Since it's been unusually warm in most of January (in the 50 degree range), I had to ditch the fat bike and do some dirt/pavement riding. The snow is gone in the valleys but there is still mud and some dry or tacky dirt in most places. Since it still gets dark around 5:30ish, I've been finding ways to ride during daylight hours while still working at my job. Like some days, I ride during lunch break or take a very short 15 minute lunch then get off around 4 pm so I can have an hour or so to ride before it gets dark.
I've been riding on the roads close to my work which is around Wales, Moroni, Freedom, or Fountain Green. I've been doing all kinds of rides. I really like the Maple Canyon road climb that starts from Freedom and up to the mouth of the canyon where the pavement ends. It is a tough climb for a lunch break ride. It makes up my day though. And sometimes I ride around the town of Moroni and do some intervals and sprints because of the short climbs around Moroni. Then a cruiser by doing the Wales Loop. But it's great. By the way, I bought another bike. I was going to put the money into an updated drivetrain on my mountain bike but I've decided that the present drivetrain on there now is good enough for a little while, and which is a pretty good system. So, anyway, I used the money for another bike. It's a bike to keep at work so I can ride around during work. It's an $800 road bike which I bought it at a bike shop in Ephraim and I had him take off the drop out bars and put on flat handlebars instead which I like better. I never use the drops on the drop out handlebars. I also swapped on Cane Creek Ergo bar ends. It's a pretty sweet bike for 800 bucks. It's a Cannondale.
Well, I am starting to do some dirt rides also. I like to ride on Kane Valley Road by Black Hill in Ephraim. It's just tacky dirt and it's awesome conditions. Then I ride up on Mill Road up the pond which I call it "Darrel Olsen's Driveway". Then up on the rocky short cut to Gordon's Farm. It's just a ride I usually do during the early Spring but it's not Spring yet but it's just weird that it feels like it in January. Here's my Strava workout I did yesterday. Last weekend, it was a bigger ride though.
It's been nice, but we sure do need more snowstorms. It's been a dry January and I hope February will be wetter and get more snow in the mountains. We need the water.
