remove the stain on the hood. I think my friends, who's parents owned said station wagon, got in trouble for that, but the extent is lost in my decaying memory.

5. I was in Student Government at UVSC. The campaign was many long days of work. The other party we were up against ran a good campaign and I really had no idea who would win. It was quite a thrill to win. We got put to work right away and had the best advisors imaginable. We went on a few retreats that were incredibly fun: Rafting down the Snake River, snowmobiling in Yellowstone and visiting Washington D.C. We tried our best to be a good advocate for the students and provide some fun activities. Looking back now it seems so contrived and not really that important, but I learned a lot about working with people and that has been invaluable.

Well, that took a while, but it went easier than I thought it would. Sorry I went a bit long on each one - once I opened the memory valve it just kept coming. Now you all know me a little bit better (for better or worse).

How (Not?) To Start A New Year

I read several blogs regularly, and one of those is Fat Cyclist. When he posted about a New Years Day ride up the Squaw Peak road, I was intrigued. I posted a comment or two and basically committed myself to ride. I questioned that commitment when the temperature this morning was 12 degrees. I bundled up, loaded the bike and headed to the ride anyway. On the drive the temperature kept dropping, hitting a low of 6 degrees at the parking area. Soon a pretty good-sized group had arrived - including 2-3 who biked up the canyon.



The road was clear (pavement) about a 1/4 mile up to the closed gate, then it was packed snow the rest of the way. I'd guess the snow was 1-1.5 feet deep at the gate. The track had been packed pretty good by snowmobiles and ATVs (4 wheelers) so the going was pretty good, at first. Then came a section with some drifted snow that bogged me down, but it wasn't very long then it was back to fairly easy riding with good packed snow. But about half way up it got tougher. There would be rutted-up spots with softer snow. In total I rode about 2/3 or more, but walked that last mile or so to the top - it was steeper with deeper, looser snow.



Rounding the bend just before the final climb to the viewpoint I could see out over the valley. The air was clear with snow blanketing everything. It was a beautiful sight.





I pushed the bike the final yards to the top and joined the stronger riders who'd made it up in much better time. We waited for the last few riders to come up then took a group shot:



Getting up was a bit of a struggle (the riding and pushing the bike) but I was looking froward to the fun ride down. Well, it was fun, but it wasn't easy - at least for me. The bike was real skittery in the loose snow and a real bear to keep upright. The top was just too loose to ride at all, but it got better as we went down. And I think I got better at riding the snow too. At one point I hit 17 mph, which felt very fast on snow. I bailed many times when the bike go out of control and even went down a few times. One time I came very close to going down hard at 13 mph, but some how stayed up.

About 2/3 of the way down I tried to plow through a snow drift, but got bogged own and bailed. Looking down I saw some granola bars and a car key - turns out it was to Fatty's bikemobile. He was happy he didn't have to call home for another key.

For fun I took a little hop and some air off the hump of snow through the gate. Then finished with the ride down the pavement. Riders milled around a bit talking, then left. It was a good crazy way to start 2008. Thanks to Kenny for spearheading the ride, and Fatty for publicizing it.

Fat Cyclist, Brad Keyes and KC Holly also wrote about the ride.