Alpine Loop - First Time

I have wanted to ride the Alpine Loop since I started riding a bike 2 years ago, but there was always a reason I didn't or couldn't.  An upcoming race, a cool mountain bike ride, fear of how long it would take to recover, not able to recruit someone to ride with me--always a reason.  Well, this weekend the opportunity arose, and I had to decide if I could go or not.  You see, there was still a really cool mountain bike ride I could go on and many other things.  Lucky for me my family made the decision for me.  They were sick, and it was better for me to be close by than a few hours away riding.

I was excited about the ride, but a little tenative.  I was riding with Jen who is much faster than me, and I knew there was no way I would keep up with her.  Also, the plan was not to just ride the loop, but South Fork and Squaws Peak.  I figured I could ride the loop, and probably South Fork, but Squaws Peak was on the we'll wait and see list.

We started out early in the morning, but ended up being delayed by almost 30 minutes due to my forgetfulness....I forgot the shammy butter!  Lucky for me my husband was home and was willing to bring it to me.  Unfortunately he did not understand I was at 400 East in Lindon/PG and went to 400 E in Orem.  There was some waiting, phone calls, and more waiting, but I eventually got the shammy butter.  Thanks goodness, because I think there would have been a lot of pain without it.

The ride was great, and I was much slower than Jen as I expected, but being slow has some benefits.  Did you know there are purple flowers that grow in random places on the side of the mountain?  There is not much shubbery in these spots, which makes seeing the flowers so beautiful.

The ride also went quicker than I expected.  I would see trailheads I was used to going to on my mountain bike and would be surprised I quickly I got to them.  However, after the last trailhead I was in unfamilar territory and did not know how much further it was to the summit.  Which sometimes can make it hard to keep going mentally, but I just pedaled and pedaled hoping the top would come soon.

It was not long after this point I ran into a cyclist with a flat tire.  I was able to give him some air, and would have given him my tube, but he refused--hope he made it down okay, because that was his 3rd/4th flat of the day.  While he was patching his tire I learned it was not much further to the top--yeah, I was almost there!  Jen sheepdogged back down, and we went back to the top to take some quick pictures and head down to South Fork.

At South Fork we filled up our water bottles and took off to the top.  The plan this time was for Jen to go up and I would catch her on the way down.  Guess what I was not too far behind and ended up going all the way to the top.  I was surprised how easy South Fork was, I seemed to zip right up to the top and was surprised how quickly I got there.  I am sure I was not that fast, but it sure did feel fast.

After South Fork, I was opted out of doing Squaws Peak.  It was pretty hot, and the thought of going up in the heat of the day was not appealing.  So Jen and I rode down to the Provo River trailhead, and I rode home.  Surprising enough when I got home I was not too tired.  I quickly did yoga stretches to help prevent undue soreness, and then spent the rest of the day going out and playing with the family.  Today I feel pretty good which gives me hope I could probably do this ride sometime again.

Ups and Downs of Recovery

I don't believe any recovery is without it's ups and downs.  Right now I am seeing a lot of ups and it feels really, really good.

Yesterday was not an up day, it was a down day.  My daughter was up all night Sunday with the stomach flu, and when Monday morning rolled around I was tired and not feeling so hot myself.  I wanted to ride the bike, so I tried to spin, but I was just too sick and had to quit.  I was bummed, but hoped it was just because I was sick I couldn't do anything.

Today rolled around and I was still tired, and somewhat out it, but by the time afternoon rolled around I decided I would ride.  The goal a road ride up to Viv' Park.  I got going, and I felt great, so I picked up the pace.  I ended up getting to Viv' Park 10 minutes faster than last week!  What an accomplishment.  I was so excited I decided to extend my ride and rode up South Fork.  I huffed and puffed the whole way, and I do mean I huffed and puffed, I could hardly talk to let people know I was coming around.  I made it to the top and it felt so good.  Although this may seem like a small accomplishment, for me it is huge.  It let's me know I am making progress and heading in the right direction.

Squaw Peak - South Fork

All week long I have been wanting to ride Squaw Peak, but time and weather did not cooperate. Today was the day rain or not I was going to ride Squaw Peak Road. The big decision before the ride was whether to ride skinny or fat tires. I chose fat tires mostly because I did not want to take my bike off the trainer. With this decision I was off.

The weather was not so bad. It was cloudy, overcast 51 degrees and no wind--a good day for a hill climb. Starting up Squaw Peak road I immediately jumped in to my small cog. The last time I rode up Squaw Peak I had to be in my granny gear. As I rode I realized granny gear was way to easy and switched up to my middle cog. This was a great feeling, because last year the idea of riding up Squaw Peak in my middle cog was inconceivable.

Since the gate was closed going up the road was great. I could ride any part of the road and did not have to worry about cars. The road was fairly clear for about half way, and then there started to appear snow patches here and there. I was able to scoot around the snow without any problems, but as a I got further up the snow started to cover the road more and I ended up hiking over three spots until I came to the point where I could no longer ride. From here I turned around and rode down.

One of the obstacles on the road.

End of the road. I was not going to hike a bike on this section.View on the way down the road.

I had put on my windbreaker for the downhill, but I should have put on my ear warmers and gloves as it was brrrr cold coming down. At the bottom I still felt the need to ride, so I took off to South Fork. On the way I crossed over a section where there had been an avalanche. I think it will be awhile until this section is cleared.

Going up South Fork I did not feel as strong as I did on Squaw Peak. I was still in my middle cog, but some of my kick had gone, but I persevered. Up ahead I saw a roadie, and thought it would be cool to catch him, however my legs did not agree. As I went up it started to sprinkle just a bit, but not enough to deter me and cause me to turn around. I continued all the way to the end, and this time I put on extra gloves, ear warmer and wind breaker.

Deer eating by the side of the road. I took this while riding, looks just like the ones when I am standing still....blurry.

The ride down was not near as cold as Sqauw Peak but it was very, very wet. The rain had picked up and I ended up riding all the way home in the rain. When I got home I was soaked to the skin, but very, very happy. There is nothing better than a good long ride.