Showing posts with label snow. Show all posts
Showing posts with label snow. Show all posts
Thursday, April 16, 2009
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
White Out (very long-no pics)
Because of the new job and my oldest moving out (I no longer have a babysitter), I have started to go to spin class. However, today when I got up at 5 am it looked like the perfect morning for a bike ride up to Vivian Park. So, I bundled up in my winter clothing, made sure my light was mounted to by bike and took off.
About 2 blocks from my home I realized I had forgotten my riding glasses, but decided it was not necessary to go back. I was only going to be on a paved trail, so I was not too worried about debris or objects hitting me.
The ride towards the Provo Trail Head was nice. It was cool, but I warmed up quickly as I rode. I found the gear I chose to wear was perfect for the outside temperature. My light worked great for the ride on the road, and it helped with people seeing me as I rode. Surprisingly there was more traffic than I expected, but the drivers were courteous and cautious as they drove around me.
As I approached the Provo Trail Head I noted there was no wind. Typically when I have rode to this trailhead in the morning there is a good wind coming down from the canyon, but not this morning which made the ride up in to the canyon better than ever.
As I started my ride on the Provo Trail I noted I needed a light on my helmet. I had chosen not to wear my helmet light as I figured there would not be too much twisting or turning. The Provo Trail turns just enough that it would have been nice to have a helmet light.
The ride up the trail was ominous. I felt the dark of the trees enclosed around me and it made for a quiet peaceful ride. As I rode I kept my ears perked for crashes or strange sounds as one time when Todd rode on this trail he saw a moose! Running into a moose in the dark is not something I would like to happen. I am afraid I would probably have the same reaction Josh had when he almost hit a moose.
As I rolled through Nunns Park, crossed the road to the trail I noted a head wind was coming up and there were some light snowflakes. I kept riding enjoying how different the trail seems in the dark and the light snowfall added to the beauty.
Shortly after passing Bridal Veil Falls the snow started to come down heavier. As I continued to ride the now fall became heavier and heavier making me at time ride with my head turned to the side—I should have grabbed those glasses, snow hitting your face and eyes hurts a lot. As I rode I was grateful for the reflectors that were put on a very sharp turn. Had those not been there I would have missed the turn entirely and ended up in water. Funny I never noticed the reflectors today, but in snow and dark they were a life saver.
After riding with a turned head for a short distance, the snow suddenly turned to white out conditions, at this point I turned around. I was not too worried about the snow bothering me down the trail as I had been riding in a head wind so I should have a nice tail wind, since heavy snowfall did not show up until after Bridal Veil Falls I guessed the trail back would be as nice as when I rode up. How wrong I was.
Upon turning around I took a moment to get a good drink of water and then started down the trail. As I started my ride back I discovered the snow was coming down heavier than before and the wind was not a tail wind, but a head wind. That’s what happens when you ride in this canyon, the wind blows in both directions.
The snow was bad. It was coming down fast and hard. In the short time I had ridden it had completely covered the trail and there was not visible sign of the trail. In addition to the snow covered trail obstructing my vision the snow was obstructing my vision. It was coming down so fast it hurt my eyes and face and I couldn’t see past my front wheel as I tried to avoid the pain of the snow pelting my eyes. I rode slowly since I couldn’t keep my head up to see, but this did not lessen the pain I felt from the snow.
I don’t know exactly how far I rode up the canyon, but it seemed to take forever to get to Bridal Veil Falls. Once I got to Bridal Veil Falls I started make destination spots in my mind. These destination points helped keep my mind preoccupied.
The snow was deep as I rode. It clung to my wheel and you cold hear it scraping through the brake pads as I rode. My right hand started to get cold which made me anxious to get home and off the trail. For some reason my glove on my right hand was not keeping it warm. I noticed as I rode skinny, slick tires do not make for good traction. When I went up slight inclines the wheels would spin round and round and I would slide up the inclines. This was actually good because I could get my blood flowing on these little inclines. Unfortunately inclines were far and few between since most of the ride is downhill, so going slow and not spinning my legs fast enough did not help my comfort level.
At one point in my ride I reached one of the destination points, a tunnel, and stopped for a reprieve from the snow. I took this opportunity to take the glove off my right hand and call home. I was unsuccessful I could not get the call to go through. I put two of my gloves in my jacket pocket and only put back on the liner glove to see if this would help my hand. My reasoning was maybe my riding glove and liner were too tight and making my hand cold. They weren’t and my hand got colder as I rode down the trail not warmer.
After my stop in the tunnel it was not long before I got to Timpanogous Park, and nothing but relief came over me. From here I knew it was not far to warmth and relief. As I rode all I could think about was the warm gas station down the trail. It was somewhere around Timpanogous Park a doe and her baby ran right in front of me. For a short moment I forgot about the pain from the pelting snow and took a moment to enjoy the beauty of nature. That moment was very short as the pain of cold and pelting snow came back quickly.
When I finally made it to the gas station at the trailhead I was overjoyed. When I walked in I received dismayed looks from the clerk and one customer there. Apparently what I did not realize until I took my helmet off the snow was piled high on me. So much so that there were big piles inside my helmet, I guess I should have known this as my bike had piles of snow on it. I quickly let them know when I started my ride it had not been snowing.
Inside the gas station I tried to call my husband again and lucked out he was up and answered the phone. After talking with him I went to the bathroom to run warm water on my hand. It was here I discovered my face and hands were swollen, and that the hot water did not work. I was left to wait for my husband before I would have the opportunity to completely warm up. Luckily I was waiting in the gas station which was warm.
My husband did not take long to come to my rescue and we left. About half way home was when I started to get cold and started to shiver. Once home I bolted upstairs to soak in the hot tub. I ended up soaking in the tub a very long time. So long that I fell asleep and my husband had to wake me up so I would not be late for work. I begrudgingly got out, but I could have easily gone to bed and slept for hours. Needless to say three fingertips on my right hand and two on my left hand have hurt all day long, and for the most part I am still cold. I think I need to take another warm bath.
About 2 blocks from my home I realized I had forgotten my riding glasses, but decided it was not necessary to go back. I was only going to be on a paved trail, so I was not too worried about debris or objects hitting me.
The ride towards the Provo Trail Head was nice. It was cool, but I warmed up quickly as I rode. I found the gear I chose to wear was perfect for the outside temperature. My light worked great for the ride on the road, and it helped with people seeing me as I rode. Surprisingly there was more traffic than I expected, but the drivers were courteous and cautious as they drove around me.
As I approached the Provo Trail Head I noted there was no wind. Typically when I have rode to this trailhead in the morning there is a good wind coming down from the canyon, but not this morning which made the ride up in to the canyon better than ever.
As I started my ride on the Provo Trail I noted I needed a light on my helmet. I had chosen not to wear my helmet light as I figured there would not be too much twisting or turning. The Provo Trail turns just enough that it would have been nice to have a helmet light.
The ride up the trail was ominous. I felt the dark of the trees enclosed around me and it made for a quiet peaceful ride. As I rode I kept my ears perked for crashes or strange sounds as one time when Todd rode on this trail he saw a moose! Running into a moose in the dark is not something I would like to happen. I am afraid I would probably have the same reaction Josh had when he almost hit a moose.
As I rolled through Nunns Park, crossed the road to the trail I noted a head wind was coming up and there were some light snowflakes. I kept riding enjoying how different the trail seems in the dark and the light snowfall added to the beauty.
Shortly after passing Bridal Veil Falls the snow started to come down heavier. As I continued to ride the now fall became heavier and heavier making me at time ride with my head turned to the side—I should have grabbed those glasses, snow hitting your face and eyes hurts a lot. As I rode I was grateful for the reflectors that were put on a very sharp turn. Had those not been there I would have missed the turn entirely and ended up in water. Funny I never noticed the reflectors today, but in snow and dark they were a life saver.
After riding with a turned head for a short distance, the snow suddenly turned to white out conditions, at this point I turned around. I was not too worried about the snow bothering me down the trail as I had been riding in a head wind so I should have a nice tail wind, since heavy snowfall did not show up until after Bridal Veil Falls I guessed the trail back would be as nice as when I rode up. How wrong I was.
Upon turning around I took a moment to get a good drink of water and then started down the trail. As I started my ride back I discovered the snow was coming down heavier than before and the wind was not a tail wind, but a head wind. That’s what happens when you ride in this canyon, the wind blows in both directions.
The snow was bad. It was coming down fast and hard. In the short time I had ridden it had completely covered the trail and there was not visible sign of the trail. In addition to the snow covered trail obstructing my vision the snow was obstructing my vision. It was coming down so fast it hurt my eyes and face and I couldn’t see past my front wheel as I tried to avoid the pain of the snow pelting my eyes. I rode slowly since I couldn’t keep my head up to see, but this did not lessen the pain I felt from the snow.
I don’t know exactly how far I rode up the canyon, but it seemed to take forever to get to Bridal Veil Falls. Once I got to Bridal Veil Falls I started make destination spots in my mind. These destination points helped keep my mind preoccupied.
The snow was deep as I rode. It clung to my wheel and you cold hear it scraping through the brake pads as I rode. My right hand started to get cold which made me anxious to get home and off the trail. For some reason my glove on my right hand was not keeping it warm. I noticed as I rode skinny, slick tires do not make for good traction. When I went up slight inclines the wheels would spin round and round and I would slide up the inclines. This was actually good because I could get my blood flowing on these little inclines. Unfortunately inclines were far and few between since most of the ride is downhill, so going slow and not spinning my legs fast enough did not help my comfort level.
At one point in my ride I reached one of the destination points, a tunnel, and stopped for a reprieve from the snow. I took this opportunity to take the glove off my right hand and call home. I was unsuccessful I could not get the call to go through. I put two of my gloves in my jacket pocket and only put back on the liner glove to see if this would help my hand. My reasoning was maybe my riding glove and liner were too tight and making my hand cold. They weren’t and my hand got colder as I rode down the trail not warmer.
After my stop in the tunnel it was not long before I got to Timpanogous Park, and nothing but relief came over me. From here I knew it was not far to warmth and relief. As I rode all I could think about was the warm gas station down the trail. It was somewhere around Timpanogous Park a doe and her baby ran right in front of me. For a short moment I forgot about the pain from the pelting snow and took a moment to enjoy the beauty of nature. That moment was very short as the pain of cold and pelting snow came back quickly.
When I finally made it to the gas station at the trailhead I was overjoyed. When I walked in I received dismayed looks from the clerk and one customer there. Apparently what I did not realize until I took my helmet off the snow was piled high on me. So much so that there were big piles inside my helmet, I guess I should have known this as my bike had piles of snow on it. I quickly let them know when I started my ride it had not been snowing.
Inside the gas station I tried to call my husband again and lucked out he was up and answered the phone. After talking with him I went to the bathroom to run warm water on my hand. It was here I discovered my face and hands were swollen, and that the hot water did not work. I was left to wait for my husband before I would have the opportunity to completely warm up. Luckily I was waiting in the gas station which was warm.
My husband did not take long to come to my rescue and we left. About half way home was when I started to get cold and started to shiver. Once home I bolted upstairs to soak in the hot tub. I ended up soaking in the tub a very long time. So long that I fell asleep and my husband had to wake me up so I would not be late for work. I begrudgingly got out, but I could have easily gone to bed and slept for hours. Needless to say three fingertips on my right hand and two on my left hand have hurt all day long, and for the most part I am still cold. I think I need to take another warm bath.
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