……Spring fever that is!  It is that time of year when you want to do nothing but organize your house, pull the weeds in the yard, fertilize the lawn and ride and run until your legs fall off!  The weather has been spectacular in St. George over the past few weeks.  The deluge of rain we got in late February has brought about blossoming trees, daffodils and the greenest golf course fairways you could ever imagine.  Being in between marathons, this weekend was all about the biking and the 70 degree weather and sunshine made it a perfect day.

This past week I focused on recovering from last week’s Lake-to-Lake relay efforts and was feeling pretty well considering the fast 25 miles I put in just 7 days ago.  I swam three days, taught Spinning and H.I.T (high intensity training) and ran a 15-miler.  I didn’t run any until my long run on Friday to make sure the running muscles had plenty of time to recover.   I was feeling pretty good.  The 15 mile run was definitely challenging, but felt pretty good.  I was in no way ready to pull out any impressive splits, so the 10:00 min pace of the day suited me just fine 🙂  Plus, I knew Saturday could be an epic riding day, so I needed some gas in the tank.

My good friend Chanda had called me earlier in the week to begin the ride plans.  We checked and double-checked the weather and decided to hit the Veyo Loop early.  I hit the road at 7:30a.  It was chilly, but not bad.  I dressed in MANY layers, so I was good to go…..though I ended up with a hump of clothing stuffed in my pockets so large that I could have been confused for a camel.

I met up with Chanda after about 30 minutes and we rode and kept the conversation going for 4 hours.  It was wonderful. Chanda and I have an uncanny ability to ride well and converse.  The more we talk, the faster we seem to go.  Today was not a day for impressive times, just a day to soak up the sun and ride as many miles as our husband/babysitters would allow.

As we crested the Veyo wall, the super-steep final climb just before the turn-around, I proposed that we ride home the way we came, adding a few more miles and a little more challenge then heading straight down the highway back to town.  I knew there would be a rash of cyclists out on the loop today and it would be fun to see everyone as we headed back down the hill.  I didn’t have to pull anything clever to convince Chanda, she obliged the added mileage immediately.  After a quick pit stop at the top we were headed back down through the little town of Gunlock.

Temperatures stated to soar and the sun was feeling AMAZING!  I even had my arms showing.  My arms haven’t seem the sun while riding for months.  The seasons are changing and the warmth has been a welcome change.

So 72 miles later, I was home and on my way to enjoy lunch with the hubby and children and set to relax for the rest of the day.

Spring riding is wonderful!  There are only two problems with Spring.

#1:  Spring is ushering in the unbearable temperatures of the summer.  I know!  Never happy!  I complain about the cold of winter, the warm of Spring and the heat of summer.  Honestly, I would take the winter months in St. George over late-Spring and summer any day.  For me it is easier to bundle up and ride when it is 40 degrees than challenge the blistering 100+ temps of June, July and August (and usually May and September).

#2:  It makes a lot of laundry to ride in the Spring.  The temperature was 40 degrees when I left and about 68 when I got home.  Lots of sweaty layers.   This was my outfit at the start of the day:
Favorite blue jacket (that has zip-off sleeves)
Bike shorts
Capri pants (over the shorts)
Long tank top base layer
Short-sleeved jersey
Arm warmers
Long socks
Neoprene booties
Long gloves
Bandana
Ear warmer

This was my outfit when I finished:
Long tank top base layer
Short-sleeved jersey
Long socks
Bike Shorts

Can you now envision the camel look as much of this was stuffed in my back pockets?  🙂  Thank goodness I stopped over at Chanda’s place on the way home to drop off some of the larger items so I didn’t melt on the last 10 miles to home.

So spring is here and I’m going to enjoy every minute of it while it lasts and before the brutality of summer begins.  I’m so grateful for a husband who lets me be a crazy athlete and even does all that sweaty laundry I make while I’m at it.  Now that’s a man who is a keeper 🙂

Here’s to Spring!  Get out there and ride and run……..I haven’t met anyone who’s legs fell off yet 🙂