What is that?

The heater went on yesterday morning and I couldn't figure out what the noise was since I haven't heard it in so long. I had to put my wind vest on to ride to the pool for a swim workout in the morning. It was cold out but when I jumped in the pool and got going I was actually hot. It's funny the things you hear when in a locker room. Yesterday there was a group of girls (I'm guessing they were 17 or so) that were complaining about how broke they are. One had a car payment due that she said she didn't have enough money to pay this month. She was worried what would happen if she didn't make it. Her friend said she thought that it would be ok for awhile and she could try to make it whenever she had the money. They decided that was a good idea and that they should go get their nails done and go shopping. hahaha

I don't have anything new to write about really, I'm spending my free time swimming, doing a little riding, and next week I think I'll start back with rowing. I don't like to be in the gym when I can be outside, but I'm running out of outside stuff to do. So I think I'll put together a ride to the gym and then a row and ride home or something like that.

Crow

It was a nice night for a concert so we rode our bikes down for a beer and then to listen to Sheryl Crow. There were a TON of people out for the event and the restaraunts were all hopping.

Me, I just love the river at/after sunset.



Attack of the killer bike shadow.

I can't wait for the Bend Burger Company to open downtown. I don't eat hamburgers, but I'm a sucker for a shake. Not those lame ass ones that fast food restaurants have...a real one.

Today was my weekly anti coagulation appointment and I'm right in the appropriate INR zone! Woohoo! I've been commuting to and from work and the pool by bike without any problems and even rode at lunch a bit today. It's such a nice time of year to get out and ride or swim.

That's about it for me.

Fall is Creeping In

It was a little chilly for my ride into work today. Fall is around the corner indeed. I've been faithfully wearing my compression stocking to help my leg feel better. It looks really great with my riding shorts. It is so nice to get out and ride again after a little more than 3 weeks off. Commuting to work and the pool and back isn't much when I was riding 5-6 hour days just a month ago, but hey, it's a start right? The rockchucks appear to have gone in to hibernation or something, I haven't seen them in awhile.

Next week is the start of Webcyclery's cyclocross series! It sure would be nice to see some new faces out there. Are you at all interested in a good 40 or so minute workout? Nobody really cares what place they get, just show up with a bike and a good attitude. I'll be volunteering in some form.

Yesterday was our team pool party and BBQ. We had a good time playing around in the pool and pigging out on food.

One Day You're Fine, the Next You're Not

All these vacation posts were fun to look back at. We love to travel and ride in new places. However, the second to last day my right leg started to feel some strain again. It felt like just a really tight muscle that needed to be stretched..it kept kind of cramping up. We actually ended our vacation early and headed for home. Monday when we got back I went to the doctor because my lower leg was swelling. They diagnosed it as a re-injury to my calf/hamstring but sent me for an ultrasound just in case. Turns out I have deep vein thrombosis (blood clot). So, I spent two weeks giving myself injections into my stomach twice a day of a "blood thinner", as well as taking a pill each day. Also with that, I've been going to the anticoagulation clinic twice a week so they can monitor the levels of medicine in my blood. It's scary. I'm done with the injections and left with just taking Coumadin for possibly 6 months.

I'm back to riding some now that my muscle has healed, and swimming is still a strong part of my exercise.

One Day You're Fine the Next You're Not.

Stanley Idaho

Stanley, Idaho was our last stop. We did two rides here while we camped and enjoyed the small town. Our first ride was not what the map mad it sound like. The climbs were too steep and loose for riding, especially after all we'd ridden in the prior 2 weeks. The downhill was awesome, but the climb made it not worth it. We rode for almost 6 hours but at least two was hiking.



















This was the end of the trail Derek had ridden up the river to see if the trail continued on and then he had to walk back to let me know.

Sun Valley

The riding in Sun Valley was really hot and dry. There are a lot of steep ups and downs! I really enjoyed the town of Ketchum, very cool laid back vibe compared to Jackson and we met quiet a few very nice locals.

First way to test a town is to have a beer

Then you ride the next day.

When we weren't riding we were tasting local beers and checking out the scenery.

Antler Arch in downtown Jackson



Mormon Row - Mormon homesteaders established these scattered cabins in the early 1900s.







I'm that close to the Bison, I was just standing there and he wandered across the street right in front of me.



Momma was quite pretective of her little baby there.







Our next stop was Sun Valley, Idaho.

Brew Fest!

Tomorrow night I'm volunteering at the Brew Fest down at the Amphitheatre. I'll be pouring beer at one of the 40+ brewers that are coming this year. So, last night was our little volunteer party. We enjoyed free Rico's Tacos (I had an excellent chicken one), drank free beer (I had Longhammer IPA and some other Amber that was very good). The event is a fundraiser for Big Brothers Big Sisters, so get out and have some fun tonight and Saturday night and support a great organization.

Snow King Jackson Pictures

Our second ride in Jackson was another long day at around 5 hours of pedaling. We started at the snow mountain right in town and rode some fun trails on the slopes before heading out on a big loop. Again, super fun singeltrack with amazing views.

Here is the view of Jackson from the face of the ski slope.





Wilson Canyon - I was initially a little uneasy about taking this trail because it showed as double black diamond on the map. It turned out to be totally rideable, though the picture makes it look tame. I rode it all and then hiked back up to take Derek's picture.



















We finished the day with beers at the Snake River Brewery.

Jackson

We made the drive from Bozeman to Jackson, Wyoming and setup camp at Gros Ventre which had been closed two weeks before because the grizzlies were using it for their roaming grounds.

The town of Jackson is pretty touristy and we didn't spend a lot of time there. Most of our time was on the bike or out taking pictures of the scenery.

Our first ride was Black Canyon. Climb up for something like 2 hours, descend for a long ways. It was gorgeous scenery as usual.

Crater Lake (not THE Crater Lake)















Our campsite



River at our camp.



A moose!

Bangtail Divide

After our Curly Lake Epic the day before, we were warmed up for another long day of singletrack riding. Bangtail Divide is a relatively new trail outside of Bozeman that had great views of several mountain ranges to include the Briders, Crazies, Absaroka, Gallatin, and Madison. It was 24 miles and started with over climbing around 28 switchbacks. I think we rode for about 5 hours this day. It was a great ride with a very fast and fun ending downhill.

















We didn't take pictures of the downhill because we were racing against a thunderstorm. We didn't make it and ended up riding the last 7 miles in a flash flood and hail. We were drenched but happy when we got back to the car.