We're finally home and a little settled. We're still at our parents house but have our furniture moved into our friends house, who is letting us stay at her house while she's working out of state....she's absolutely amazing for letting us stay!
We've been riding everyday, I'm trying to get my legs back into singlespeed shape. Before we left 4 years ago I was running 1 below 2:1 and now I'm one above and struggling. I can't sustain fast speeds for long and I don't have strength on long climbs...but it'll come back, hopefully sooner than later!
Today we're headed out to Poto, which is a special trail for me....always has been. We may even stop in a little special section and carve our names into a tree :)
It's so good to be back.....I'm finally happy again. It feels so good to be back on the trails and I'm absolutely in love with riding again!
First race for Dan is in a coupe weeks and we've got a DH trip planned in October, I've secured an Iceman entry for Dan and I'm waiting for another one to come available so I can snatch it up! Last big race of the year and it's always a HUGE party!!
We headed out to WP for some playtime with Jen & Jesper (who are ripping it up their first season on DH bikes), Carey & Craig (who rip it up everytime) and Josh (tri guy's very first time on a DH bike who kicked butt and had way too much fun).
Dan on ballucanb drop to gap.
Dan on ballucanb step up
Josh on Boot Camp wall ride
Only 2 weeks left here and hopefully we'll get back to WP at least once more before we leave. Dan's last day of work is Friday and he's going to start packing up the trailer....I'm hoping to get out a week early as well so we can get everything loaded, our place cleaned and our butts back to Michigan for some epic fall riding!
Our house in the mountains fell through, we actually found some stuff out about the well during inspection time that we didn't like and didn't really have the resources to fix it since the house was at the top of our budget so we walked away from it. This truly put things in perspective for us. As we went through the whole house buying process, our fears and yearning to be home really sunk in. I think, in hindsight, the whole house buying thing was our attempt to make Colorado feel like home and as we got closer and closer to the final decision on it we knew in our hearts that unfortunately Colorado will never be home to us.
How can we walk away from such a magical place to live? How can we walk away from some of the best riding in the world? Don't know...but something here just isn't right. I don't desire to be on my bike here and that's a seriously messed up thing and I just don't get it.
I do desire to be on the fast, tight and tree lined trails that the midwest and east coast has to offer. I do desire to hammer on my singlespeed well into the night and I desire to wake up every morning on a lake and sit around the bonfire with a beer and friends in the evening. I want to grow old on a lake......
So, come September 20th we'll be packed up and on our way back home....this time for good. I'm beside myself with excitement! I'm beside myself to be able to hang out with all our friends that we have missed so much! I can't wait to be on my singlespeed hammering out fast laps....I can't wait to ride the east coast DH trails, I can't wait to be riding wet roots and rocks again and I can't wait to ride the best DH trails in Canada again. Bring on the big stuff.
Which brings me to what we've been doing lately, riding our DH bikes as much as we can. My main goal this year was to get more comfortable in the air and going off drops. I know that a lot of the parks out east have lots and lots of stuff to hit and drop off of and I wanted to make sure I could do it before we left Colorado.
Last weekend, I accomplished my goal and hit my first 4 footer to transition and then immediately I hit my first 8 footer to transition! I was so happy and freaked out at how easy they both were. All these years of Dan and all the boys telling me that these drops are so easy...just do it and you'll find out...well I did it and I now know!
Here's my first go at the 4 footer. I followed Dan off of it so I could gauge my speed.
After hitting this twice and noticing where I was landing, I knew I could hit the big one. So again, I followed Dan off of it to gauge my speed.
My rear wheel hit a little shy of the transition but who the F cares! I did it!!! And the weird thing is you don't even notice how high up you are and you don't notice how long you're in the air for! We hit it again later in the afternoon, without hesitation.
Another one of my goals was to nail a couple tricky switchbacks that have been hounding me for a few years. And I can happily say...they've been nailed!
Here's Dan last year on the first tricky switchback, it's on Helter and it's right at the entrance of the trail and it's so STEEP that walking down it is actually way harder than riding it.
The other switchback was on Wild Thing and it was the tight left hand switchback with rock that you have to ride over. No pics but it's been dogging me ever since we started riding there and I finally nailed it.
So weird how my DH riding has progressed so much this year and we're leaving :( Oh well, we've got places to ride in Michigan....we just have to travel a little further. I'm actually thinking of racing some DH races next year!
Goal for next year, learning to jump better and conquer big doubles, small ones don't bother me but the big ones with feet in between them scare the heck out of me and the chance of 50/50ing the jump is too much for me to handle right now. But I WILL conquer my fear! And I'm sure I will eat a lot of dirt trying :(
Woot! Here's to change and whatever the future holds!!
First, here's a video of Dan and his brother Joe on Keystone's corkscrew. Joe is first and that's Dan's squeaky break protesting :)
Man, I really like these short little video's...way more fun than pictures!
I don't desire being on my mountain bike as much anymore, this feeling started last year and hence the purchase of our dirt bikes. I made the sacrifice of selling mine for our house purchase but I know I'll get another one. I think Dan already has a bigger better bike in mind for me.
It's a weird feeling and I feel guilty a lot for the desire not being there. I love getting out on the weekends for a ride with friends but I don't feel the need to get out everyday to ride. I found other things I really enjoy like running and I've been enjoying hitting the pavement for a road ride and I'm really looking forward to a winter full of snowboarding.
I don't know what has happened, I don't know why I'm feeling this way. I've got a kickbutt new bike that I love to ride and I've got awesome friends to ride with. But I just don't desire to get out and ride EVERYDAY like I used to.
I'm getting more comfortable with slowing down, I don't feel like I've always got to be in motion or exercising as hard as I can anymore. I think the move up high is going to give me a new focus in life. I'll have a house to love and take of and I'll have the peace and quiet to let my body and desire and feelings lead me the way instead of the desire to be the fittest person I can be. Believe me, I still want to be fit but I want to be healthy inside more and I desire to be mentally healthy...just happy being and doing what my body tells me to do rather than what my schedule and routine tells me to do.
I guess I'm just feeling more comfortable in my own skin and I'm comfortable just doing what I want to do, whether it's being on my bike or taking a long hike or just sitting and reading. I don't feel I have to keep up with what everyone else is doing anymore....
Well, looks like Dan gets screwed again and is working his 3rd consecutive weekend in a row all because everyone wants to go race :( Um..what happened to fairness here??? Why does he get to pick up all the fucking slack and work all the weekends??? Why can't weekends be alternated??? Why the FUCK is that such a fucking goddamn hard concept to grasp?????
Hm..wonder if he'll even get our moving weekend off...probably NOT if there's a stupid fucking I've gotta prove myself for goddamn nothing race going on!
I think Dan needs to get 3 weeks of weekends off in a row soon.
Told you sweetie...nothing will EVER change!
At least I have friends that I can ride with because I sure as hell can't ride with my boyfriend anymore.
I've started wearing spandex shorts while riding my roadie bike. I've been having issues with the liners in my baggies and was just sick and tired of hurting so I pulled out the old spandex shorts. At first is was a really really weird feeling...I couldn't tell I was wearing anything and had to keep looking down to see if I was actually wearing anything :)
It's been about a week now and I'm feel really comfortable in them! My private parts are thanking me as well.
I think the discomfort stems from the fact that I've lost some weight and the baggies that I currently have are too big for me and the liners just get all bunched up and are causing more grief than anything else. I'm hoping to get a couple different pairs of baggies...maybe some Jett or Fox but until then...please don't hold it against me if I show up riding my XC bike in spandex shorts :) I promise I won't turn into a weenie and I most certainly promise not to start wearing some stupid "I race for this team" kit!!!
On to more positive notes! Our inspection's are happening on Monday. We're getting the house inspected, the well, the septic and the propane tank inspected...that should be close to or more than $1000 in inspection costs, but totally worth it!
Our stupid college kid neighbors are planning on having a HUGE bonfire next Thursday to celebrate their moving out. Joy!! I wonder if they know they're not allowed to have open fires in the City of Boulder. Guess they're going to find out, aren't they :) MWAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!
We decided to buy a house in Colorado. We started looking in June, got really discouraged and then decided to rent again, then decided that once again throwing our money into someone else's pocket wasn't smart, found a new realtor and started the whole process again. Then we found our house....in the mountains.
I'm scared to move up there but I know that this is the right decision. I hate neighbors, I hate other people's noise....I love it being quiet when I'm at home.
So we took the plunge. Offer was accepted on Saturday and this is when the stress hit. Secure the mortgage, come up with the money, see how much we're going to actually spend a month on this place and basically sign stuff we don't really understand but trust the people who are making us do it. All to have our little slice of heaven....
Next week, we have all the inspections...house inspection, well inspection, septic inspection. After that I think some of the stress will subside but then the fear of commitment will probably sink in and the fear of us not being able to tolerate a mountain lifestyle...and the winter up there.
Oh well. The house is perfect for us. Not too big but big enough for all our stuff and we have 1 acre of property to do whatever we want with. And I can sit on my deck and hear nothing but the wind.
We headed up early to Carey & Craig's house for an epic day on the bikes followed by a bbq pigout session. 6 hrs later we rolled back to their house ready for a beer and the bbq to start. Can't believe we were on the bikes for 6 hours!!!
Carey and I decided to ride out at Cerain St Vrain Friday morning before heading out to Fraser Valley for a weekend of camping. Awesome ride, perfect morning!
Carey and Craig graciously invited us on their weekend camping trip to Salida. I have never been to Salida, up until now and I can't wait to get back there. And I can't wait to get back camping.....anywhere!
We got up super duper early pn Saturday to meet them down there to set up camp and hit the Rainbow trail and then chill out with the dogs and maybe watch Craig do some fishing. We did just that :) and sat around the campfire trading stories, Carey made some yummy guacamole and passed around her bottle of tequila and we shared her yummy vegan cookies and gluten free birthday bars. Everything was super delicious, vegan and gluten free foodsjavascript:void(0) have come a long way for sure!
Sunday we got up, not so early and made breakfast and packed up camp. Carey had a few trails in mind but we decided on Mt. Shavano because we could do an out and back on the Colorado trail...unfortunately, when we got to the base of Mt. Shavano it was hailing and raining and cold and we really didn't want to ride in those conditions. Dan said he knew of a trail he rode the last time he was out there that was pretty darn cool....sans the 6 miles of dirt road and what seemed like endless amount of 2 track :( I wasn't prepared for that and was a little grumpy once we got to the actual trailhead. But he assured us the boring climb would be totally worth it. And it was...twisty singletrack in the tree's, rolling terrain, my sidewall puncture, a little hail and whole lot of fun. I just wish the singletrack section was a little longer because it was so darn fun...luckily after a few miles of 2 track descent we ended the trail on some more super fun singletrack. Enough to put a huge smile on my face and a very empty hunger in my stomach.
I'm so glad we got to finally get out and camp again...it's been way too long and I've missed it. And I'm even more happy that Patch loves camping as well, even the cold night...he slept under his blanket the whole time! We've now purchased some more supplies that will make the nights more comfortable and the mornings more enjoyable....like an inflatable mattress and a 12 cup percolator. Everything else we had....we just hadn't used it in so long :(
I can't wait for our next camping weekend and riding adventure...Carey did mention something about Carbondale ;) I know they both enjoy camping and riding just as much as we do so it won't be a hard weekend to sell!
Cynthia graciously invited me on her solo jaunt out to Indian Creek Saturday, thank you Cynthia :) I had wanted to get back out there just to see if I could remember how to loop the trail like she showed us last year...this time I payed attention!
It was a glorious day on the bikes, cloudy and cool weather with just a few light sprinkles. The trail was tacky and the woods eerie and fun! I love riding with Cynthia because you don't have to worry about her, she doesn't mind if you ride off ahead (cause she'll do it to you too) and she doesn't mind stopping to session the techy stuff until it's nailed. What I love most is that she loves to just ride and there's no need to "prove" yourself with her, there's no competition going on. You're just riding with someone who loves to pedal just as much as you do, whether it be tight and twisty smooth single track or gnarly techy rocks.....she can do it all with ease.
Needless to say, we have a wonderful 26 mile....close to 4 hour ride. She nailed a bunch of things that gave her problems last year and I know the next time she rides out there, she'll nail them again without hesitation.
Even Mr. Hummingbird came out to play with us and drink some fresh and sweet nectar from all the blooming flowers.
My new bike handled amazingly well, except for the tires. The front washes out in any kind of loose terrain and the back tire doesn't hook up as well as I'd like it too. With new tires on and I'll be able the clean the one section that I just kept spinning out on!
Thanks Cynthia for a perfect day playing on the single track!
Yesterday was the first ride on the EX 9.8 and wow, what an amazing bike it is! I've never ridden a carbon frame before and the difference it makes it quite noticeable. It's hard for me to explain, but it's a quieter and less abusive feeling...it feels super stiff but it seems to absorb the rough stuff. And I love the way it sounds!
The rear sticks to the ground while picking lines through rocks and the front end is so easy to pull up, getting up ledges and big round rocks is pretty effortless. The bike is so light that it climbs with way less effort than anything I've ever experienced and it's weird how it feels like a much burlier bike on the descents, it's way more agile than the 6.6 ever felt.
All I need to do is dial in my front fork (and let it break in a little) and I think I've got the perfect bike for me! Now I just need to trust all that she can do and stop being such a wuss with certain things....like step up rock faces at certain places like Hall and out in Fruita :) I'll get there....hopefully sooner than later!
And now the 3 day weekend is almost upon us! Hopefully I'll be able to ride ride ride ride and ride some more!
Thanks again Carey & Emma for another great ride :) One of these days I'll be able to keep up with you both on the descents!
This weekend was a lazy slow recuperation weekend for me and as luck would have it Dan had the weekend off and I couldn't really ride :(
Saturday we woke up after having an amazingly peaceful and long sleep, a little lazy. We decided to check out Carey's art show at the 29th street mall and run some errands on the fixie's. We took the long way around town and got in a good slow meandering ride, after that I didn't want to push my knee anymore so we just took the dog for a long lazy walk and enjoyed the rest of the day doing things around the house.
Sunday, Dan's ride plans fell through so we decided to test the knee out with a run and to my surprise after a few feet of feeling a little weird the knee loosened up and felt pretty darn good! We got home and walked down to the Boulder Crit and watched the roadies race in a circle for a few before heading back home to take pictures of stuff that we need to sell. After that, we tried to decide whether to be lazy the rest of the day or test my knee out on some singletrack.
We thought we were going to settle in to another lazy afternoon on the couch when we found out that the Red Wings were playing but we quickly found ourselves getting a little stir crazy after the first period...it was such a nice day out and I felt like we were wasting it. So I got on the bike and tooled around the yard just to see how the knee would feel and decided to get off our butts and do an easy ride @ Heil. All went well with the knee only feeling a little tender when I had to stand up and power move up rocks but nothing I couldn't push through and the pain never lasted long.
We've now gotten back into our normal routine of running in the morning and I've been riding @ lunch again.....now I'm just waiting for the new bikey to arrive and a long weekend to get to know my new two-wheeled partner :)
This will be my first carbon frame! And I'm beyond excited to get it...she'll be here hopefully Tuesday or Wednesday :)
Although, I got an offer from a friend of mine to ride his wife's bike for the rest of the year since she's on a new bike, I knew after contemplating it for a couple days, my heart was set on the Trek. I've never ever gotten on a bike before and immediately fell in love with it like I did with the EX 8 and I'm sure the EX 9.8 will be even better!
Hopefully my knee feels better by next week so I can show her around the front range trails ;)
Dan's birthday was 5/12 and the whole reason we went to Moab was for his birthday. Last year we spent 4 days in Fruita, and next year I think we'll stay in Fruita and drive to Moab for a day of riding, that way we'll get to enjoy Fruita, Grand Junction and Moab...we may even need to tack on another day or two ;)
Oh yeah, we go to Moab for 4 days of sweet riding bliss and I forget the camera.....DOH!!!
**photo credit Aric Otzelberger**
Oh well, we did however have an amazing 3 days of riding...only 3 days because I busted my knee open on Sunday riding Amasa Back on a section called Rockstacker, I think. No rocks were stacked like the last time I rode it but there was a nice steep roller in the middle that didn't seem too bad. Dan rolled it and nailed it and I followed but apparently where I rolled, it wasn't a good spot and I endowed and smashed my knee into a rock. I've got about a dime size hole in my knee and it's so swollen that I can barely get my left leg into my pants :( Doesn't hurt much but I definitely can't run or ride until the swelling goes down. Oh well, we had an amazing weekend otherwise!
Friday we rolled into town around 1pm, too early to check in so we decided to head out to Sovereign to test out the EX8. Let me just say, angels sang while I was riding this bike! I cleaned ledges and switchbacks and everything I couldn't imagine I could ride....I can now ride! I think Dan got a little sick of me saying "no freakin' way" towards the end :) We ended the evening with a soak in the hot tub and some roasted chicken from City Market.
Saturday was the Porcupine Rim ride and we got news that the Hazard gates were open from our friend Chuck who was on his way out to meet us, but we couldn't really confirm that until the next day. When the shuttle van arrived, the driver confirmed that yes the gates were open and we're going all they way baby! Woot! All I got to say in Porcupine is such a blast and with only a few mechanicals (non being flats....if you can imagine that) the EX8 handled everything amazingly and it's so easy to get the front end up for drops and wheelie drops that my confidence was on fire and I was flying so high at the end of our ride. Finished the ride up with a soak in the hot tub, some mexican food, tequila shots and a huge chocolate malt that put some of us into food coma and rendered it a pretty early night.
Somewhere on Porky **photo credit Aric Otzelberger**
Dan contemplating the Notch...his 8" rotors were "too good" and didn't give him any play so he wasn't comfortable riding it. Imagine that, brakes that are too good :) And it you've ever seen The Notch, you know that it's way steeper and sand covered than this picture shows! **photo credit Aric Otzelberger**
Taking another break on Porky **photo credit Aric Otzelberger**
Dan and Chuck playin' **photo credit Aric Otzelberger**
Cheers! **photo credit Aric Otzelberger**
Sunday...well, Sunday didn't turn out as I had planned. I felt good on the ride up from town but as soon as we got onto the trail, I realized that I was tired, lazy and not really all together there. I pushed through the falls and blood and we eventually got a nice ride in and I eventually got some mojo back on the descent but I was ready to be done by the time we hit Kane Creek Rd. This is after we helped some 4 wheeler out of the ravine when he didn't make it up the ledges at the beginning of Amasa back!
Monday, we just packed up and hit The Black Bear in Grand Junction for some yummy food before heading back to Boulder.....thank god for The Black Bear!
mmmmmmm The Black Bear! Best post full weekend of riding food EVER!!! Huge breakfast served anytime and the home of the Grizz :) **photo credit Cynthia Ferrer**
Cynthia has some pics here and a good write up of her adventures in Fruita and Moab with us.
Next time, I really need to remember the camera!!!! What's the purpose of a good bloody knee when you can't show it off :)
Got to get out yesterday with Carey and Emma to ride Hall. Carey & Emma got out a little earlier than I could and rode up Antelope, down Bitterbrush to meet me, then we all rode up Bitterbrush, the upper loop and then back down Bitterbrush. The trail was dry and the temps were in the 70's which makes for a perfect evening riding dirt.
It was sooooo nice getting out and riding with them. Last weeks ride out at Hall left me a little disappointed in my performance so it was good to shake it off and get a good satisfying ride in.
Tomorrow Dan and I are headed to Moab for 4 days of riding bliss!!! We didn't get the dirt bikes worked on so it's strictly a ride until you can't ride anymore type of weekend! I'm sooooo looking forward to it and I'm really looking forward to a little shuttle action and Porcupine Rim on the EX8...hope she rocks my world :)
In honor of Cinco de Mayo, our wonderful college kid neighbors decided to throw a rip roarin' party :( I got home to kids everywhere, loud music and even louder people. Dan got home close to 10 after a work meeting and said there's guys just peeing everywhere.
I thought, well....I've tolerated the noise and annoyance of the whole thing up until now and the noise level wasn't getting any softer, they still had the music blasting, and I needed to go to bed.....so, I called the cops :0
I've never called the cops on anyone before, well once in Chicago when 2 people were fighting right outside my house, the cops arrived SECONDS later....which I thought was pretty impressive.
Anyway, I called the cops and around 10:30 there was suddenly no noise, everyone left and everyone still there went inside!
Ahhhhh....the sweet sound of NOTHING!
I slept like a baby too :)
I think I'll call the cops more often on them.....maybe they'll move to the college side of Boulder and leave all us old people alone.
This is what I'll be riding this weekend in Moab and I'm ready for her to rock my world!! And for some reason, I think the gold and chocolate colors are HOT! Fuel EX 8 WSD
I'm ready for 5" again....6" was a little too much for me :0
While Dan is off playing with some boys in Fruita...I'm sitting here at work just imaging how it feels to be riding in the warm desert sun :(
photo credit Tracy Phelps Emmanuel
Luckily, next weekend we're both headed out to Moab for a looooong weekend with some friends for some dirt bike riding and mtb riding.
photo credit Tracy Phelps Emmanuel
me in the sand
Dan showing off
I will NOT be getting my bike stuck like this...I absolutely LOVE this shot of Jason!
It just can't get here soon enough!
Tomorrow night is the BMA Gurlz Ride @ Hall Ranch! Woot! I can face THE rock again...gawd I HATE this rock!!! I am getting better at hitting it and cleaning it my first time around, I've actually cleaned it every attempt lately but it still makes me sweat. I of course just jinxed myself :(
We had another amazing week last week followed by yet another crappy weekend. We had 70 degree days all week long, I got to ride my fixie at lunch everyday and then Saturday hits and the weather turns rainy, crappy and cold. Totally sucks, I should have went to Fruita with Cynthia but opted to stay home instead and avoid the crowds of the FFTF. Bad decision on my part.
Saturday, I decided to go on a run in the misting rain. My iPod was picking up some great old songs that I haven't heard in a loooong time and it put me in such a good mood, 2 hrs later I was finishing up my run, which for me is a long time! Nothing too hilly or taxing, just a nice long run in the crappy Seattle like weather. I got home and after warming up and doing some chores, I was DEAD tired for some reason and decided to screw everything that needed to be done around the house. All I wanted to do was lie in bed with a book and eventually take a nap...4 hrs later I woke up! So not like me! I had plans to go out with a few girlfriends, but getting up and getting ready and putting on clothes other than my comfy yoga stuff was just not going to happen. I settled down to a nice relaxing evening at home.
Sunday came and the weather was nicer out but the temps were still a little chilly. I had planned on getting some errands done and then go for a quickie ride. Unfortunately, my errands took a little longer and I got home a little late for a ride so I decided to go for another long run. This time I detoured from what I had planned on running and ran up the super steep part of Mt. Sanitas. Man, that was HARD! I always forget how steep and how tall the ledges are, too tall for someone with short legs to really run up. I had to stop about 4 times just to stretch my calves out because they were cramping from the constant uphill rocks and ledges. I made it a loop by taking the East Ridge??? trail back down to the Sanitas Valley trail and then over to the Dakota Ridge trail where I thought my legs were going to give out on the ledges going down. YIKES! I packed a super hard run in about 45 minutes...and I'm still super sore today.
Here's some pics of a few of the tough, steep ledgey sections I found online of Mt Sanitas. OUCH!!!
Then Dan and I were off to a BBQ at Tracy & Jason's house with a bunch of other people. Which was a really really nice way to end a weekend...wish it was a weekend full of riding but eventually the weather will cooperate and let us have or trails back!
Unfortunately, Dan had to once again work the entire weekend. Which is quite frankly getting a little annoying and tiresome. I don't mind him working a weekend here and there or one weekend day but both days for 3 or 4 weeks in a row is just not acceptable. And he's got to do it again this weekend...this weekend I can understand because he gets to go to Fruita Tues/Fri with some people from work, which by the way I'm totally jealous about :( But dammit, he needs a weekend off here and there to ride with me!!!
The Thursday night girls rides have started! Last night the weather was absolutely perfect! A handful of us rode up the connector from Canyon and got 2 laps in and still made it down into Boulder before the sun set! It was nice to see some familiar faces from last year too.
The snow and slush are all gone :) Yep! It was crappy for 3 days straight and I used up every single piece of waterproof clothing. It dumped so much in summit county that they closed I-70 from about Morrison to Vail pass...which meant no one could get up to the mountains to enjoy all the fresh snow :( Bummer!
Sunday, after brunch with the crew, Tracy and I decided to head up to Ned for some snowshoeing with the dogs. Ned got 4' of wet, heavy snow and it was absolutely beautiful up there! Patch had a little trouble staying above the snow in our tracks but he was a trooper.
Down in Boulder, temps got up into the 60's and most of the snow was gone....almost 100% of it was gone by Monday. Now with temps predicted to be in the 70's the rest of the week, getting a trail ride in this weekend looks pretty promising :)
We had planned to go to Grand Junction/Fruita Friday and Saturday but the weather looked really crappy in Fruita on Saturday so we decided to stay home and enjoy the nicer weather on the front Range. Friday we decided to hit up Dakota Ridge/Red Rocks/Matthews Winter and give Dan's new Trek Fuel EX9 a good dose of ledgy rocks. It passed with flying colors.
All purdy with XTR!
Friday night we met Cynthia & Dave for dinner at The Med, we ended up waiting over an hour for a table :( Cynthia decided to check Facebook during our wait and saw that Jesper posted up asking where Happy Hour was, Cyn told him it was at The Med. Then our friend Ryan (Megan's hubby) wanted in on the fun so they both met us up there for some food and drinks. Funny thing is once we upped our party up to 6 people instead of 4, we got seated in about 5 minutes.....go figure!
Saturday, we invited ourselves on Cynthia's ride out at Buffalo Creek. The weather forecast didn't look too promising with a 40% chance of rain/snow and wind gusts up to 28mph. Hardy as we are, we decided to chance it.
And to our surprise, the storm clouds chased us from all around but never ever caught us! We were in our riding bubble of blish and nothing could penetrate it!
Our ride was 25+ miles, 3200' of climbing and 3+ hours of riding on super tacky amazingly flowy trails.
Only action picture I took was Dan playing on a tricky step up section towards the end of our ride...legs cashed but we still gave it a go.
Sorry for the lack of pictures but sometimes stopping and taking pictures takes you out of the "moment" and I'm really feeling the flow these days!
Thanks Cyn, Jeny, Ann and of course my honey for a most awesome day playing in the dirt, chasing the singletrack!
Dan and I pigged out on jalapeno burgers and red velvet cake afterwards and I settled into the couch with a nice strong drinky in my hand, an utterly satisfied girl :)
Luckily we didn't get all the snow that was called for, we did however get a couple inches...preceded by lots of rain on Friday night which made the trails a mess on Saturday :( The rain was delightful!!! I haven't heard rain in so long and I thought how I missed it....Dan quickly pointed out how much rain we used to get in Michigan to snap me out of my wave of nostalgia.
Sunday, we drove past a super cute house about 20 min up 4 mile canyon that sat right on a stream. The deck of the house was right off the stream which would make for some fantastically awesome summer nights. The house itself was cute with 2 wood burning stoves, one in the living room and one in the master, hardwood floors and vaulted ceilings....all seen by us peering in through the windows. Unfortunately, we've got until the end of August on our lease so starting the house search is a little premature....regardless, I'd love to live there....don't know if Dan could.....
After that we headed up to Ned for our first snowshoe session of the year.
Made our own singletrack
And made the dog happy
I think we'd be happy up high....
One thing is for sure, I'm happier when I'm on my bike! Enough with the snow already!!! Bring on the dry weather so I can pedal my bike on some dirt!!!
Tonight Slight chance of thunderstorms early in the evening. Chance of rain and snow showers in the evening...then snow after midnight. Areas of blowing snow towards morning. Snow accumulation of 3 to 6 inches. Lows around 30. North winds 10 to 15 mph after midnight.
Saturday Snow in the morning...then snow likely in the afternoon. Areas of blowing snow through the day. Snow accumulation of 2 to 4 inches. Total snow accumulation of 5 to10 inches. Highs in the lower 30s. North winds 15 to 25 mph.
Saturday Night Cloudy. Chance of snow and areas of blowing snow in the evening...then a slight chance of snow after midnight. Lows around 16. Northwest winds 15 to 25 mph. Gusts up to 35 mph in the evening. Chance of snow 40 percent.
Good thing some impromptu plans are in the works for a quickie trip to GJ/Fruita next Fri/Sat with Carey & Craig :) Let's just hope the weather is good!
I haven't been on my bike since we got back from Fruita 2 weeks ago :( Spring snows have been hitting us and hitting us hard! We got about 18" of snow last Thursday, we just about got to the point where it was all melted and it snowed again last night, but melted away today with the warm temps but now we're supposed to get another storm on Saturday. Luckily and unfortunately, we were pretty spoiled over the winter with mild temps and practically no snow and we were able to ride pretty much whenever, but that's why dealing with the spring weather is a major bummer right now.
It's pretty much put me in the mood to not ride my bike. I've been spending a lot of time in my running shoes....which in turn has made me kinda not want to run anymore. I'm planning on doing a couple long hikes this weekend, Saturday being pretty much a bust since it's supposed to snow ALL DAY LONG :( But maybe I'll be able to bust out the snowshoes and do some snowshoeing.
In the meantime, I'm praying for warmer temps and dry trails.
Next year we'll be prepared with the winter because we're getting ski passes! Hopefully that will make the winter easier to deal with and we'll be more than happy when we get snow...especially spring snow!
We had an awesome weekend in Fruita! We rode our little hearts out...I just didn't want to stop! The 29er HT worked just fine and I was able to clean much much more than I ever have and I had such an wonderful perma smile time!
We were having such an awesome time riding that we barely stopped for pictures but I got a few...
-Kim
Next month....round 2 in GJ!! Maybe we'll bring the dirt bikes for a day of play :)
I wore a tank top twice this weekend!! Pretty soon it'll be flip flop and tank top weather and we'll be able to sleep with the windows open again :)
This weekend was kinda a bust, I woke up Saturday feeling kinda icky and as the day progressed it got worse. I had planned on going on a long run but my body and legs just weren't into it, I felt dizzy and light headed my entire run and I could barely feel my legs running below me.
Oh well, the rest of the weekend was spent pretty much on the couch :( BORING!!!! Thank goodness for free really cheesy ONDemand movies.
I stayed home from work on Monday because I still felt icky, took the dogs for a walk and had to stay on the couch for like 4 hours after that. Dan suggested we go on a light spin around 2pm just to get me outside because it was so nice....short light spin turned into a 2 1/2 hr ride out to Marshall and back. But after that whatever was making me feel icky was gone as fast as it came! Woot!
