2015 Cycle Stoke Thread

[contesstant]

LOL this made me think of Forrest Gump when he suddenly stops running! "I'm tired. I think I'll go home now."
We don't have any fire roads to climb on around here, thankfully!

Well, I take that back as we climbed on one TODAY (although it's going to be paved.) Up at Powder Mountain, went and checked out a new 6 mile loop that is the funnest trail I have EVER ridden! 10 miles total with the dirt road thrown in, and the dirt road was steep coming back--I about ran out of gas! When it's paved, we'll drive directly to the trailhead. (Saw people doing it illegally today--is tempting to do that next time!)

The views from many spots along the trail that looked down into the Ogden Valley, then onto Snowbasin and as far as the Great Salt Lake, were AMAZING! We didn't take nearly enough pictures. Having way too much fun riding the flowy singletrack that wound through wildflower meadows and pine forests, aspen forests, etc.

Here's a few pics:

 

[VickiK]

Looks amazing!

 

[geargrrl]

I hope we can connect next weekend.

 

[contesstant]

I hope we can connect next weekend.

Me too!! Let me know if the 19th ends up working better for you. Otherwise, we're still planning on the 20th in the morning If neither end up working, I'll get some ride ideas from you! Gotta keep the pedals moving especially since I'm doing it all wrong and going DOWN in elevation by about 4000 feet right before my race. Oops!

 

[bounceswoosh]

Well, I was going to do my first summer ski day tomorrow, but weather and my buddy's foot aren't cooperating, so maybe I'll try pedaling a bit ...

 

[bounceswoosh]

I rode Picture Rock yesterday - according to the sign, this is 5.2 miles each way, while the map says 5.5. Anyway, over 10 miles. It starts out very mellow and gets more technical as you go along, and it never gets steep at all (nor steep enough to build up steam on the way down). I struggled. I stopped a lot due to the heat. I had somehow remembered this ride as mostly being in the shade - incorrect. Parts were, but much more was directly in the sun. I found my body doing weird things - stopping when I had decided I was going to pedal through; riding through when I thought I'd decided to stop. But as much as I walked a lot of things I know I should be able to ride, I did have several great moments when I rode through something I didn't think would happen, and I do remember yelling "F*** yeah!" at one of them.

It took me four hours, far longer than I expected - so add bonking into everything else.

BUT I did take some nice pictures =)

This one turned out particularly well:

Here's the view from the top of Picture Rock:

The trail:

 

[contesstant]

That looks like a ride I would love! I sometimes grow tired of climbing, which is pretty much what we do at Snowbasin. I do like to climb but there are times when I'd like to just go out and not have to exert so much!

 

[bounceswoosh]

That looks like a ride I would love! I sometimes grow tired of climbing, which is pretty much what we do at Snowbasin. I do like to climb but there are times when I'd like to just go out and not have to exert so much!

Somehow, being me, I was still frequently defeated by this mellow climb. But I guess, not actually defeated, because I eventually made it to the top! I think I need to re-evaluate my food choices - the slow carb diet is great generally speaking, but maybe not during multiple hour rides.

 

[contesstant]

You HAVE to give yourself credit for making it. I have to agree that perhaps slow carbs are not quite enough when on a longer ride Your body needs that quick zip of energy--have you tried even just putting some salt and maple syrup in a water bottle? I do that on hot, longer rides.

 

[altagirl]

I like to bring figs and nuts on longer rides. Natural sugar but with fiber in there so it's not such a sugar shock.

 

[bounceswoosh]

You HAVE to give yourself credit for making it. I have to agree that perhaps slow carbs are not quite enough when on a longer ride Your body needs that quick zip of energy--have you tried even just putting some salt and maple syrup in a water bottle? I do that on hot, longer rides.

Well, see, the thing is, I didn't *expect* it to be a long ride ... definitely heat and (lack of) fitness and tentativeness and food choices all conspired to make it a much tougher ride than usual. I usually also do the Wild Turkey loop from there, another 3 miles, but I started up it and just every damn rock seemed like it was stopping me. So I turned around, realizing I needed to have some energy for the downhill, and knowing I was already too low. In contrast to my downhill day, my hands and forearms were miserable on the way down - clearly even moderate rocks are scarier to me than speed on a buff, banked downhill trail. Which makes sense - moderate rocks are where I fell and screwed up my ankle. It's like the fear isn't even in my head so much as in my body.

I used to always bring excessive amounts of food with me, but I didn't do that yesterday because I didn't want to be tempted to cheat unnecessarily on the diet just because the food was there. I think I am going to handle this differently in the future. Bonking is downright dangerous.

 

[bounceswoosh]

Heyyyy what's that fear book that people are always advocating for skiing?

 

[contesstant]

Heyyyy what's that fear book that people are always advocating for skiing?

A Conversation With Fear? I need to read it, too! I still will NOT ride a DH switchback! Rode with a total newbie yesterday and she (with horrible technique) rode every switchback without even thinking about it! I was so upset, humiliated, embarrassed!

I hear ya on bonking. Always good to have at least a small Clif Bar in the pack (I ALWAYS carry one) in case that short ride ends up being not-so-short. I'm sorry the rocks are scaring you. You have to keep at them, because you'll get your timing and flow back if you do. Is there a trail that has them that you are comfortable on to practice?

 

[contesstant]

I like to bring figs and nuts on longer rides. Natural sugar but with fiber in there so it's not such a sugar shock.

I like to end mine with a beer! And I wonder why I haven't lost 5 lbs. this summer!

 

[bounceswoosh]

A Conversation With Fear? I need to read it, too! I still will NOT ride a DH switchback! Rode with a total newbie yesterday and she (with horrible technique) rode every switchback without even thinking about it! I was so upset, humiliated, embarrassed!

I hear ya on bonking. Always good to have at least a small Clif Bar in the pack (I ALWAYS carry one) in case that short ride ends up being not-so-short. I'm sorry the rocks are scaring you. You have to keep at them, because you'll get your timing and flow back if you do. Is there a trail that has them that you are comfortable on to practice?

Thanks for the book title! That's it!

I'll be back at the rocks, and there are definitely many trails of varying skill level here (that's the only one I can think of that's challenging at all that has a nice mellow slope, though). Thinking back (I haven't ridden this trail in a few years), there were better and worse days for me, and it was always a challenge in spots. My big challenge seems to be the heat - and getting out early enough in the day to beat it. For some reason, no matter what my intentions, I don't seem to get to the trailhead till 11 - if I got there by 9, well, it would be a different story.

 

[contesstant]

The heat is hard to overcome, for sure. And I have days where I feel super strong and aggressive, then days where I feel like every rock is the size of a boulder. Plus, the trails' character will change throughout the season depending on weather, and traffic on them, etc. I know one of the "easy" loops nearby (easy for climbing, not easy for rocks) is a lot rockier this year than last. And the rocks just jut out higher and higher as the summer wears on. I'm going to go tackle that one tomorrow. There's a specific spot with a specifically placed rock that knocks me off my bike every time. I want to conquer it! Funny, it wasn't there last year. Might have been the rainy May...

 

[bounceswoosh]

The heat is hard to overcome, for sure. And I have days where I feel super strong and aggressive, then days where I feel like every rock is the size of a boulder. Plus, the trails' character will change throughout the season depending on weather, and traffic on them, etc. I know one of the "easy" loops nearby (easy for climbing, not easy for rocks) is a lot rockier this year than last. And the rocks just jut out higher and higher as the summer wears on. I'm going to go tackle that one tomorrow. There's a specific spot with a specifically placed rock that knocks me off my bike every time. I want to conquer it! Funny, it wasn't there last year. Might have been the rainy May...

I have noticed that generally speaking, obstacles on trails that look massive at the start of the season look pretty minor at the end of it. I have a feeling it's not the trail that's changing ...

 

[contesstant]

Well, those darn rocks seemed to be literally jumping out at me today, just one of those days! A lot of big, loose ones showed up that weren't there before. Unfortunately, the weekly race series tends to tear the trails up quite a bit. Anyway, in spite of being kind of off my game today, I rode several of the switchbacks that I have been too afraid to attempt There are still about 3 of them that are mostly right turns (my tough direction) that still throw me for a loop, but I'll get there! I do still think the 29er is just a bit too cumbersome for me in those tight turns and might contemplate a 27.5 for next year. I think the only way to know for sure is to get out on a 27.5. It's a tough call because I know the 29er helps me get over a lot of the rocks we have here.

 

[bounceswoosh]

Well, those darn rocks seemed to be literally jumping out at me today, just one of those days! A lot of big, loose ones showed up that weren't there before. Unfortunately, the weekly race series tends to tear the trails up quite a bit. Anyway, in spite of being kind of off my game today, I rode several of the switchbacks that I have been too afraid to attempt There are still about 3 of them that are mostly right turns (my tough direction) that still throw me for a loop, but I'll get there! I do still think the 29er is just a bit too cumbersome for me in those tight turns and might contemplate a 27.5 for next year. I think the only way to know for sure is to get out on a 27.5. It's a tough call because I know the 29er helps me get over a lot of the rocks we have here.

The trouble with demoing is that it tends to lead to buying ...

If it's true that 26" bikes are becoming obsolete, I don't think I'll be buying a new bike for quite a while. Maybe a 27.5 would help me get up the technical stuff, but I worry about the loss of nimbleness. Maybe I'd love it if I tried it ...

 

[contesstant]

The trouble with demoing is that it tends to lead to buying ...

If it's true that 26" bikes are becoming obsolete, I don't think I'll be buying a new bike for quite a while. Maybe a 27.5 would help me get up the technical stuff, but I worry about the loss of nimbleness. Maybe I'd love it if I tried it ...

Yes, and I can't afford a new bike right now! Unless I could get a premium for mine because the XC racers still want 29ers and women's 29ers are getting harder to find.

The race I am doing in two weeks has demo bikes you can use for free. It's tempting to try the 27.5, although switching to an unfamiliar bike seems like a bad idea. Maybe I can take one out for a spin after the race.