6 Months Down - 6 Months to Go

I can't believe it, but it has been 6 months since my heart surgery.  The hardest part of the surgery has not been the surgery, but the recovery.  You can read all you want about the surgerical procedure, but there is nothing on recovery.  Because of that, I figured I would rest the 6 - 8 weeks after the surgery like the doctor told me, and then get on my bike and only have short time before I was in tip, top shape.  As most of you know that was not the case.  Recovery has been slow, but steady, and as I later found out, it takes 6 months to a year for complete recovery.  However, with each day and each bike ride I am slowly getting better.

Last week was my 6 month follow up appointment with my cardiologist.  I had a transdoppler test and an echo cardiogram with bubble test.  The results were very positive.  The hole in my heart is not healed yet, but is getting closer.  Prior to my heart surgery I had 500+ bubbles going through my heart, at rest, with little stress and with a lot.  Now I have 70 bubbles going through my heart only when there is a lot of stress!  Great improvement.

What does this mean?  It means I have reduced my risk for a stroke significantly.  It also means the hole is almost closed up--I am very excited about this. 

With the healing a new issue has popped up.  As I said under stress bubbles go through the hole.  Well, when you mountain bike a hill climb is stress.  Even if it doesn't feel like it, it is.  So, what has been happening is when I push it hard riding, even only for a moment such as a short steep up, or when I ride at high altitude I am getting a migraine.  It only started happening recently, which is due to the hole getting smaller and I am no longer taking plavix, only aspirin.  This is not good.  You see when I get a migraine, I get an aura.  Aura's prevent you from seeing in one or both eyes.  Lately I have been getting these while riding--not always, but more than I would like.  Try going down hill blind with one eye--not fun.  The good news there is a solution.

When I get an aura I need to immediately chew an apirin--oh, and wash it down with water of course.  The purpose of chewing the aspirin is to get it in the blood stream immediately.  If the migraine is caused by a blood clot going through the hole in my heart then it will thin the blood, stop the aura's and potentially stop the migraine.  Does it work?  Well, I got to test it out a week ago, and worked.

Jolene and I were riding in AF Canyon (sadly it will be her last ride for a while), we had just finished going down Deer Creek South Fork, when all of the sudden I started to get an aura.  Luckily I had remembered to pack some aspirin, and took one immediately--yuck!  It is very difficult to swallow chewed up aspirin when you have been riding a bike.  I was worried one wouldn't work, so I took another for good measure.  We pedaled and pedaled, and I was getting worried the aura was not going away.  I knew if it didn't there was no way I could negotiate the downhill after the summit--too many things to look out for.  Just as we got to the summit the aura quit, and I did not get a migraine.  I am so glad it work. 

Now all I need to do is remember to take aspirin on every ride.  Today I forgot and I paid for it.  I was going down Rush and low and behold an aura.  I just kept riding hoping I would make it down before the aura got worse and before the mirgraine hit.  It didn't work.  The aura kept getting worse and trying to see became very difficult.  Luckily for me I ran into Karl, Dot, Joey and Johnny and was able to follow them down.  They got me to the road safely and I took off to the car to get some aspirin, and hopefully stop the aura and on-coming mirgraine.  I didn't make it in time.  The aura quit just as I hit the parking lot and now my head is killing me.  Lesson learned aspirin in the car does not do any good.

As for everyting else.  I am looking forward to the next 6 months and seeing more improvement.  Although the last 6 months the recovery has been slow I am looking forward to the continued recovery over the next 6 months of getting stronger and better.

My Stupid Ride--Major Ouch!

I know some of us have done stupid things on a ride.  Last Saturday's ride I had my fill of stupid on this ride.  But first I need to digress to what led up to my stupid ride. 

Now race season is over I can finally focus on getting fit, losing weight and generally getting back to good health.  I started with taking up yoga.  Absolutely love the classes I went to and was looking forward to many more.  I also had started riding more, working on getting my heart up endurance wise.  The long rides, and the yoga led to tight hamstrings in areas I have never felt tight, but no big deal, because I knew eventually the tightness and soreness would leave and I would be stronger for it.  So Saturdays ride started out with tight, sore hamstrings.

Saturday was supposed to be a long, casual 3 hour ride.  I was so looking forward to this, seeing new trails and getting in a really fun ride.  The planned ride was Jurassic - Ridge - Mud Springs - Mill - 4 corners - Deer Creek South Fork - up to the Summit - back down Jurassic.  I have never been down Mill, up Mill or on trail 157 to 4 corners.  I had been reading about it and it sounded like the perfect adventure.  That wouldn't be too long, but a different way to go.

We (Dennis and I) got off to a good early start.  I should have realized the ride up Jurassic was going to be a prelude to the other climbs.  My hamstrings were sore, and climbing was somewhat uncomfortable--not hard, but uncomfortable.  We reached the summit and went on to the ridge trail.  The climbing was not too bad from here to Mud Springs and my legs were doing okay.

The descent for Mud and Mill was great--great trail conditions, fast, fun riding and no mishaps.  Then came the climb for Mill.  I have never climbed Mill and did not know what to expect.  It turned out to be a very scenic, fairly easy ride, but very, very long.  For those who have ridden Solitude I-Cup race course, if you remember the switchbacks going to the top it was a lot like this.  Going on forever and ever and ever.  The ride was so long my legs got mad, very, very mad!  I also became hungry before even reaching the top.  Since I didn't want to collapse from being hungry and having tired, mad legs I stopped to eat and took some great pictures.

By the time I reached 4 corners I was soooo ready to go down hill and get back to the car.  My legs were madder than a hornets nest and I was just plain tired.  We had already been riding for 3 hours and I just wanted to be done.

The going from 4 corners to the Summit was pretty good, except for one thing--tons and tons of motorcycles.  I forgot to mention there were motorcycles on every trail I was on, and twice as many on the trail up to the Summit.  By the time I got to the Summit I was so sick of having to pull over for motorcycles.  They were all polite, but I was very frustrated with choking on exhaust and dust in addition to being tired.

I was so looking forward to going down Jurassic.  Being as tired as I was took it easy and didn't go fast as I normally would.  Which was good, because I would hate to crash from being too tired to ride my bike.  I was almost to the bottom when the major stupid happened.  I hit one of the switchbacks that was rocky and sharp.  Being not good enough to negotiate it, I got off and walked.  Below the switch back was a loose, rocky trail.

Instead of clipping in and riding over it, I decided to coast over it no feet on the pedals.  Stupid, stupid, stupid.  I ended up bouncing on the rocks, bouncing into the mountain side, and then thrown off the trail and down the mountain side.  I rolled down, down, down and injured my ribs on the way down.  When I hit my ribs you could hear me cry out--I sounded like a wounded animal, it was so pathetic and painful.

The mountain I rolled down.

Lucky for me a girl further down the trail heard me go down.  She came to help me.  She was so nice helping me get my bike picked up and making sure I as okay--I was definitely shook up.  A quick assessment of me showed injured ribs, a piece of bark sticking out of my leg and a lot of scrapes and scratches (later turning to a lot of bruises), but nothing worse.  The bike was okay and I could still ride well enough to get back to my car.  I am so lucky nothing worse happened.

The stupid things I did on the ride I hope to never repeat:

1.  Know exactly how long the trail is your are going on.  If you are on a time limit experimenting and exploring is probably not the best idea.  We were supposed to be going only 3 and instead we were gone 4 and a 1/2.

2.  When you start a new exercise regime, don't plan something huge and big--give yourself a chance to recover.

3.  Always clip into at least one pedal!!!  If I had been clipped in the trail would not have controlled my bike, I would have.  This was probably the most stupid thing I did.  I am so mad I did this.

So now what?  Well, each day is up and down.  I had one day with very limited pain and other days with a lot of pain.  I have discovered if I take the medication prescribed by the doctor the pain is more bearable.  The doctor told me it will be awhile before I am pain free, but I can go back to riding as soon as I want.  Although his recommendation was to not fall on the ribs as it would be very painful--I agree.  I went on a road ride yesterday and it went well except for when I stood up to ride.  I think it will be about 2 weeks before I can negotiate a mountain bike, but at least I can still ride.

Fun Filled Days

Saturday June 12 - Deer Valley I-Cup

Went to the race in the pouring rain.  On the way up we saw the tail end of the Provo 1/2 marathoners (Heather was too fast, so I didn't see her), and the Provo full marathoners.  I kept talking about how miserable they must be running in the cold and I couldn't believe they were racing in such miserable weather.  Then lI realized we were going up to ride in the same miserable weather.  Oh the irony.

Random pics of people I don't know running in the rain.

The race was cancelled and resheduled for Wednesday.  On the way back the rain stopped, and the view was beautiful.

Midway mountain scenery.

Once I got home.  I went with the family to movies to see A-Team.  The show was fun worth going to. 

Then I decided to ride Squaw Peak.  For some reason this ride was especially painful, and I mean that in every sense of the word.  I actually had to stop where it says 3 3/4 on the road for a minute to let the pain leave my legs.  This is the first time I have had to stop because I hurt riding Squaw Peak.  By the time I got to the top I felt like I was pushing with everything I had.  Somehow I don't remember the end of climb being so steep.  I think pain has a lot to do with the perception of steepness.

In some ways it was a little discouraging because I had to ride in my small gears to get to the top and because it was such a struggle.  In other ways it was great, because now I have a guage and new goal to accomplish by the end of the summer.  Sometimes reality can be harsh, but at least you know what to prepare for.

Pic I took while riding up.

Love the view.

The ride down was very cold.  Another storm had crept up while I was going up, so I went up with a head wind, and down with a head wind.  I was shivering cold by the time I got to the bottom.  Just as I got to the bottom I heard a clinking noise.  I crossed the road, and discovered I had a flat tire!  I am sure hoping I was climbing with low tire pressure, then maybe the next ride won't be so painful.  I didn't want to change a skinny tire while I was so cold, so I called my husband and he met me at Timpanogous Park.  What a great guy to come and rescue me from the cold and changing a tire.

Sunday June 13 - My Birthday

Had a great birthday.  The family surprised me with great gifts, we had pizza and cheese cake and lots of fun.

My cake topper my husband didn't dare put on the cake.  Isn't it cool.  It played Happy Birthday.

Cute Octapus balloon bouquet.

Monday June 14th - AF Canyon

I finally got to ride AF Canyon.  I met up with Steve and we went to see how far we could ride before the trails were unrideable.  The trails were great except for Pine Hollow, so we only rode up to the look out and back.  I love this trail--hopefully next week the trails will be in good condition and I will have time to do the entire loop.

This view never gets old.

The patch spot below is where Pine Hollow & Salamander Flats intersect.  I can't believe how high up we are.

On the way down the canyon I came upon a rider on a road bike.  Not unusual when you ride in this canyon, what was unusual the rider was riding right by the double yellow line.  I could not pass--granted it was a double yellow, but if he had moved over to the side I could have slowly gone around him.  But he didn't. 

When we got to Timp Cave parking lot I thought for sure he would pull over.  Lots of room, but no he stayed right by the yellow line!  I had to ride behind him almost to the guard shack because he would not ease over.  I have to say I was a bit frustrated by this.

The other unusual thing--jeans.  I cannot imagine how painful it must be to ride up AF Canyon and down in jeans, but that's what he did.

Right by the yellow lines.

Proof of the jeans--I wasn't making it up.

Tuesday June 15th - Recovery Ride

Went for an easy ride today with my husband up to the Provo Trail.  On the way I got a flat tire, fixed it and we continued on our way up.  On the way back I got another flat tire, tried to pump it up, but it didn't work.  I did not have another tube, so my husband rode home while I waited for him come back with the car.  The entire time I waited riders went by, but only one asked if I needed help.  I always ask if someone needs help.  One guy actually went so far as to look the other direction like he didn't see me with my flat.  Glad my husband could come to the rescue again, otherwise I would have been stranded for quite some time.  Three flat tires in less than a week.  I think I may need to get new tires.

I believe this is the universal sign for a flat.

Total Bummer

One of my favorite rides is in AF Canyon.  I have written about this particular trail before, and  I absolutely love it.  I have ridden other trails, but always have an aching to ride this trail.  Today I got to go ride the trail with Jolene.  We were very excited, because Jolene had heard from Steve the trail was in great condition, and we did not want to miss this great opportunity.

The gate in AF Canyon is closed, so we parked at Pine Hollow.  Our choice was to go up the road to Timpanooke or up Pine Hollow Trail.  We have never gone up Pine Hollow so we choose this route.  The first part of Pine Hollow is not so bad, but after the first little bit it then goes up and up and up, and not a little easy up the loose rock, over rocks and roots up.  I loved going up this way, it was hard, but better than going up the road.
A glimpse of Pine Hollow, however it doesn't do it justice.

As we went along the trail we discovered the trail was quit muddy in spots, luckily it was only spots, but there were times my tires were covered in mud.  The further up the trail twe went the cooler it seemed to get, by the time we got to the first overlook it was time to put on our jackets.  As we did so Jolene noticed the snow on the back side of the mountain.  I could not believe how much snow there was.

I would like to say the  rest of the ride went well, and for the most part it did except for the downhill part going towards four corners.  On the downhill I was having a blast, I came around a turn and realized I was heading right for this big bush/tree.  There wasn't much to do except go into the bush.  I fully expected to over and into the bush and down the hill, but instead there was a really big branch that caused me to richet off to the left backwards onto the trail and onto a very big rock.  And yes I hit my tail bone right on the rock!

Now after most of my crashes I usually get right up.  After this crash I felt a shock go up my spine, and I just stayed laying on the trail.  As I was laying there I was hoping the next rider would see me and not run me over, and he did.  Tim helped to get my bike off me, and then Jolene arrived.  I just stayed on the trail in the fetal postion waiting for the moment I could start to move again.  I don't know how long I was there, but it felt forever before I was able to get up.

Once I was up we took off.  After a time I eventually forgot about the pain in my back side and lost myself in the joy of riding the trail.  On our ride around the loop we decided to take Salamander Flats back instead of Pine Hollow, which made for a phenominal ride.

By the time we got to Timpanooke parking lot the sun was dipping and we needed to put on the remainder of our warm clothes.  Luckily the ride to Pine Hollow parking lot is only a little over mile, so we did not get too cold--just cold enough to want to jump into the car and get warm.  It was as I jumped into the car I was given a cruel reminder of my crash.  And much to my shock I discovered my left butt check was swollen and hurt in the I don't want to sit down way.  However, as I write this I am sitting--on an ice pack!
Jolene coming down the hill .

The Weather Man was Wrong

Normally the Monday after a race I ride real easy and use it as a recovery ride. But this Monday was different. I knew I was having surgery Tuesday (getting a screw out of my foot), and I knew I would be off my bike for a few days. So knowing this I called up Jolene and Wendy and convinced them it was not going to rain and the ride would be great.

We rode the loop in AF Canyon, and the ride was great. The weather was perfect, the trails were tacky from recent rain, and of course great friends to ride with. As we hit the Cascade side of the loop dark clouds started to roll in, a breeze picked up and there was thunder announcing an imminent storm. I kept saying the weather man had said it would not rain until 3 pm, and it was not even noon yet, so we should be okay. I had to put those positive vibes out there. We rode up to the Summit parking lot, and just as we got there the clouds opened up and the rain came pouring down. And by pouring, I mean drench you immediately rain shower.

Not knowing how long the rain would last we took off, although I don't think it would have mattered, how fast or quickly we went because we were drenched within minutes. The funny thing we noticed as we rode back, the rain was on part of the trail, but not others, and by the time we got to the parking lot the only indication you would have known it had rain was the mud that covered our bodies.
Snagging a picture of Jolene as we ride.
Wendy coming to the top of the look out.

Part of the downhill on Deer Creek South Fork.

You can't see the rain, but my flash went off due to the dark clouds and reflected off of Jolene's bike.

Wendy riding down hill. I got water on the lens from the rain.

Ride is over and we are the only proof that it rained.

Test Ride

Went to AF Canyon to ride my favorite trail with Dorothy today. I don't think we could have asked for better conditions, perfect temperature and the trail was tacky from the rain the canyon had just received. There were a lot of hikers out on our way up, but nobody on the way down. We also passed a few riders going up, and as we were going down I came up to a rider on the down, but he refused to pull over. I backed off a little, but there was not doubt I was riding his tire and could go faster. Yet he still did not pull over. Let's do the math, you started on the down way before me, I catch you on the down, hmmm.....maybe I am going faster and you should pull over. Oh well, I still had a blast.

Dorothy coming up the hill toward the lookout.

Dorothy has never started the loop from Timpanooke, I was very excited to show her the fun trail she has been missing. I think she liked it, because she mentioned she was going to take her fiance on it. This has got be one of the best rides around.

I got my 29er back, I am glad I had another bike to ride while my bike was at the doctor's, but there is nothing better than riding my 29er. It rides the lines so perfectly, takes corners marvelously and now it has gotten even better, if that is even possible.

I have new front brakes which work great, but I also got new grips. I have been doing a little research and decided it was time to buy Ergon Grips. I was not 100% I would like them, but everything I researched told me I would. Since I am getting ready for 12 hours of Sundance and 24 Hours of Moab I thought it would be good to have what is supposedly comfortable grips. Well, the verdict is in and the grips are awesome!!! Todays ride I noticed a significant difference in my hand comfort, it was amazing. I know this was only one ride, but for the first ride to notice such a difference means there is only better things to come.

Girls Ride

Tonight was the final ride of the year for "Ride Like a Girl". I have been so excited for this ride all week, so much so that today I could hardly contain myself at work, 5 o'clock didn't come quick enough.

Our ride tonight was in AF Canyon. I have had so little riding time in AF this year, and it is one of my favorite places to ride--riding up there is always a treat. At first I thought we were going to ride from Summit parking lot and do a short loop, but KC had a different plan. Instead we were going to go down what I have always gone up. At first, unfortunately, my face showed some disappointment to not going down Deer Creek South Fork, but this was actually very wise on KC's part as we could have ended up in the dark and not everyone had lights. Once I realized I had the opportunity to go down a new direction I was excited. Even more so, because I got to lead the way down.

The ride down was a blast! We hit jump, after jump, after jump......after jump!!! You could hear girls whooping and hollering all the way down the trail. Oh did I mention there were 12 of us on the ride...yes, 12 girls loving every moment of it. Eventually we got to the bottom and it was time to turn around and go back up.

As Jen took off to go up she got chain suck. We were able to get it out, and then she and I took off to catch the rest. Well of course Jen caught the rest, and then went ahead of the rest. I caught some of the rest, except for Jolene, Patty and one other gal. Good training for Sundance try to catch up to the others.

On the up we got spread out. Jen, Patty and another gal hit the Summit with Jolene and then me right after. By the time we got to the Summit Jen and the others were not there. Jolene was worried they missed the turn, so she went down Jurassic to see if they went down that trail. I stayed and waited. Eventually Jolene came back--still no Jen. After a bit KC showed up with the others. We took off down Jurassic. This is a fun trail, or at least the part I rode. We did not go far as the sun was going down and we were losing light. By this time we still had not seen Jen and the others, so KC took off to find them, and we headed back. On the way back we ran into our lost riders. They had gone onto the ridge trail thinking this was the direction we were going to ride. So it turns out they were only kind of lost.

Now the next conundrum do we go get KC and let her know their okay or do we continue to the parking lot? We continued to the parking lot, and here is why. KC is the most amazing, strong and incredibly fast rider. We knew she could go down and up in the amount of time it probably would take us to get to the parking lot, and this was almost the case. KC showed up about 5 minutes after we arrived in the parking lot, and I am sure she was very relived everyone was okay.

The ride was great, and I am really sad there will not be any more "Ride Like a Girl" rides for the year, but at least I have something to look forward to next year.

Trail Work & Riding

Saturday-the rain has stopped and it was a perfect day to do trail work. Mandy, Jen and I headed up to AF Canyon to help with a group on the re-route of the trail on Cascade Springs side. There is a lot of work that needed to be done, from hauling logs down the hill to bolting, hammering, digging and clearing. I lucked out and got to dig out the trail with Mandy and Nathan, the other adults hauled logs down to the site. This was pretty difficult as the trail was pretty slippery from rainfall--I was not envious of them. I was really proud of Mandy besides helping clear the trail she also helped get rocks and bring them to the trail side.

Here is the trail Mandy, Nathan and I cleared. I know it doesn't look like much, but it had nothing but vegetation and it is a lot longer than it looks.
Mandy patting the trail down trying to make it smooth.
Everyone working hard to get the logs in place.

After working on the trail my wonderful husband came and got Mandy so I could stay and ride. Jen and I had lunch and then took off on my favorite route. The trail was in pretty good shape considering all of the rain we have had. There were a few puddles here and there we went around, and a lot of erosion from the rain. I couldn't believe the ruts that had been caused from the rain fall, and there were more rocks and roots showing. However even with the erosion the trail was a blast and it was nice to be out in the sun. It couldn't have been a better day for riding.

Jen riding across the meadow toward Pine Hollow Hill.

Take that Rain!

Met Dennis and Gigi at the dirt turnout this morning to go ride AF Canyon. The plan was to ride my favorite loop starting at Timpanooke Campground. Of course the moment I arrived at the turnout the rain started to fall, but it didn't matter, there was no stopping this ride. It rained most of the way up to the campground, and I was sure Gigi was cursing me as she followed me up, but miraculously when we arrived the rain had stopped and there was sun! However it did not last and as soon as we took off the rain started to fall. It didn't matter, we were going to ride and ride we did. We didn't do the whole loop, but we had a blast, and I am so happy to finally get a mountain bike ride in! Oh and although we were a muddy mess, our bikes were not--it was just wet, not sticky.

Snow Shoeing

I went snow shoeing with Steve this morning. It was a perfect day for going, the weather was great and you couldn't have asked for better temperatures. This was my first real snow shoeing excursion. I went once before, but that was to clear trail for the frozen hog, so it doesn't really count.

Now there is a funny thing you should know if you go snow shoeing with Steve. He is about 6'8 and has very long legs. It took me at least 2 strides for his one. I thought this was funny and could only imagine what it must be like for his wife when they go shopping. I am guessing he has probably gotten used to be a very casual walker. Which is pretty much what he did for this excursion. He would go casually ahead and then wait for me to catch up. Luckily I wasn't too far behind so he didn't have to wait too long. You know it seems that the same thing happens when we ride mountain bikes....I am beginning to see a pattern here.

Meadow at part of the trail. This would be a great place to make a snow man.

This is how far ahead Steve usually is.

Tibble Fork Trail.

Perfect place for a photo op.
Going around the downed tree.
Another great photo op.