(Jen climbing Rose Canyon)

It's been a while since I've been on the road bike outside but today looked promising because of the decent weather and the relative lack of road salt. It was a fun ride with Jen and I've been going crazy riding the rollers so it was so nice to get out. Though it's only been cold for a couple of months I can already tell that I am losing my climbing legs. Riding the rollers simply doesn't give you the same kind of work that climbing a mountain gives you. I guess the rollers are better than nothing.

I'm still waiting for snow. It's almost January and we haven't had 1 powder day.

Christmas Weekend

It was a fun Christmas this year. I should say that it's fun every year but this year we all managed to stay healthy which is big for us. We tend to always have colds during Christmas time but not this year. We have a tradition to ski on Christmas Eve and then eat dinner up there at the Tramcar Restaurant. After dinner when it's dark Snowbird does a torchlight parade down the mountain that we watch from the plaza deck as they serve free hot chocolate around bonfires. After the parade they do fireworks as Santa comes down on the tram and repels to the ground to give out candy canes. It's a fun atmosphere for Christmas Eve. We then come back down to the valley for family Christmas parties at around 7:00pm.

I got everything I wanted for Christmas. A couple of carbon water bottle cages and a wireless bike computer as well as some needed clothes. Santa was good to me.

I hate the smog in the valley. It's very depressing. It's been smoggy for the past week and it's again smoggy today but when it's like this down here it usually means beautiful weather up the canyons. That's been the case the past 2 weekends. Though it means it's too cold and icy to ride the bike it's really been gorgeous skiing. The snow is still way too scarce but it's plenty when taking the kids. I'm still waiting patiently for the big storms.

While at Snowbird Saturday Hendrix invented a new way to get across the flats. It made me laugh.

It was a busy weekend. I guess it's just that time of year. I biked up Suncrest on Friday. The ride was good and though I struggle up to the top, it felt good to be outside. My one complaint was the amount of salt that was on the road. I never thought about the road salt in the winter but my bike was caked with the stuff by the end of the ride. If there is one thing that I'm sure isn't good for a road bike it's salt. I gave it a good cleaning when I got home but I'll have to more careful in upcoming rides.

Saturday we had 2 Christmas parties. One in the morning and one in the evening. In between those events we hurried up the canyon and skied with the kids. The sun was out, the air was clear and warm and it was just a beautiful day up there. The snow was not the best, a little icy but it's been a while since we've had a good storm so you just take it for what it is.

If you look close you can see the Tram going up in the distance.

December 6th and still riding. It was actually quite nice. Though it was only 28 degrees I dressed warm and road only a short distance and I was comfortable the whole time. It looks like the rest of the week will be more of the same as far as weather goes, so I plan to continue with a couple more lunchtime rides outside.

We sold Jen's Giant road bike yesterday.

It was with mixed feelings that we did this. It was a great entry level bike for her and she really enjoyed it. Plus, we had it for such a short amount of time but we figured with the way bikes depreciate we'd better sell it while we still could. At first I thought we'd use it for a winter bike but I soon realized that our new bikes were too much fun and I didn't see us going back to the older bikes at all.

My Giant is for sale too. I don't expect it to take to long before it goes. At least someone else might get to enjoy it and maybe it will start the cycling addiction for them?

Riding in December

I can't believe it's already December. Time is really going by fast. I've been wondering how late into the season I'd be able to ride my bike outside. So far, December looks feasible. I'm still waiting for the big snow storms to come and I'm getting a little impatient. I do hope they come soon. But at least I was able to ride today during lunch. It wasn't too cold, low 40's which is not bad. I rode hard too. As fast as I could up Rose Canyon. The winds were swirling which made it tricky but I was able to best my personal record by 33 seconds so I am satisfied.

Thanksgiving Fun!

What a fun weekend! On Wednesday Jen and I took our kids up to Snowbird to spend the night at the Cliff Lodge as part of a free deal they give season pass holders. We got up there late in the afternoon and skied for a little over an hour before we were able to check in. We had fun with the kids that night and skied again with them in the morning. It was hard to get the kids out on the mountain that morning. The only thing they seemed to want to do was hang out in the hotel and watch t.v. but it was worth the hassle of begging them to come out in the end. At one point Jen and I questioned bringing the kids at all. I kept thinking how lucky they were to be there and as a kid I would have killed to be up in the mountains on thanksgiving but yet they didn't seem to appreciate that we were there at all. It seems to go that way lot and we've learned that if we can just push through the rough parts of getting their gear on and ignoring their complaints and just get on the mountain they always, without fail, have fun. This time was no different.
By the end of the morning there was a lot of laughing and smiling and we had to drag them off the hill to get to Grandma's for thanksgiving dinner.

Friday and Saturday turned out to be great weather for biking. Jen and I thoroughly enjoyed our morning rides. I rode Rose Canyon hard on Saturday in my attempt at placing well in the KOM competition using the cycling app "Strava". I placed 5th on that climb which gave me a small sense of accomplishment.

Sunday night Jen and I went up to Snowbird again to stay at the Cliff Lodge (again free) but this time we left the kids with Grandma & Grandpa. Skied in the morning. It was warm and sunny and the snow wasn't that bad. On days like these we often compare it to going to the beach. Relaxing and warm, getting fresh air, it really reminds us of the beach. I like our beach-skiing days but I still prefer our frantic powder skiing days.

Jen at the top of the tram.

Ski Season Begins! Day 1

I've had a fun summer but it felt so good to be back on snow. But really, it hasn't been that long since we were on snow. Maybe the 4th of July ski day made the summer feel not that long. We took the kids up to Snowbird around noon on Saturday and did a couple of laps on Mid-Gad and Gadzoom. It had snowed the previous night so even though the snow wasn't deep at least it felt like winter with everything all white. After a few runs the kids wanted hot chocolate so while they relaxed Jen and I took turns flying down the few runs they had open. After the past 4 seasons of taking our kids we've learned that it's best to go later in the day, not rush, and enjoy the late afternoon skiing that's available. This is totally contrary to the powder day mentality but with kids it doesn't matter. Skiing at the end of the day is much more relaxed with few lines and the kids enjoy it better. I'm sure that will change someday as they start to enjoy powder. Then, it will be first chair, ski as much as you can as hard as you can while the snow is good. In the meantime we have found this to work best.

On the cycling side of things...I've been riding the past couple of days on rollers. I would much rather be outside but with the bad weather it's the best I can do. They aren't too bad. They took about 15 minutes to learn but are worth the extra effort. So far I have 2 complaints. One is the amount you sweat on these things. Without the air movement that you usually have riding outside you find yourself drenched within a few minutes. I for sure need to get a fan for this. Hopefully that will solve that. Next is boredom. It's mind numbing. This the my biggest complaint. I've got to find a way to occupy myself. I didn't think it would be that bad because of the effort of balancing that rollers take and the fact that bike riding long distances takes mental fortitude anyway, but when I'm not moving and I stare at the same things the whole ride, I'm having a hard time coping. Tomorrow I think the weather will be nice enough to ride outside. I'll look forward to that.

It was a windy ride today, but I figure I better get out there while the weather is still tolerable. It still felt great. Today I couldn't help but think how much I love to ride my bike. I love to ski too. A storm is blowing in and is scheduled to arrive Saturday, just in time for our first ski day. Snowbird opens tomorrow but I have too much work to do so we'll miss opening day, but it will probably be windy and they'll only have 1 lift open so I'm okay with missing it.

So with the bad weather, and trying to think of how to keep my fitness up, I've bought some rollers for my bike. This will be totally new for me but I'm excited to see if it works. They arrive tomorrow so I'll find out then. In the mean time, below is a picture of Utah Lake in the distance. This was from my ride up Suncrest yesterday:

Yesterday Jen had work off so I invited her to come on my lunchtime ride up Suncrest with me. This was her first time up the north side and she had no problems with it. I'll admit she's pretty tough. :) It was beautiful fall weather with little or no wind. The decent was fast and a little chilly. I find that riding in this weather is tricky because going uphill you are nice and warm but if you start to sweat and you can still see your breath you know you're in trouble. You are always worried about layering just right but it's hard on a bike because of the drastic temperature changes between uphill and downhill. Especially in November.

A little video from the top.

Cold Morning Ride

Jen decided not to ride her bike with me this morning because it was too cold. She ran instead. Apparently, running is much warmer than biking. I wouldn't know. But she probably made the right call. It was in the mid-twenties when I left. We moved the clocks back last Sunday so now it is lighter in the mornings which was nice. I know it won't last long because we'll continue to lose light up until December 21st. Then it will begin to come back again.

I dressed with all my warm gear and headed up the foothills of Herriman. The first climb up above Herriman pond felt great. In fact, I was contemplating removing a layer because I was pretty warm. By the time I hit Rose Canyon I began to feel the cold. As I continued to ascend the temperature dropped. I couldn't tell if it got colder because of the gain in elevation or if it was the fact that the sun was almost up and I think it always gets colder just as the sun is about to come up. By the time I got to the top of the road I was glad I had all my layers on. On the decent I felt my feet go numb. I was glad to get back when I did. I may need to rethink this winter riding idea. Maybe I'll look into getting rollers? Tomorrow should be better. We'll try to get out during the middle of the day.This is where the paved road ends up Rose Canyon and the dirt road begins.

As you can see, the snow is starting to stick up here.

The road heading back down.

It's Snowing!

The weather has been so nice and warm lately and riding my bike over the weekend and in the morning on Halloween has been lovely but....Today is the first day of November and it's snowing outside. With this weather I wasn't able to get my morning ride in and I won't be able to ride during lunch either. But that's o.k. I'm not upset. For it is snowing! And it's suppose to snow Friday too. And maybe another storm next week! As much fun as I have had this past summer riding almost everyday I can't tell you how excited I am to ski again. I hope it snows like crazy from here on out. I plan to ride my bike any chance I can but I am so excited to get up in the mountains and ski some powder. Snowbird is scheduled to open November 19th and I can't wait. In commemoration of this coming season I've posted a video of a ski day we enjoyed last season. Hopefully it will get you excited too!

Woke up for an early morning ride with my wife. It was noticeably colder today. In the lower 30's. It was a good test for the winter riding gear. Everything felt good except the hands. By the end of the ride they were again completely frozen. I'll have to find better gloves. The ones I have work great but not for anything colder than the 40-50 degree range.

We rode up above Herriman Lake, if you can call it a lake, (Really it's just a small, man-made pond) up to where the roads end in the foothills, then down, and up again to Rose Canyon and back. Not a long ride, just about 16 miles but it does have a bit of climbing. I think as the weather gets colder and colder we'll have to shorten the length of our rides in the morning. This one seems like a pretty good distance for the future. Besides, I hope to get regular rides in during lunches.

Here is the view from above Herriman Pond or whatever you want to call it.

As you can see, (or maybe better, "can't see") it's dark up there.

Riding in the Dark

Being October it' dark in the mornings. Very dark. You have to prepare for this. Cars are dangerous enough in daylight but in the dark they become extra scary. I think of the times I've ridden in the past while it was dark outside and man, that was crazy.

I don't think I would every go again without at least a front white light and a back red light. You may not know this but there are a lot of options when it comes to lights for bikes. When I first looked into it I had no idea. The question you must ask yourself is "do I want to actually see with this light or do I only need to be seen with this light?" Turns out there is a huge difference between the two. I first went with the cheaper option and got a light just to be seen. My wife got the other option and bought a more pricey front light that is bright enough that it actually helps you see with it. After borrowing hers while on a solo ride I realized I had made a big mistake. It seems crazy expensive but if you do a lot of riding in the dark I've learned it's well worth it.

This is the NiteRider MiNewt 350. It's not terribly heavy and at 350 lumens it's pretty bright. It's all self contained in one unit so there is no battery pack to worry about. At the highest power the battery lasts about 2 hrs and the recharges using a USB cable. It mounts easily to your handle bars and has a quick release that makes it easy to switch to other bikes.

This is the backlight I wear. It's cheap and easy but works just fine.

I wear a reflective vest that's not a full vest but more just straps that you wear like a vest. It's easily adjustable for when you have a jacket on or not. I had a hard time finding one like this. I could only find it at a running shop near my office.

My New Bike

I bought an entry level road bike earlier this year. This was done for a number of purposes in mind but the reason I went with an entry level bike was because I really didn't know if I would enjoy the sport or not. I wasn't willing to make too big of an investment without knowing how committed I would be. And at the time, I was blown away at how expensive even entry level bikes were.

Now, after a summer of being completely addicted I've come to realize that I need(or at least, really, really want) a better bike. So this is what I got. Nothing too expensive but a good bike all the same. Here is the breakdown and review:

So this is the Focus Izalco Pro 3. It's a full carbon frame with Ultegra 6700 build. The frame has a BB30 bottom braket with oversized chain stays and thin seat stays. The headtube is tapered from a 1 1/8" to a 1 1/2". I got the compact 50/34 crankset with the SL-K hollow carbon cranks. It has a 3T Fonda Pro carbon fork and the cockpit is SL-K with a fi'zi:k arione saddle. The only thing that is less than stellar about the build on this bike are the wheels. They are Mavic Ksyrium Equipe wheels that do just fine in training but they are heavy when compared to the carbon wheels out there. I will have to upgrade somewhere down the line.

As currently built it weights just over 16 lbs. That's supper light when compared to my older bike. I've been on this ride for a little over 3 weeks now and I couldn't be happier. The first thing you notice when you get on and start to pedal is that it wants to go. With every stroke you feel like you are being flung forward. There seems to be very little energy loss between your legs and the bike. The next thing you notice is how quiet the bike is. The only sound is the rubber on the pavement. It's so quite that I can hear the leather on my shoes squeak as I pedal.

Shifting with the Ultegra components is smooth and solid. Being light, the bike is fun going uphill but it is downhill that you really notice how this bike wants to go fast. It seems to go top speed within seconds of letting it. Handling the bike takes a bit of getting used to. With the tapered headtube you need only make the most subtle movements to steer. It has a very short wheel base but you get used to that soon enough. After riding for about a week and a half I went in to get fitted and we switched the stem for a longer one and changed some other minor settings on the bike. Not that the original setup was bad but it feels even better now. I haven't been on any super long rides on it yet so I'm not sure how it will feel after 75 or 100 miles but I will know soon enough. That is where the carbon frame is suppose to come into play. It's suppose to make the ride much more smooth especially over longer distances. I'll give my review on that part later on.

As for my wife's bike; it's a Cannondale SuperSix with similar features. She went with SRAM components on hers and she seems to be happy with it. I'll let her review it here if she wants to.

This upcoming week we are suprising our kids with a trip to Disneyland over UEA weekend so I'm trying to get all the riding I can before we go. It should be fun.

Little Cottonwood

Yesterday at noon I hopped on my bike for my lunchtime ride. The original plan was to drive up to the mouth of Little Cottonwood Canyon and from there ride up to the top and back. As it got time to go work got crazy, so I thought that maybe it would be better if I just left from my office, did a short ride and came back to the office. So off I went heading east. As I rode I thought I'll go just a little further and then turn around. Soon I found myself at the mouth of the canyon. "I'll just go up a little further and turn around." It was such a beautiful ride that I couldn't get myself to turn around. Finally I thought "To heck with this, I'm going to the top." As soon as I made up my mind to go all the way I began to suffer. My legs didn't seem to want to go anymore. Despite the supposed cool temps I was dying of heat and my water was running low. I was hungry too. I had one GU gel with me but that didn't seem to help much. At least there is water at the top I thought. I can refill there. I really struggled but after what felt like forever I made it to the top. There I found that they had removed the benches and the water fountain for the winter season. I had no water left and I was a long way from my office, but at least it was mostly downhill from here. I took some quick pics of the recent early fall snow and down I went. Even though I was dying of heat on the way up I could now feel the cool air coming down and it got a bit chilly. Good thing for arm warmers. I made it back but boy was I thirsty. It took a while to be feeling better but my legs are still sore. I will go for an easier ride at lunch today. One thing of note; I've run out of my HEED Hammer energy drink so yesterday I had only plain water and I got thinking, perhaps that is why I suffered so much. Maybe it does make that much of a difference? Entirely possible. The above pics are slopes at the top with the recent snow. I can't wait to be skiing these slopes!

Suncrest Ride

Yesterday I took my bike to work with the plan of riding during lunch. I thought I would just head up to the Draper LDS temple and back but by the time I got there I still had plenty of time before I had to be back in the office so I kept going. I ended up going up the north side of South Mountain up to the top of Suncrest. I was surprised at how tough it was. I have climbed up to the top several times but always on the south side. The north side felt much steeper and even longer as well. It was a good ride. I came back to work with my mind cleared and ready to go. I think this might be the answer to my winter riding schedule. It stays dark so late and gets dark so soon that I've been trying to figure out how I can ride in the light. This might work.

I still ride in early morning. It's very dark but that is the only time my wife can go with me. We have good lights and we are decked out in reflective material but still riding during the day is much more comfortable. Today for example, we rode Rose canyon in the early morning but I've brought my bike to work again and I think I'll try to get up Little Cottonwood canyon during lunch. I'll post how it goes.

My Interests....

I've always wondered what it would be like to blog. So, I decided to give it a try. Why blog? Well, because it'll give me a chance to talk about what I like. My hobbies and adventures at least. I always seem to get new hobbies. My wife says that I tend to become obsessed with my latest hobby but I claim that I'm just passionate. As a teenager I was all about sports. Football in particular. Later I fell in love with music. Not just listening, but playing it as well. I learned guitar and joined a band and had a lot of fun. I still love to play with the band every chance I get (which seems to not be near enough).

About 7 years ago I discovered skiing. It blew my mind that here I lived in Utah and only went once when I was a kid. Now I tend to dream about it often and when I'm not dreaming about it I'm actually there on the mountain.

A few years ago my wife gave me as a birthday present a telescope. I've always enjoyed astronomy and I did really well in my college astronomy classes but it wasn't until I first saw Saturn with my own eye(s) in this telescope that I realized, "holy crap, I've got to show people how amazing this is." Since then I've loved learning and looking at the universe.

The latest thing I've discovered is a passion for is cycling. Road cycling in particular. Last year, as a way to save money, maybe lose some unwanted pounds and perhaps save the earth, I bought a townie bike to ride to work on. I road about every other day on my upright cruiser to work and back (about 10 miles each way) but I suffered most of the time. It was hot, the bike was heavy, and traffic was scary. Plus, to top it off I actually got a ticket while riding this bike. (long story.) This past May, while debating if I wanted to ride to work or not I decided I wanted to get a real road bike. Maybe I would not suffer as much on my way to work.

It was all a spur of the moment thing. I came home, told my wife what I wanted to do and by that weekend we had both bought entry level road bikes. She thought I was crazy, but she thought that if I was going to get one then she should get one too. It turned out to be a good thing because I quickly became addicted. I wanted to go for longer and longer rides and soon it became all about the journey and less about the destination. I even stopped riding to work (which was the original purpose of the bike) because it was too short of a ride and I enjoyed getting up early and riding the roads I wanted to ride. The amount of time we spent on the bike became more and more but I am very grateful that it was something we did together, much like skiing. The only down side is that when I began looking at getting a much better road bike, I knew I would have to get her one too. But I was more than happy to do it if it meant that she would still ride with me. This time was different though. We spent much more time researching and comparing before we finally decided to buy. Also, buying at the end of the season made things a little bit more affordable. Maybe I'll do a post about what I learned in searching for a good road bike. It deserves it's own post.

So anyway, this is what I've decided to make my blog about. My hobbies. I'm sure I'll inject my opinions on other things too but mostly my hobbies. We'll see how it goes.....