Fat bike? I don’t need no stinkin’ fat bike!

Snowmageddon is upon us here in Cheyenne (and most of southeastern WY and the front range of Colorado as well). It’s actually kind of exciting to have a big snowstorm finally this winter, and I’m not that upset about it. In fact, I was downright filled with glee to hop on my mountain bike alongside Matt, and go tear up the snow!

It was 23 degrees with 22mph winds, so I had my doubts. But then it turned out to be one of the funnest days I have ever had on a bike! There’s something freeing about just jumping on a bike with big ol’ snow boots and jeans, not wearing a heart rate monitor, and not caring about times/speed/cadence. Just us two goof balls smashing through snow drifts and getting into general shenanigans! Sometimes things end up being too serious… training, teams, racing, gear. Just nice to have a day to get away from it all and do something completely goofy.

Snow had drifted more than a foot deep in some areas, but mostly it was just a few inches we had to ride through

Matt flopped into the snow (he didn’t fall off the bike!). We goofed off towards the end, hurling snowballs and acting like kids.

We found some awesome paths through Lions Park and enjoyed just riding in endless circles. We even tested out our skills on stairs and steep bridges. A workout and training without it feeling like one! Our Giant bikes did awesome. I was worried about the tires on my Rainier 29er being too whimpy for the snow, but I could plow through deep drifts. Which led me to the whole “fat bike? I don’t need no stinkin’ fat bike!” thing. (Nothing against fat bikes, I’m just showing that a “skinny” tire mountain bike can survive the snow as well!)

We ended having 6.3 miles of fun, and spent a little over an hour. I was having a blast, I could’ve stayed out a lot longer but my cheeks were feeling the wind and cold – I really need a balaclava!

So what did I wear to keep warm on this adventure? I wore my Specialized RBX shorts, Specialized leg warms, Smart Wool wool hiking socks, my big ol’ winter boots I’m pretty sure I got at Walmart years ago, blue jeans, UA long sleeve thermal shirt, Columbia jacket, scarf crocheted by me, Specialized thermal skull cap, Specialized helmet, and some of Matt’s big thick winter gloves. I was downright toasty! Still less than what some roadies in warm climates wear on 50 degree days 😉

I baked some hot chocolate cupcakes when we got home. I’m pretty proud of myself for getting the frosting to form “stiff peaks” like the directions called for.

Hard to believe I am suppose to be racing in 6 days when I look outside! I was semi-tempted to take some silly shots of me on the Shiv in the snow all geared up with the clunky winter boots and TT helmet, but the warmth of the house lured me away from that idea. Tomorrow (and the rest of the week for that matter) will be spent back on the trainer with the Shiv and the Sufferfest: The Long Scream video.