Almost Gypsy Soul

If a large number of pictures is an indicator of how much fun a weekend was then no one should attend WYDAHO bike festival at Grand Targhee. ever. never.ever. But I'll let you in on a little secret, I was having too much fun and I failed to remember to take out my camera....except for that ONE time. Horseshoe Canyon Trail System WYDAHO bike festival is a 4 day festival over Labor Day weekend held at Grand Targhee Ski Area in Alta, WY. The festival is a fundraiser for Teton Valley Trails and Pathways, the organization responsible for building and upkeep of the super awesome trails in Teton Valley. The festival has group rides, skills clinics, raffles, music, drinks, food, giveaways, downhilling, tons of trails, shenanigans (keg pull, strider races, hill climbs, huffy toss) and a whole lotta fun! So get out there enjoy the outdoors and have so much fun that you forget to document it!

In my quest to expand my mountain biking destinations, I called up an old high school friend who lives in Fruita to see if he might be around and interested in biking over Memorial Day weekend. Lucky for me, not only was he interested, but his wife and their neighbors/friends were too. A couple days on the trails turned into a small camping trip and a whole lotta fun! We started the weekend out by visiting my friend at his place of employment....which just happens to be Peach Street Distillery in Palisade. My friend...well...he's a distiller. Now that is a cool job and he gave us a behind the scenes tour. Rode them all, but Joe's Ridge to Kessel Run was my favorite The next day we headed out to 18 Road for some camping and biking. I'm here to tell you this is how to bike. We would bike for an hour or so, come back to the camper and refresh with shade, snacks and beer .... gatorade ....beer. Then out we'd go for another ride. Jen, Tyler & Will on Joe...

One of my goals for 2016 was to get more involved in my community. A new friend from spin class had been bugging me about coming to the mountain bike club meetings for a while and I finally caved. And I'm glad that I did. The Sweetwater Mountain Bike Association (SMBA) is a great bunch of guys and a hidden gem of a trail system in Green River, WY. Wilkins Peak was even voted on the 2016 Best Mountain Bike Trails by Singletracks.com. Trail maintenance on Brent and Mike's Each year the club puts on a Trail Days to introduce people to the Wilkins Peak Trail System and mountain biking. The club, along with sponsors, offers a free pancake breakfast, guided rides on the trail system, night ride and raffles/giveaways. This year we were even able to raffle off a brand new Trek mountain bike with the support of Bike & Trike in Rock Springs. The event was attended by approximately 100 people, the most we've ever had. Trek bike raffle winner Logan (L) with President ...

Switchgrass EPIC mountain bike trail  Sure sounds like an oxymoron doesn't it!? I was presently surprised by an Epic mountain bike trail that can be found just a few miles off of I-70....and on my way to my friend's wedding. And for the record, although there were only 2 of us, when he lived in Wyoming he was part of the mountain bikers so I'm counting it as my trip with the mountain bikers this year for the 2015 goals! Steve liked catching critters...I screamed when I about ran over this one! We met in Wilson the night before, he coming from the east and me from the west. We stayed at the historic Midland Railroad hotel, it was super cute and the food and beer sure hit the spot after traveling all day. Crossing the tracks, Wilson, Kansas Then the next morning we headed out to Wilson Lake to hit the trail. The trail consists of stacked loops for a total of 24 miles. I was so excited to ride 24 miles as that would be the longest ride I'd ever done, but ...

Everyone has told me how beautiful Sheep Creek Geological Loop, south of Manila is. Most people would get in their vehicle and drive it to get the confirmation that they need.....me? nope. I sign up for a 10k to confirm that yes, I do need to drive the whole thing at a later date. Tower Rock We will recap that I ran a half marathon back in October and I have ran a total of about 6 times since then....including a couple 5Ks, a few mini miles with the kiddos, and a 5 mile training run with Colorado Transplant Friend. So, yeah, I signed up for the 10K instead of the 5K....for scenery purposes of course. At the top, ready for the start. Colorado Transplant Friend and I ran the 10K while Music Man ran the 5K. I finished 8th in my age group and only walked a tiny bit. These old lady hips, knees and ankles don't take the pounding of running without training too well. Proof of Life: Before and After

Even though I'm about 2 years too late, I'm whittling away on some of the items that were on my original Dirty 30 list. And somehow, these are making me the most happy because I didn't give up on them just because I missed them on 2 years worth of "bucket lists" Note to self: add glow sticks and extra jackets to the golf bag for night golf! This year Music Man found us a glow-in-the-dark golf tournament before it actually happened! Alabama Boy and Uinta Girl golfed with us. There were prizes for first through 4th place and last place. Uinta Girl and I thought we might have a chance at last place, but turns out we are better than last place, yet not quite good enough for a prize. Average, mediocre....yep that's us! Music Man and Alabama Boy though....2nd place and new Taylormade putters! Alabama Boy and Music Man with their trophy putters! Alabama Boy and Music Man....at about 130 AM Uinta Girl and Almost Gypsy Soul.....freezing! I pla...

It took me more than 30 days of little exercise, more than 30 days of not watching what I was eating, more than 30 days of consuming too much alcohol to look like this on the left. And it took me more than 30 days of weight training and intense cardio, more than 30 days of active activities on my "rest day", more than 30 days of logging every single thing that I put in my mouth, more than 30 days of limiting alcohol intake to START to LOOK and FEEL like the old me on the right. When in reality I am a new and improved me. I'm happier than I've been in a long time. I'm proud of what I've accomplished and I'm ready to go farther. I've been inspired by many, many people have put in the hardwork and dedication to lose weight, get happy, get healthy....whatever their end goal may be. These are people that I know and some that I don't. My Facebook has become somewhat of a gym these days.....all I have is posts from the fitness groups I have join...

The annual all day golf trip to Fossil Island in Kemmerer, Wyoming. We decided to go earlier this year because the last 2 years we have golfed in cold weather.....all day. Fossil Island has an amazing fall golf special, all you can golf with a cart for only $25! The bad news is Pizza Hut in Kemmerer doesn't deliver to Hole 7. We played 33 holes and had a great time! I can't hardly wait until next year's annual trip. And this time we will be armed with our team t-shirts that are in the works as we speak!

Military Friend, Colorado Transplant Friend, Little Sister and I signed up for the Color Run in Logan, Utah this summer. We made a weekend out of it and had a blast! Only 5Ks from here on out for this girl. That distance suits me.

So as I am about to embark on my second (yeah who in the hell ever thought there would be a first let alone a second....I'm a pushover) half marathon, I came across this post titled Only HALF Crazy on Facebook, so naturally I clicked. You should too, hers is funnier than mine. So what crossed my mind in the 2 hours and 50 some odd minutes while I was cruising around San Jose, California? 1. Why did we get here so early 2. I hope I make the train crossings in time....or do I? 3. There sure are alot of port-a-potties 4. Jeez....where are all the port-a-potties? 5. My hips hurt 6. My knees hurt 7. Which hurt worse? my hips or my knees? 8. I wonder what that guy's time is going to be? 9. Where is that guy's shoes? Who runs barefoot? 10. Which wine should I drink first? 11. How many people signed up for this nonsense? 12. I hope they don't run out of medals before I finish 13. I should have taken one of those donuts at mile 8....damnit. 14. O happy day! the...

I took the plunge and I bought my very own mountain bike. After lots of deliberation and riding about 10 different bikes, I made a decision and whipped out the ole' Visa (which is currently residing in a block of ice because I'm irresponsible). I haven't gotten to ride it much this summer and I'm already looking forward to next summer. There will be no running next year, all biking and hiking! Little Sister and I did get in a quick ride one weekend, it was her first ride and she did great! Little Sister's first mountain bike ride My new beaut! Logan River Trail Great day for a ride!

 Well the day has finally arrived, I'm clipped in.....as in my shoes are attached to my pedals....as in I have way more power and way more incidents of falling over. which really happens by the way......TIMBER! Every Tuesday is a group ride. They are really nice and let me ride with them even though I'm way slower than they are, but I'm getting better. There is usually always good food, good conversation and a few adult beverages after the ride. Definitely the best night of the week! Doin' the Joler pose And the serious pose.....well most of us

Not exactly a true story because I don't fly fish and I actually went to work this week. BUT I'd sure rather would have had "my arm in a cast"

This probably won't be exactly what you think you are going to read. Its something that I often brush off or don't think about because, well because its depressing and scary. I'd like to think it wouldn't....couldn't ever happen to me, but let's be honest I'm not that scary, I'm not that tough and it COULD happen to me. There was an article in the newspaper last week reporting that a 14 year old girl was snatched off the street in broad daylight near my new house. She was taken into the desert, raped and left there to walk home. When she stumbled back into the residential area and found by some kids playing, they called for help. She was able to provide a pretty decent description of the man and what he was driving.....he has not been arrested to my knowledge. It got me to thinking .......that is where I live.......no more leaving the door unlocked, even for a few minutes while I run here or there. .......that is where I run.....with headphones in...

I've been talked into moving from the stationary bike to a real one. I haven't ridden a bike in who knows how long and I've never ridden a bike like this before. Hick was nice enough to loan me his old bike until I decide if I like this enough to buy my own. And its fun and its hard and its scary at times. The group has been nice enough to start "sally rides" on Thursday while I learn. I really like riding with the group, but I spend a fair amount of time riding on my own too....trying to catch up to their skill level. Sally Ride with 'The Mountain Bikers' I tried to challenge myself this week by going on the 'easy trail' that they went on while Joe and Hick babysat me on the '5 year old trail' (At the time I thought it was a little tough, but I learned that I have a lot to learn). I made it up next to no hills without stopping and thought I was going to die on the downhills. Picture this....me racing (I'm sure I was going super ...

Spring skiing snowboarding is pretty awesome! Its warm, the snow is soft and everyone is a generally awesome mood. Ready to party and cut loose. Although work has been crazy lately since I've taken over another county office....making it three counties and several million acres, still just the two of us. I snuck away for a weekend in Winter Park/Granby. After all, one had to seal the deal on paying for the Monarch season pass, which was with a window price of $119 bucks at Winter Park....OUCH! We met up with Assistant Pack Leader and some of her friends for a day on the mountain. We met some new friends at our hotel. We signed up for half marathons, we planned trips to hike Pikes Peak, watch Stretch's fight and bike the wineries in Palisade. I'd say it was a pretty productive weekend!   I do believe this will be the final snowboarding post for a while seems how its nearly 60 degrees today (as in the day this was written, not today-today) and its not noon ...

time to get my rear in gear. I hardly recognized myself anymore. Things that I used to love to do, like pretty much anything active had been replaced with sedentary activities or even worse food and booze. I found myself being a spectator to life. I didn't feel good about myself, I was embarrassed about the way I looked. I can't even say it was one specific thing, but a picture of me with friends had a lot to do with slapping me in the face. It hasn't been easy and I can't even tell you how long I've been working on it or the last time I had a glass of milk, but none of that matters. What matters is I feel great, I feel like I'm living again, I feel happy, I feel accomplished (but with more to accomplish) and someday I'll be able to drink milk again. (Can you tell I love milk?)

This year Military Friend and I had BIG plans for NYE....we just couldn't stand staying home and doing nothing. But our big plans kept falling through, so we decided to hit up Monarch with our season passes and celebrate with big time in a small town. Verdict? Small ski towns really are the best ever!   We rang in the New Year with the Boys from Kansas, who we kept running into all weekend trip long. They were a riot and impressed that I requested Randy Rogers Band. After ringing in the New Year and staying up way past our bedtime....and by way past I mean until 3 AM. Ouch. We hit the slopes on 4" of new snow by 930AM on New Years Day. Military Friend and I are usually a chatty pair, but we mostly just sat in silence on the lift that day.  After playing in the snow, we decided that a trip to Mt. Princeton Hot Springs was exactly what was needed to prepare us for the nap that was to be taken before dinner on New Years Day. We had some VIP passes and the hot springs...

I've gotten an invitation for several years to join the fun in Red River NM from Football Fan and this year I made it a point to go. After all, the snowboarding was "free" . Although this year's group was smaller and calmer and abided by the the new rules. Rules like: 1. No puking 2. No bar fights 3. No cops/jail. Even with rules in place, we had a great time and even got some fresh snow to play in. **We may or may not have even needed rules, as we were sound asleep by 11pm, we were on vacation, we do what we want** I had a conversation before I left on the trip that went something like this...... Friend: So how many people are going? Me: Oh, I'm not really sure, I think like 10-ish Friend: Wow and you know all of them? Me: No, I actually only know one person, but I'm sure we will all be friends because she likes me and she likes them so its pretty much required right? Friend: Um, sure. I win, I came away from the weekend with some new frien...