Monday:
Today:
Seriously, this is messed up. We have 3" of snow on our lawn down in the valley. Driving home I half expected to hear Christmas songs on the radio.
But am I annoyed, upset, angry?
No.
Because tomorrow we're (the whole family) heading to St. George for some spring break R&R. I'll see if I can bring some sunshine and warmth back with me.
Today may have been our only shot for a mountain bike ride this week (tomorrow and Wednesday the weather looks bad and Thursday we're heading to St. George with the kids for Spring break). So we went a bit more epic ride than usual for a weekday evening.
We rode away from the house around 5:30 and headed for the water tank road (above the Orem Cemetery). After the climbing we took Betty up to the junction with Crank and considered our options:
We have a few Easter traditions. First we had an Easter egg hunt. No real eggs, just plastic ones filled with candy.
Jolene added camouflage eggs this year to increase the difficulty.
Ready. Set. GO! (You should be able to spot 4 eggs in this photo.)
Hunting, hunting - Kade spotted one.
Not limited to the ground, fully 3D. Any nook safely in reach is fair game.
The camo eggs were harder to see, especially in the grass. We thought all the eggs were found, but after a count we had to go back to find 3 more.
Next up was the egg war. A series of battles until one egg wins the war. The war starts with egg selection (in turns), then coloring, then the duels.
To duel, aim the eggs at each other - pointy end forward, then countdown and hit them together. We often chant "One, two, three, four, I declare an egg war" {crack}. Or just "One, two, three" {crack}. Rest elbows on the table to make the swing more accurate. A silly game, but our kids love it and are excited for it every year.
This video shows you how it goes.
Jamie and Kade square off.
Rachel and Jamie about to come to blows.
And the champion is: Jamie and her egg "Striker".
It was nice to have a sunny and warmer day. I took my road bike for a mellow 10 mile spin to pick up some tires from DJ. I refused to wear more than a short-sleeve jersey and shorts. It was only chilly when a cloud blocked the sun. I schlepped the tires home on my back under my jersey - I looked like a mutant hunchback.
I wish I could say that since Easter is past Spring is truly here, but another storm is rolling in Tuesday, and they're talking snow on Wednesday (better be mountains only). This wilder-than-usual Spring weather is messing with me. I don't like it.
Prescript: Alex wrote up his version of the Saturday Guacamole and Little Creek rides. I don't know if his mood was chemically altered or I just pulled off a good snow job, but I definitely want him as a resume reference. Well, until he eventually figures out I am a whack-job. Alex, are you aware of the amazing health benefits of Tahitian Noni juice?
OK, on to this evening's ride: Lambert Park.
If Elden isn't in sales, he easily could be. He's got the gift of persuasion. I had the road bike in the car ready to ride with the Utah Velo Club tonight. Then Elden posts about the pure joy he experienced riding Lambert Park yesterday. I'm normally luke-warm on Lambert, but suddenly I wanted to ride it. My wife IMed me after reading Elden's post and the ride was set. (See what power you have, Elden?)
(If you don't want to read my "woe is me" whining, skip this paragraph.) Jolene called at 4 - she was on the road. All I had to do was place an order for some software. A simple task that ordinarily takes less than 5 minutes. It took 45 minutes. The credit card number I had had been canceled. I had to call the secretary, at home, to get the new card number. The first order got messed up and was shipping to the billing address - in Idaho. Couldn't change the address, had to cancel the order. The bank called to report there was suspicious activity on the card. The customer service guy entered a wrong item on the 2nd order. Canceled that one. But the 3rd order was correct. And I'm out the door - gotta get some cycling therapy to calm my jangled nerves.
While I was stuck at work I eventually got a text off to Jolene to tell her to go ride and I'd find her when I got there. I arrived, got dressed, called Jolene and made a plan to meet up.
While Jolene was riding she met Elden near Rodeo, rode with him up then down Rodeo, then parted ways.
When I arrived I went up Middle Spring then did a run down upper Rodeo - good stuff. I met Jolene and we continued down Rodeo.
Next we went south on River and saw Derek (a UMB teammate). I told him we wanted to do Wildcat and he told us how to get there. We went up Ziggy and White Dog then down Wildcat.
Wildcat has a few stunts. Here I am rolling over some logs.
Jolene too.
Me going up the logs.
After Wildcat we went north on Middle then up Poppy and down Ruin. I hit every jump on Ruin, except one that was moved since the last time I rode the trail last year.
We finished up with a cruise north on High Bench then up Spring and down upper Rodeo. We were back at the cars, but couldn't resist one more run down lower Rodeo. We soft-pedaled back to the cars and drove home.
Did I mention it was 70 degrees today? Yeah, it was a delicious Spring day. The trails were perfect. There were so many riders out that by the time we hit Rodeo for the last time it was getting dusty from all the wheels.
My only regret was not seeing Elden and his new SingleFly. And I'm sure he regrets not seeing my shaved legs in person.
While I was out riding Guacamole with the boys, Jolene was racing the Cholla Challenge and took 3rd in her category.
After she finished her race, she met us out at the Little Creek Station Chevron. Rod also joined us for the hoped for Little Creek ride. I say "hoped for" because we could see snow on the mesa - we decided to at least go take a look.
The road was muddy in a few spots and caused some slipping and sliding, but we made it to the slickrock parking area. Slickrock is always a good sign. We didn't have to ride very far to figure out there was slickrock everywhere.
Two of my cycling plans for this year were to ride Little Creek, and ride with Alex. Both accomplished in one day.
Here's the gang again (except Rod and Jolene) - Cory, Alex, me, Rick, Collin.
Jolene and I - happy to be riding.
I think the views from Little Creek Mesa are better than Gooseberry.
The riding at Little Creek is a good mix - dirt, slickrock, technical stunts, cruising, rough stuff, and orienteering. Here's a sample:
Most of the trail was damp with some spots of shallow mud. There was snow in the shade.
We rode out to one of the northern points and back. And then an out-n-back on part of the main loop. Our guides mercifully cut the ride short, they could probably tell that Jolene and I were flagging. All the short bursts took their toll.
Certainly I see why people rave about Little Creek. It's a mountain biking playground with a good variety of terrain. I had a grin on my face the whole time (Guacamole too). I'm already looking forward to a return trip.
I'll close with the view on the way out of Little Creek (that's Zion in the distance).
A big thanks to Alex, Colin, Cory and Rick for having me along for the rides, and for squeezing me into their already-full vehicle.
Bonus Question: What is the first name of the elderly lady who runs the Little Creek Station Chevron cafe? (Hint: It's a unique rural-ish name.)
Clydene (I'm not joking.)
With all the rain Friday I was concerned JEM would be too muddy on Saturday so I was going to try Hurricane Rim instead. Fortunately Alex kindly offered take me on their ride while my wife raced Cholla. The objective was the Guacamole trail, if the road wasn't a muddy mess.
The road was pretty good, but we played it safe and parked at the bottom of the steep final climb to the trail head. Up on top I snapped the photo below. Looks like good mountain biking terrain to me.
Guacamole is similar to Gooseberry mesa, but it flows more and the technical stunts are fewer but still enough to satisfy.
The trail goes out to the rim with scenic views.
Here's the gang. From left to right: Alex, Cory, Rick and Colin. Slickrock after rain is loaded with puddles.
Here's Alex making the sharp left turn after dropping the ledge just behind him to the right. I chickened out on the first approach, but made it on the second attempt.
Here's another stunt - a short but steep climb up a crack filled in with rock.
Several years ago a fire came through this area. The burned trees create a ghostly appearance. Look at the mixed dirt and rock terrain - fantastic for mountain biking.
I enjoyed the ride and the company. These guys roll fast and I was usually last because, I, uh, didn't know the trail. I better get my fitness up before I ride with these guys again.
We finished around noon and headed to Little Creek, which I'll cover in another post.
St. George didn't have the weather I was hoping for.
The drive down went surprisingly well, considering it was snowing almost the whole way. The roads were only wet, not snow-packed or icy - even over the passes.
When we arrived at the Cholla race course it was 42 degrees, scattered rain and (thankfully) just breezy. We put on the layers and headed out.
I like the course this year. Plenty of places to pass, especially on the climbs. A smattering of technical features. Some fast stretches. The variety makes for a fun course.
We got sprinkled with rain a few times. The rain is a good thing - it made the sandy sections more solid and better to ride.
The plan for tomorrow: I ride JEM / Hurricane Rim while Jolene races. But JEM may be too muddy tomorrow. The intel from Alex is that Hurricane Rim doesn't get as muddy so I may ride that. We'll see what it looks like tomorrow morning.
Why won't this nasty weather leave me alone?
