Spring is finally here

...or at least I think spring is finally here. I think last week was the first week we did not get snow. Since the trails have had a couple of days to dry out I figured I'd hit them today. I rode along the Bonneville Shoreline Trail between Orem and Pleasant Grove, but not nearly as far as I hoped I would get. It seems that my time off the bike has left me without any of the base fitness level that I had built up. It didn't help that 50 yards into the trail I had a pretty big climb that ultimately had me doing a hike-a-bike. I didn't do too badly after that, especially once I got warmed up. It's been a while since I have ridden my bike and it was nice to get back on it. I am still getting used to the clipless pedals on the trail, I've only used them on the road until today. it makes the faster downhills a little more interesting knowing that I may get stuck in the pedals if I take a bad corner.

Sundance is opening for mountain biking on Saturday. I think I'll treat myself to a summer lift pass and head up there a few times a week. I just need to make myself slow down and re-learn everything. I've found that I keep crashing while trying to keep up with the memory of how well I used to ride.

Tomorrow is motorcycle training. It's been almost a year since I have done much riding on my motorcycle and it seems as though some of my skills have waned a bit. I'll be heading up Provo Canyon tomorrow afternoon to get used to carving up the corners properly.

Too much snow

I had been looking forward to getting outside on Saturday and doing a little trail riding. When I got to the trail head there was a little more snow than last week but it looked doable. I started up the steep climb(I hate that steep climb right at the beginning before I'm warmed up) I was able to ride most of it but had to walk a little of it because my tire was slipping on the ice and snow. Then I got to a section that had to be hiked but I figured it would be fine once I got to the top section that flatens out a bit. Once I got to the top though I saw that the snow was a lot deeper and decided to slide my way back down to the bottom and go home. It may be better anyway as my legs are still a little sore today. Maybe next Saturday will prove to be a little better.

A little ten pin anyone?

This has nothing to do with bikes of any kind. I just wanted to post about my desire to build a house with a bowling lane. I actually expect this to happen, it's one of my priorities. I don't bowl a lot but if it weren't so expensive and neccesary to get a baby sitter I would bowl all the time. It's just so gratifying to throw a heavy ball and knock stuff down, the get scored on how well you knocked that stuff down. This will be an intergral part of our game room. Jen wants skeeball, also a great game.

On a side note the weather looks to be sunny tomorrow so I should be able to get out on the trail tomorrow for a little mountain biking.

It's mine, all mine

I went home for lunch today to find the title to my motorcycle was hung on the fridge. That means that after 2 1/2 years the bike is paid for and all mine. Very timely too as I've been thinking about my next motorcycle trip I want to take. A couple of guys from work and I started an anual tradition of doing a motorcycle trip each Memorial Day weekend. I went on the first one 3 years ago and had the skip the last 2 years due to my sweet daughters being born. So I talked with Eldon at work today about where to do our next trip and we're thinking a tour of southern Utah, with a little northern Arizona thrown in; we have to include Monument Valley. We just need to plot out the roads and make sure we don't bite off more mileage than we can do. I need to get my fender light working so that I can show that off on the trip. Those long days in the saddle can be pretty tiring but there is nothing that can tear away the stress of everyday life like a few days on a motorcycle.

Finally, a warm day

The weather forcast said last Friday and Saturday would be sunny and warm, they were right. I had finished putting my new wheels together and got them on my bike on Thursday so I could take advantage of the weather and get out to ride on Saturday. When I headed out for work Friday morning I looked over to admire the new wheels on my bike only to discover that my back tire was flat...crap. So Friday I got the tube patched and was all ready for Saturday. I checked with the other locals on www.utahmountainbiking.com to find out a good trail that wouldn't be totally covered in snow. The concensus seemed to be a dirt service road above the Orem cemetary. They were right, it was a great ride. Certainly not as fun as some good singletrack but I'll take what I can get this time of year. I don't have a bike computer on my K2 so I don't know how many miles I went but I rode out for about an hour then decided to head back home. I did slip a couple of times but it was almost fun to land into the soft snow banks on the side of the road. The weather was almost too good, by the time I got half way back to the car there were a lot of muddy spots on the road that had been frozen. All in all it was a great ride. We're supposed to get some more snow this week so I'm hoping it will snow enough to cover those bare spots on the road so I can get out again next Saturday. It sure beats riding the trainer in the basement.

Make It Stop

I know I live in northern Utah so it should not be a big surprise that it's snowing every day but seriously this is too much. I think it has been a month since we went more than a day without it snowing. I can't even find icemelt so I just keep the 18" wide strip down my drive way shoveled so it doesn't ice up like the rest. Needless to say, I haven't ridden a bike outside in a couple of months and with all this snow it's going to take a lot of time for it to melt away so springtime riding is delayed except for paved trail and road riding. I'd even be willing to ride on snow covered trails but it snows every Friday and I'm not about to try pusing my bike 6"-12" of new snow. I'd be panting and covered in soon to be frozen sweat before getting 100 yards down the trail. Doesn't sound like much fun.

My motorcycle may be covered in dust by my ideas for great motorcycle trips are as fresh as the snow outside. I've been thinking about doing a Death Valley ride or maybe the Oregon coast. It's apparent that I have cabin fever.

I try to pass the time by putting newly acquired parts on my bikes and working out on the trainer. I have recently purchased a new handlebar and bar ends for my hardtail GT and some new wheels for the full suspension K2. The GT will be my bike for doing XC(cross country) races and the K2 will be for the Super D races that need some decent supension for the more technical stuff. I have a few races lined up which helps with the cabin fever. It looks like I'll be doing 2 or 3 super d races at Sundance, one at Brian Head, another at Bald Mountain and perhaps one more at Deer Valley depending on the date. I'm also going to try to do about 6 of the Wed. night races in midway this summer. They have races every Wed. night, the cost is just $10. They sound like a lot of fun without things being too serious. All this racing, especially the XC races, will help to keep me in shape by providing a little motivation to not come in last place. Although they are 8 months away I'm also really looking forward to trying cyclocross racing. Crazy mad fun in the mud on a skinny tire road bike.

Getting Back Into Shape

I've been getting on the trainer again this. That means two things: getting back into shape and crotch soreness. The former being a heck of a lot better than the latter. I use a mountain bike training DVD when I'm on the trainer most of the time. The DVD is really good and can be had on www.utahmountainbiking.com for reasonable price, well worth the money. Since I can't do the heavy DVD workout every night I have found it works well to watch movies or other things on my portable DVD player. Jen bought me a video of Cream's original farewell concert, they've since gotten back together for a one night show. Anyway, it was just the ticket to keep me interested while I slaved away on the trainer dealing with soreness.

I finally got the dough together to buy my new mountain bike wheels. I broke the front wheel last fall riding at Sundance. So I really stoked to get my full suspension K2 back on the trails. I'm hoping to do some snow riding before things get to soft and mushy. It'll be good cyclocross training and help get me back into shape while having fun. I'm really looking forward to getting back on the trails and road for some actual bike riding instead of the glorified hamster wheel that I ride on most of the time. Jen and I have decided we'll have to work out some sort of compromise. I think she's sick of trainers and stationary bikes in the gym.

2008 Resolutions for revolutions

I have two main resolutions for 2008. Eat only oatmeal for breakfast Mon. - Fri., no crap. Ride my bike to work at least 4 days a week. I want to get to a place where I ride every day, but I need a bike with some studded tires and fenders first. Right now all I've got is my trusty GT hardtail mountain bike, it works well but only has slicks on it and since the first part of my commute is down a dark hill I really don't want to take the risk without hedging my bets with some studded snow tires. Jen has been nice enough to save some money up for a cyclocross bike for me, this will enable me to invest in the studded tires I need and have a more commuting bike, not to mention a bike to race with come next year's cyclocross season. I will probably get the kids bike trailer hooked up to it so that we can go for family rides as well. Though, this will probably have to wait until it warms up a bit.

Bike Trainer blahs

If you've ever had designs of racing bikes then you've spent more than a few hours on a bike trainer. I don't like riding a bike and not going anywhere. Sure I'm getting a workout, but the great part of riding a bike is moving the pedals and propelling yourself forward, it's very rewarding. Riding on a trainer, not rewarding. I've tried to get myself on that trainer every day this week and so far zero. I'm just not motivated even though I'm thinking about racing in the Frozen Hog race in Feb. Did I mention that I'm terribly out of shape and aerobically not fit to pedal a bike for any length of time, much less up and down snow and ice covered trails in a competitive fashion. So, just like every day I'm telling myself tomorrow...

Cyclocross

Earlier this fall I when I decided to start commuting to work on a bike I started researching the best kind of road bike to buy for such a task. I soon found numerous references to a little known sport called Cyclocross. I had seen the word Cyclocross in my bike magazines before but never knew what it was. It is basically a 45 - 60 min race with multiple laps around a course generally consisting of mud, grass, obstacles that require you to dismount and carry your bike, and sometimes snow. Basically the worse the weather gets the more people say it's good cyclocross weather. Oh, I should mention that all of this is done on what is basically a road bike with slightly wider tires. After doing a good bit of reading on the sport I got quite interested as it sounds like quite a hoot. I attended my first cyclocross race last Saturday in Ogden. It was part of the Utah Cyclocross series. It was as fun as everyone says it is. The atmoshpere is pretty mellow and fun. It has to be when everyone including the women are covered in mud from head to toe. So, in addition to getting a cyclocross bike for my commuting needs I think I'll give cyclocross racing a try next fall. It looks like a fun way to keep in shape, make some new friends and try something new.