A Race With No Pedals

Striding to the Finish Line

 

Sometimes, I need to be reminded why I do the things I do.  Thanks to a great guy, Jeremy, I was able to regroup and remember that life is about having fun.  So why not add a little craziness to the mix. 

 

While at the International Mountain Biking Association's World Summit, there was a Strider Race for adults.   Any one who has seen these bikes, know they are about 12 inches tall and not really meant for an adult.  Luckily, we got to see their new line.  Striders for kids 6-10.  It's an 18 inch high (still not meant for adults) bike with NO pedals.

 

Testing out the NEW Strider Junior

Obviously, I needed to race one of these.  Who wouldn't?  OK, a lot of people wouldn't, but in a moment of craziness, I signed up to do it anyways.  I was desparate to get on one ahead of time and make sure I wasn't going to kill myself before the race.  I was able to snag one about 40 minutes before and check out its stability.  BIG MISTAKE!  Now I want one of my very own.  Little kids can wait.  This thing was FUN!

 

I was in the last heat of races and the only female in my heat.  ARGH!  No female finished in front of the guys in any heat to this point.  Being the engineer brained person that I am, I closely observed the other races to see what worked and what didn't.  Some great wipe outs were noted at the first corner.  We had a storm earlier and there was water and leaves all over the road.

 

I'm the one with the white stripes on my sleaves.

Santa Fe shut down its city square for our race and when I finally hit the start line, I was ready to go.  My goal was to get out front for the first turn and then haul booty around that block.  My start was great but so was the guy's next to me.  In an effort to hit that corner hard and fast we banged up against each other.  I could only push with my left foot as my coordination wasn't great but he was on my left and we were leaning on each other trying not to crash.  I was terrified to do anything but lean back and pray for NO WIPE OUT!



 

Luck was on my side for not crashing but it cost us both to be tangled up like that and I hit the first turn in about 4th place out of the six of us in my heat.  I gave it all I had and by the second turn, I was exhausted.  Gasping for air is a nice way of describing how I felt up in that high altitude city and I was passed by the rest of the racers.  DARN IT!  I don't want to finish last.  I need to represent the girls.  I kicked my foot harder and caught up to the guy in front of me.  As we cleared turn three we were neck and neck.

 

Turn 3:  We were going so fast, we appeared like ghosts
in the camera eye - there is actually a guy on a red bike
right next to me (behind me in the shot)

 

Unlucky for him, he went wide and I was able to squeeze ahead by hiting the turn as tighly as I could.  I was wiped out and still had a block and a half to go.  I sat on my seat for a moment and rallied my lungs.  As we hit the last turn we were still neck and neck.  It was gonna be a photo finish if one of us didn't do something.  I decided that muscle failure wasn't an option and started kicking with everything I had left.  YAY, I finished 5th of six strider racers in my heat and I was able to represent the gals by not finishing last. 

 

Perhaps I have a future in racing after all.  I just need the races to be shorter and without pedals.

 

 

La Tierra Trails

Short But Sweet Ride

 

Santa Fe Sunset

We arrived in Santa Fe, NM late late late on Tuesday night.  After a good night's sleep in a cozy hotel room, we rose to hit the trails before checking into the IMBA World Summit. 

 

Hotel Santa Fe

A visit to the local bike shop scored us a map and some suggestions for some easy trails to ride.  I was so exhausted from riding in the car that I didn't feel up to a big, rocky challenge.  We found La Tierra Trails just outside of town.  They appeared to still be in the process of being built (designed) but there was plenty there for us to ride.

 

For almost two miles, we tooled around in the freeride area (bike skills park) where there were dirt jumps and all sorts of cool stuff.  I mostly watched while Darius tried out some stuff.  It was a little (read:  a lot) too technical for me.

 

Finally, we hit the single track trails. I discovered that great altitude feeling that I had felt last summer.  Going up even the smallest hill was a grand effort.  Thankfully, this trail was designed for the novice rider with side trails running through it for the more advanced rider to sneak a few skills in.  I stayed on the easy trails this day. 

 

ALL the trails looked like this at La Tierra

Trails at this park are short and numbered instead of named.  Our loop entailed trails 29, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 13, 12, 11, 25, and 26.  It sounds like a lot but we really only rode a total of 4.5 miles that included our two miles in the skills area.  After our ride, I realized that this is the kind of park we need back home.  SHORT loops with longer loops for the beginner riders that are still getting their fitness on.  This would have been perfect for me a year-and-a-half a go when I was starting out.  These were trails I could have happily ridden by myself without the fear of injury or getting lost.

 

Take note MORCA, this is what we need in Monterey County!!!

Flagstaff vs. Sedona

Flagstaff Wins!

 

The original plan was to drive to Sedona and ride bike there, but our bottoms were getting tired of riding in a car, so we made a pit stop at Flagstaff, AZ and discoverd a wonderful set of trails there.  Obviously, we couldn't pass the opportunity up to ride, so we hit the trails.



To say it was beautiful up here is an understatement.  Lucky for me the trails were just what I liked.  Single track with a few rocks strewn in to make the ride interesting.

 

Riding buddies, Darius and Ken showing me the way.

The part I didn't like so much - the altitude.  We started on Shultz Creek Trail and we rode five miles UP HILL starting at 7,185 feet and ending at 8,089 feet.  Do the math. . .that is almost 1,000 feet of climbing.  Considering I LIVE around 0 feet and right by the ocean. . .well. . .I definately felt the altitude.  I had to stop every mile to catch my breath.  My lungs were burning, big time!  The guys were gracefully patient with me.  In spite of my lack of oxygen, I LOVED this trail.  Only next time, I wanna ride it DOWN!

 

Through the gate and we hit another mile of climbing.  My thought at this point was that there better be some darn (trying to keep it clean) good downhill coming up.  I'm working way too hard at this.

 

LOOK!  MAPS!  5 miles in - you can make sure you are taking the right trail.

The terrain is starting to level out and the scenery was incredible.  Some of the trees were turning yellow and they were embedded in the green stuff, so the contrast in colors required me to stop and take pictures.  That's my story and I'm sticking to it.  The regaining of my lungs while stopped was an added bonus.

 

Somewhere along this beautiful trail, we missed a turn.  Guess we weren't paying enough attention to the trail, but who could blame us with all the cool stuff to see? 

 

What that meant was another mile of STEEP, ROCKY climbing (I had to hike my bike a bit on this one) to the top of a mountain where we peaked out at 8,372 feet.  The view was spectacular.  Unfortunately, the trail just stopped.  There was nowhere else for us to go.

 

The view from the top



Did I mention I hate being lost in the woods?  The guys didn't seem to be all that phased about things, so I tried to go with the flow.  But, honestly, all I could think of was how much longer until we hit that downhill stuff?  It's gotta be somewhere out here.  The climbing was getting old at this point and being lost wasn't helping.



No More Trail for us to Ride

A quick perusal of our map told us we needed to go back. Not so bad, at least it was DOWN this time. We added two miles to our ride and another fifty feet or so of climbing - I was getting a work out!  



What our detour looked like on strava

A mile back down the rocks and we were looking at the map, comparing landmarks and wondering where the trail was at since we didn't see where our turn off was.  I rode a little further than the guys and BAM, I found our mystery trail.


ROCKS

Lower Brookbank Trail was DOWN HILL, baby!  I was in my element at last.  ROCKS and DOWN HILL!  Did I mention the DOWN part?  We dropped 600 feet in one mile.  I even scored Queen of the Mountain.  OK, I am the only female on strava riding this - but hey, I don't see where the other gals would even want to avoid this - it was FUN!!!


DOWN HILL

I came off this part absolutely elated.  The top was totally freaky with cliffy stuff and all the big rocks had smaller loose rocks running between them  It took me about a third of this to figure out how to ride in this stuff.  Once we cleared the end and hit the road at the bottom, I was ready to do it again.  I'll be back, Flagstaff, you can bet on it!

OH YEAH!

The last two and a half miles was on a trail called Rocky Ridge.  I KNOW - just what I always dreamed of more rocks and more down hill.  I was in for a bit of a surprise on this one, though.  It wasn't all down hill and I had finally hit my wall of concentration.  I was hitting rocks that my bike shouldn't have even been near.

First there was the 300 foot drop and then the 200 foot climb.  Dropped another 50 feet and then climbed that same 50 feet.  I was DONE with climbing.  I was now OFF my bike and doing the "hike a bike" thing.  I was on a rollercoaster made of rock.  Down 20 feet, up 20 feet.  Ultimately, we were descending, but it sure didn't feel like it.  I bonked in a big way and hiked DOWN the last 200 feet because I had almost gone over my handle bars once too many times at the end of this ride.  I determined I was too tired to concentrate and gave it up.  I'm calling this my goal for next time - don't BONK!

We finished our ride and in spite of my exhaustion at the end . . . it was AMAZING!!!

Holding out for the heat to arrive

 

ONE LAST NOTE:  Camping is fun (hahahahahaha), but Flagstaff dropped below freezing the night we were there.  I refused to exit the tent until the guys promised me breakfast in a warm restaurant instead of cooking at our 35 degree campground.  Guess who won?  OR maybe they just agreed that it was REALLY COLD outside.

 

Tears and Triumph

Slow and Steady Wins the Race!

Background: So I have been off my bike since the end of June (either in a walking boot or using crutches to get around). As each day passed without my foot getting better, the tears started to flow as I watched my hubby go out on rides sans me. It was silly, really, but I NEEDED to be riding. Finally, a week before the final CCCX-MTB XC race, the foot pain stopped. No rhyme or reason.

A rare photo of me with crutches.

PreRide: On Saturday morning, I made one lap around the course loop. I discovered lots of steep hills . . . a few that I REALLY struggled with in past races plus some additional new ones. This was gonna be ugly. Aerobically, I was a mess. The foot did fine until I made a judgment error on a turn and came down on it pretty hard. Thankfully, the pain was gone by the next morning. I went into this race knowing that my own willpower was going to have to get me through this.

 

The start: I was in my new Tough Chik uniform and feeling a little sheepish. After all, I wasn't going to be wonder woman out here. I received many compliments on it, though. It is pretty cool, all purple and light turquoise. At least I LOOKED like a mountain biker.

 

Middle back, my favorite start location.

As I started up that first hill, I completely lost sight of every female that I started with. This was gonna be worse than I thought. I started to tell myself, "all you gotta do is finish - this is your race and nobody else’s - slow and steady - all you gotta do is finish."

 

Lap 1: I started getting into a groove. I actually made it up hills I had never mastered before. I still had to walk at the top of others. As I hit the last uphill climb before the counting corral, I began to see the front runners for the men's groups. They were all amazingly supportive and courteous as they blasted by me.

 

At the bottom of that steep hill the lap BEFORE the crash.

One final descent and the first lap would be completed. This was a somewhat steep, very bumpy and sandy, downhill track. I had a couple guys behind me. Knowing they couldn't pass until I hit the bottom of this run, I let off my breaks some and picked up a bit more speed. I was completely comfortable with this and wasn't even remotely nervous. BIG MISTAKE!  I cleared a rather large rut and hit a sandbar. One second I was up, the next I was down, HARD.  Both guys behind me skidded to a halt. I'm sure it looked impressive as my brain was rattling around in my head (which hit ground about ten inches shy of a big tree). After ensuring I was OK, they headed out.  I stood up and shakily returned to my bike.

 

In the groove and lookin' like a TOUGH CHIK!

A minute later, I entered the counting corral and my hubby was handing me a new water bottle. Typically I toss the empty on the ground before I reach him and then grab the new one, take a drink and pop it into its holder. I was so shook up from my crash; I stopped, drank and dumped it over my head. I then headed back out for lap two with no water.

 

Lap 2: It took me a good mile or so to get the jitters out of me. Every bump made me nervous. Finally, after a hefty climb, I pulled off the trail, got off my bike and took some deep breaths. New mantra, "you can do this, none of these trails are new to you, you have the experience to do these hills, relax, relax." Of course, like usual, my buddy Lee passed me when I was OFF my bike. AAAAAARGH! I got back on and the rest of the race was a blast. I felt great. No cramps, no pains from my fall, no complaints whatsoever. OH YEAH!

 

2nd Place for my first MTB Season!

Awards Ceremony: As this was the final race of the season, we received a medal for placing in this race - I took third. Then our scores were tallied for the eight races of the season. The top five received plaques and T-shirts (and strawberries, YUM).  I knew if I completed this race, I was a shoe in for third.  To my surprise, I took second!  I was stunned in a good way.  This was a GREAT season with lots of lessons learned!  Not too shabby for a beginner.

 

In honor of Atalaya, I miss you horribly but am learning to
live my life fully!

I arrived home from my race to a text from my sister. She had sent it to me at 6:00 this morning but my phone was dead and I had thrown it on the charger before going to my race. When I arrived home I checked my phone.  Her text said, "CALL ME."  I had a pretty good idea why.  I had an uncle who was in hospice this week. I took a deep breath and called. Sure enough, he had passed away the night before. Secretly, I was thankful I didn't know before my race. Suddenly, I was sad.  My family has lost six people in the last nine months.  It’s what got me started with this race thing.  The reason I raced these races was in memory of my sister-in-law who passed away the week before this race season started. This was my affirmation of life . . . to do something I had never done before that was out of my comfort zone . . . to learn to live in the moment. It was a great lesson and even though the tears flow for all those we have lost this year, I have learned that love doesn't disappear when the people do. I have made many new friends because of these races. To take a quote from my now widowed aunt, "LIFE IS GOOD, I BE BLESSED."

 

 

 



Deciding to DNF

Giving Up is Hard to Do!

The day after my last race, I started having trouble walking on my left foot.  I don't remember doing anything to strain my foot and I'm pretty sure I didn't fall, so I was a little befuddled as to what was going on.  The more I walked on it, the worse it felt.  FINALLY, after a week, I dragged myself to the doctor.  Diagnosis:  Either I have metatarsalgia (pain in foot - duh) or a stress fracture.  Since stress fractures don't show up on x-rays right away I saw no point in paying for one of those.  I agreed to stay off my foot for a couple of weeks. 

OOPS!  I didn't take into consideration that I had an upcoming race in a few days.  Since I had somewhat behaved during the week, I wasn't hurting TOO badly.  I decided to race.  My only goal would be to finish so I didn't lose my total points position in the series. 

Lap 1:  I rocked it.  I knew that I had to stay on my bike at all times to survive this race, so no walking ANY hills.  I had to drop into the lowest gear to get up a couple of the hills without putting too much pressure on my foot, but otherwise I felt pretty darn good.  Big sigh of relief!

Lap 2:  Hitting that big hill coming out of the counting corral, I started to feel twinges in my foot.  Even though I was in my baby gear, I thought I might be in trouble.  I kept my bike in a lower gear than normal and concentrated on not applying too much pressure.  As I hit each uphill climb, I was having more and more trouble.  Then I hit a steep hill that I have struggled with EVERY race.  About 1/4 of the way up, my bike stopped and my foot went down.  I felt a rather large twinge and knew I was in trouble since I had two more laps to go. 

I hiked my bike up and got back on - thankfully BEFORE my buddy Lee went by me.  The next section was a rather bumpy trail and I could feel every bump even with my full suspension bike.  Then I hit a majorly bumpy downhill - a hill I usually fly down - and I was almost in tears by the time I bounced to the bottom.  Knowing the counting corral was only about a mile ahead, I continued trying to convince myself I could tough this out. . .but I was also breaking a sweat from the pain (not just the heat) and starting to get dizzy.  YEP!  I was definately in trouble.

As I cleared lap 2, Anya passed me.  I don't typically see her quite so soon.  I looked at the counters and told them I was done.  The whole crowd went "awww" for me.  It kinda startled me (and secretly pleased me for the support) but I kept riding towards the car, because I knew I wasn't going to be able to walk.  The hubby walked beside my bike and told me all the things I had already told myself.  Better to preserve my foot than to do more damage to it.  Unfortunately, words like QUITTER and WIMPY and LOSER wound through my head as I arrived at our car.  I put my foot down to get off my bike and it wouldn't even support my weight.  I teared up and the hubby helped me off my bike.  SIGH.

DNF - Did Not Finish

Even though I know this was the right thing to do - staying off my bike really STINKS!  My next race is in three weeks.  Please, please, PLEASE let my foot be OK!!!

No Pain; No Gain

Why Do I Do These Things to Myself?

I have been on a cross country, bike destination vacation for the last ten days.  We came home a day early, so I thought I might drop in on my biking buddies and cheer them on with our upcoming race.  When I got up this morning, I felt great.  Thinking that I was back at my standard elevation and no longer at 6,000 feet, I considered joining the race.  After all, it was part of the series I had vowed to race all of so why not?

Getting the hubby moving was a little tough.  He had been doing all the driving on our vacation and had logged 20 hours of driving in the last two days.  He was beat!  We hit the race parking lot at 8:30a and my race was at 9:00a.  With registration and final bike tuning, I had little time to warm up.  I used what I had but my legs were feeling like lead.  Too bad, I had already paid for my race.

3/4 of my racing buddies

I said “hello” to some familiar faces and made fun of the guys I race with as, once again, I had sneakily been there for a race nobody expected me at.  We started off up the road like usual but when we entered the single track; it was a short down, a U-Turn, and then a LONG up through sand and worn out trail.  Road?  Not sure, as it was wide enough to pass but too gnarly to try.  I was keeping up with the pack at this point.

At the top of this first hill, there was a young lady on the ground with her bike.  Everyone was going around her.  We last two ladies up the hill, stopped to make sure she was OK.  I helped her up.  Then the other lady left us.  I stayed because she reminded me of my daughters and she was a little teary from her crash.  I told her about my big crash from my first race, had her drink some water, and then proceeded to lead her down the trail.  She was shaky and cautious.  I knew this both from my own experience and the fact that I was sure she was a faster rider than I was but she was hanging back. 

She had me on the up but I kept catching her on the down

Riding through the counting corral started our count at zero.  I hung out with a lady in a lower age category for about a half mile or so and was finally passed by the young lady I had assisted.  She said a shaky thanks as she went by.  Then I hit the hill that I have hated from DAY ONE of riding this race series.  I have yet to make it to the top without walking.  I find it so frustrating and this time it was early in my race . . . not a good sign.  First lap, it was the ONLY hill I walked and I lost my ride buddy because she made it to the top and left me in her dust.  Lap 1:  35 minutes

Getting up a steep hill

A short, steep drop (FUN)

Second time around, it was getting hot.  I have concluded that I don’t do well in heat as I was miserable.  I felt motion sick on my bike.  I walked three hills and felt like I was being lapped by EVERYONE.  My only saving grace was all that riding through the rocks made me fearless on the bumpy downhill sections.  I dropped my heels, scooted behind my seat and let my bike do the work – downhill makes the ride up so ABSOLUTELY worth it! 

Cruising down the hill

Somewhere in loop two, I walked up a hill to find my husband hanging out to cheer me on.  He asked me why I was walking and I really wanted to cry.  I told him I was done with this race and I wanted to quit.  Like the wise man he is, he kept his mouth shut.  I got back on my bike and continued my ride.  The body was weak and didn’t like this loop AT ALL!  Lap 2:  41 minutes

Flying down this hill

When I cleared lap two, I was feeling a little better but I still had one more lap to finish.  I had hoped to see my hubby so I could cajole him into riding that last lap with me.  He never turned up.  About a third of the way through my final lap, I ran out of water.  Since I was close to the staging area, I dropped my water bag onto the side of the trail and kept riding (I figured Darius would see me drop it or if not, it wasn’t far to go to retrieve it after my race). 

Zipping through twisty, turny section

A slight breeze started up and I wasn’t feeling quite so queasy from the heat.  At about the half-way point around this lap, I saw a teenage size coyote come out of the grass towards me.  GOOD LORD, what do I do now?  I started shaking really hard and it took all my concentration to stay on my bike and keep moving.  This skinny, mangy coyote turns and starts jogging next to me and my bike about three feet away from me on my left.  I dared to glance over. . .he didn’t look like he was going to bite me. . .I snuck another peek. . .his tongue was hanging out. . .another glance to verify he wasn’t out for my blood and I swear he was smiling as he jogged next to me.  He was there for at least five minutes.  I hit a sandy section right before a steep uphill climb.  I had walked this during lap two.  NO WAY was I getting off my bike to walk it with a coyote next to me.  I dropped to spin mode and held my line.  I didn’t dare look at the coyote again for fear I would appear too aggressive.  I guess I was going too slowly up that hill, because he just traipsed off to my left and disappeared.  I kept watching for him as I continued to ride.  I never saw him again.

SO thankful to have finished this one!!!

As I breached my final hill, I started the funnest downhill of the course.  I startled a bird family that all took off in front of me and I started to think how surreal this final lap was for me.  Last week, I had been attacked by a cow that was supposed to be docile while today I was watched over by a coyote that was supposed to be a wild creature that didn’t act the least bit threatening.  My world was upside down and backwards.  Darius suggested my coyote spirit was sent to help me finish the race.  Either way, I shed a few tears at home for the most amazing vacation with my hubby and all the incredible beauty that nature shared with me this past week.  Lap 3: 37 minutes

Man, I’ve got to stop typing.  I have obviously lost it.  Lucky me, I took second place and am a little closer to getting high points for this race series.  Wish me luck!

Sawtooth Trail Revisited

A Chance to do a Little Better!

Sawtooth Trail, here I come! 

We were only doing a drive-by visit to this trail, today, so I had to change in the car.  I have become completely shameless in my desire to ride bike . . . OK, I had a blanket up to hide behind.  Geez!

Having already experienced this trail several days ago, and having ridden similar terrain for the last few days, I was READY to PR some trail (PR Stands for personal record on Strava).

SIDE NOTE:  Strava is this GPS tracking program where bikers, runners, and other sports fanatics can upload their times from their GPS Device.  Then other exercise freaks can compare themselves on different segments for these rides, run, etc.

This is what my ride looks like on Strava.  Then it gives you some extra data. 

You can see your elevation and even see your speed if you call it up.

Lastly, it shows you all your trophies and medals.  Trophies are given by placing in the top ten riders.  Medals are you racing against yourself.  It tells you this is a second best time for you.  And PR is what we all strive for because it shows we improved.  Unlike last ride, where I had no places scored, I did manage a few trophies this time.  I’d been practicing, heh heh.

Again, this is about a 9-10 mile trek through the mountainous terrain on single track trails.  Can you say, “a piece of heaven?” 

The ride was great and I went over and through all sorts of rocky stuff I wouldn’t even consider attempting last week.  We took a little different route, this ride, and ended up looping around to a final descent into the parking lot.  FUNNEST RIDE EVER!!! 

The best part was the weather.  It looked like rain when we took off, but the rain was courteous enough to hold out until we were done.  Once in the car and back on the road, MAJOR downpour.

Bike Destination Vacation - Day 8

I WIN!!!

Day 8 Original Plan:  Travel to Grand Junction, CO via Boulder, CO to visit our International Mountain Biking Association (IMBA) Friends.

New Day 8 Plan:  Drive back towards Truckee, CA and stop when we can no longer stand being in the car.

Due to the rather large, uncontrolled fire in Colorado, we decided to bypass that state.  That meant I got to go back to Truckee and I was THRILLED! 

Unfortunately, it meant some long days of driving with no bike riding until Truckee (sad face).  Oh well, I REALLY wanted a second chance at Sawtooth Trail.

We hit Green River, Wyoming, sometime around lunch so we swung in to a Subway and, like we typically were doing on the road, we looked for a local park near water with maybe some scenery to eat at.  As we were driving towards our water sourced park, the RAV4 stopped.  It refused to go any further.  Huh.  We both looked up and were surprised to see a bike park.  Our RAV4 sure knew us well.  

We both leaped out of our PARKED vehicle and forgetting our sandwiches, we walked around and toured the park layout.  Everything from green dots (easy) to blue squares (intermediate) to black diamonds (1 or 2 for advanced and expert) let you know what was designated easy and hard.

We ran back to the car and wolfed down our lunch and Darius pulled his bike down for a trial run while I took out my camera for some pictures.  We sooooo want one of these where we live!

Getting the lay of the land.



Intermediate Drop



Indermediate Ramp

Rock Overpass

Log Overpass

I would have ridden after Darius, except I made the mistake of eating a chocolate chip cookie (chocolate, duh!) with my sandwich – What was I thinking?  And on the road too!  My tummy so does NOT agree with chocolate . . . but I really wanted that cookie!!!  Ergo, no riding for me.

After we ate lunch and Darius played, we headed back out on the road. 

VERY Dry Waterbed

Passing through Salt Lake City, we discovered that things were a little dry on the salt flats.   Sadly, I have a picture of this same location from about 13 years ago, but the mountains are reflected beautifully on the water (which is missing in this picture).

Day 8 Results:  We made it to Elko, NV before we called it quits.  We had been in the car about 12 hours and were ready for a break.  A quick stop for pizza, and then hotel for some sleep.  Did I mention I am really tired of riding in a car?

Bike Destination Vacation - Day 7

Will We EVER Stick to the Plan?

 

Day 7 Original Plan:  Biking at Curt Gowdy State Park, WY and visit family some more.

New Day 7 Plan:  Bike Vedauwoo, WY in the morning and visit family in the afternoon/evening.

Newer Day 7 Plan:  HIKE Vedauwoo, WY in the morning and visit family in the afternoon/evening.

Where is Darius?

The big activity of the day was visiting Vedauwoo.  I had been there before on previous visits, so I put on some hiking shoes and off we went.  Darius’s family came with and we hiked a little over three miles on something called Turtle Rock Trail.

The guys were like kids and climbed many rocks while I hung at the bottom with Darius’s aunt. 

My first Moose Sighting!

There is so much to look at and enjoy here but my best part was my climbing a rock to look at the water and seeing this enormous moose on the other side.  He was as big as a cow (oops, different story).  As I was desperately trying to get my camera out, he turned and bolted but I did manage one not so great shot of him running off into the woods.

Turtle Rock Trail

Practically the whole time we were hiking, Darius was telling me how this trail was totally rideable.  He was working out how he would get over and around different rock sections.

Family Moment

Somewhere near the end of our hike, Darius and I got separated from his family.  I was really slowing down as I could feel a blister forming on my left foot.  I was frustrated that we had gotten so far ahead of the rest of our group.  We stopped at a bench and they still never caught up.  Finally, we return to our car and it turns out his family had taken a short cut.  My poor feet wished they had taken a short cut too.



We all went home for a nap and then Darius decided he wanted to go back and ride Vedauwoo.  I bowed out.  My blister was the size of my baby toe (really, I just needed a vacation from my vacation).  I convinced his cousin to borrow a bike and go with him.  YAY!  Uninterrupted hotel time for me.   A quick trip to the hot tub and then some photo organizing and catching up on these crazy messages I am typing to keep my friends and family updated on our FUN!  And maybe a few reruns of Big Bang Theory while I type.

Aaah, a very peaceful evening.  We hit the road again, tomorrow.  Still working the return to Truckee issue – hope I win.

Final Day 7 Activities:  Hiked Vedauwoo and hung at hotel while hubby went back and biked Vedauwoo is with his cousin.