The White Rim in a day (104 miles)

Keri, Margaret, Me & Leslie-- the Crew.

On Mussleman Arch-- about 25 miles into the ride

The Green River on the west side. About 80 or so miles into the ride. 

Leslie coming up Hardscrabble Hill-- pushing the final leg of the trip and the last 17 miles. 

Quick break on the west side of the Island in the Sky. 

In 2004 I rode the White Rim in a Day with BYU-Idaho's Spring Summit group. It was a challenge and a thrill to complete. I've ridden it about 6 times since but never in one day again and not since having children. 

AND, since I've had kids I find I don't get out and push myself all day physically. I love climbing mountains, scrambling long routes, gaining lots of elevation, moving over the landscape and being outside in the elements. I still get out a lot, but an all-day-push-yourself-to-your-limits adventures are few and far between. This past winter Brian and I decided to put on the schedule a day for me to bike the White Rim in a Day. 

I invited a giant group of women to join me, but in the end there were four of us and the group size and members were perfect. I felt lucky that our numbers were small and all of us fit enough to stay together the whole time. 

About 6 weeks to 2 months before, Leslie invited me on an AM bike ride that was a major wakeup call. I thought that since I was in running/cardio shape, I was in biking shape. Not the case. So for the next two months we were waking up around 5:05am-6:20am to bike, run or swim for at least an hour, often two hours. I'm not going to lie, I loved these pre-dawn adventures and I've missed them since our ride. 

Anyway. Back to the ride. The day of I was so amped on adrenaline, I was like a 12-year-old boy. I could not settle down or go slow. We were up at 4:30am and on the road biking at 5:45am. We rode all. day. long. and finished back at our vehicle at 9:30pm. We were under the stars when we began and finished. Here are a few things I want to remember from the day:

*Riding with 4 women from my ward. I love these ladies. Our ages ranged from 31-40. All of us are outdoor-lovers and the company and camaraderie on the trail was awesome. 

*biking under the stars full of energy at the beginning

*eating as many oatmeal chocolate chip walnut cookies as I wanted all day long. 

*reaching the river on the west side. This is about 80 miles into the ride. I was tired. Every 10 miles felt long to me and we were going fast at this point. My achillies tendon was in a ton of pain and I was worried about it. The sun was in my face and my sunglasses falling off. We finally reached where we could see the green river and it was like a breath of fresh air (not like I needed that since all I had been breathing was fresh air). 

*Chafing. I have never felt chafing like that before. Eek.

*Mineral Bottom Switchbacks. 1,200ft climb out and our car was the at the top. We lay on our backs at the bottom of the hill, staring at the milky way and two small headlamps slowly creeping up the blackness (two other bikers ahead of us). We shared some crackers and tuna and talked about hamburgers and pizza. We talked about not wanting to do this giant hill. We talked about how far we had come and how the last 10 miles in the dark felt long and difficult because we couldn't see the ruts or ditches in front of us. And then Leslie and I started up the hill. Slowly inching our way up the giant switchbacks. We heard Clay's voice calling to her and it was actually really motivating to have someone cheering us on. We topped out in what felt like 20 minutes, but I'm sure it was more like 40mins. 

*Finishing. It felt so good. My body was so tired.

*I was so tired I didn't even want dinner. I went right to bed after a shower and posting an Instagram photo of the day (priorities, ya know). It was one of those times when you climb into bed and it feel so wonderful it's like it's giving you a hug. 

*I could barely walk the next day. My ankle was hot, red and swollen from achilies tendonitis. I felt better by Tuesday when Lindsey and I went for a run though. ;)

*11 years later, I still got it in me to mountain bike 104 miles in one day. BAM.