freewheeling

 Sunday was a gorgeous day in northern Utah - the clouds moved off, leaving the skies clear and blue, and it was warm but not too hot.  Perfect!  We got to Round Valley around 9:30 a.m. or so (realizing that as the summer wears on, we're going to have to go earlier before it really heats up), parking in the Quinn's Trailhead lot.  Although the parking lot never completely filled up, we did encounter over 35 MTBers out on the trails, which tells me that other people found the day perfect weather-wise as well.

As far as the riding went, I had a less-than-perfect outing.  For some reason that I can't determine, I have lost all confidence in my MTBing. I've never been very good but I've also never been so chicken, and I don't understand why my head is where it is.  I get very nervous on loose/rocky bits, which means I ride more slowly, which means the bike is less stable, which means I have to put my foot down or even fall into the bushes.

Upright!  Yay!

I did actually fall over once, just before the start of the Sweet Sixteen climb.  An older lady was coming towards me on the singletrack.  She looked terrified, so I pulled over to let her by.  She didn't say whether she was riding alone or not, so I waited for thirty seconds and then continued on.  Of course, her husband was just cresting the top of a short, steep hill that sometimes gives me trouble.  He eventually pulled over but I was going too slowly, not sure if he would get out of the way (even though as the uphill rider, I definitely had the right of way), so just as I got to the top, I tipped over, landing on my left side, feet still clipped in.  If I'd been going faster, I would have made it.  Hopefully that's a lesson learned.

H was, per usual, riding really well.  In the interest of his getting lots of miles, when we finished our loop, he went out and did it again (much faster), while I sat and read and patted various dogs as they came by.  When he came back, we had snacks and surreptitious beers, then headed home.  I wish I could get my head on straight when it comes to MTBing but it was still a gorgeous day to be outside, even if I couldn't keep it rightside up the whole time.