holiday hordes

Memorial Day itself was just gorgeous, with blue skies and bright sunshine, and we were eager to get our MTBs back over to Round Valley for a rematch.  Since it was going to be about ten degrees warmer than the last time we rode, we were over in Park City by 10:30 a.m.  My legs felt pretty strong - likely due to only having walked four miles the day before as opposed to 13.3 - and I was happy to be back on the bike.

Demonstrating mad descending skillz

We weren't the only people out enjoying the glorious holiday weather: the Round Valley trails were as busy as we've ever seen them.  This meant that in some spots (like the sagebrush switchbacks on the backside of Rambler), we had to pull over at nearly every other turn to let uphill riders pass by.  Still, it was a great day.  I only had to walk on three of the Sweet Sixteen (uphill) switchbacks and managed to pass a guy on another gentle uphill section; H rode right up Hammerhead (technically, Pladsen Hill) again like a boss; and best of all, there was hardly any headwind for the return to the truck.

You can see why they close the road for the winter

After our ride, we headed for Deer Valley to take the just-opened-for-the-summer Guardsman Pass.  We paused for snacks at the saddle, sitting on the tailgate and gazing at still snowy Timpanogos, then continued up.  There was quite a crowd admiring the view at the top of the pass - motorcyclists, cyclists, tailgaters, folks glissading in the snow.  We paused for a bit ourselves before heading down the Big Cottonwood side. One quick pop-in at the Porcupine for a pitcher and we were headed home.  Now that the pass is open, it's starting to feel like summer.