signs and fun things from a road trip to the Little Red Riding Hood Ride in Utah

I am taking a two day road trip to Albuquerque to meet up with my next oldest sister and her bike, will hang around with her part of tomorrow and all day Monday and then we will pack bikes etc and drive on to Salt Lake City to meet up with the younger twin sisters, hang around a day or two for sister time, then pack two bike and riders per car and carvan the two cars up to Logan for the weekend to do theLittle Red Ride ride. The process will reverse after the ride.

So today I left Houston and headed out through Waco, and Abilene to Lubbock for the first half to the drive to Albuquerque. I am definitely in west Texas heartland with miles and miles of miles and miles. Highlights from today's drive are as follows:
typical radio song country and western style included the chorus "two wives, three dogs, four cars, five jobs, and now I just
don't care anymore.
Road names I would love to know the background and origins of: Noodle Dome Road and Stink Creek road.
Museum I would also like to know the general contents of: the WASP Museum. ( is it an acronym, a sting , or an Anglo Saxon?)
Pithy sign for the day: on a black background with gold lettering " Don't Make Me Come Down There." GOD

Sounds like the fun has begun! I couldn't live there, but Utah is the prettiest state I've ever been to. It's gorgeous. I know you'll have a great ride with your sisters.

Funny one I saw outside a gas station on the way back from a hike last weekend: "Fire danger extremely high--don't even fart in the woods!" I think we're OK as far as moisture now...we just had way too many days in a row of rain!!

Made it safely to ABQ and am happily digesting a couple of green chile enchiladas and a local microbrew beer. The highlight of driving the the flat flat emptiness that is west Texas from Lubbock to the NM state line was the town of Bovina, three grain elevators , a dozen houses, a gas sttion/quick mart/local post office/garage/farm equipment repair etc and about a jillion feed lots. Approriately named.

WASP museum. Shoulda stopped, you could've taken in the big homecoming. Still might be worth a stop on the way back - either as a bit of women's history or as a belated Memorial Day tribute, or both! Sad that that acronym is being forgotten so quickly. I had to google it myself, and I *knew* about the WASPs, WAVEs and WACs.

I'm enjoying your trip report Marni!

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by thekarens

Sounds like the fun has begun! I couldn't live there, but Utah is the prettiest state I've ever been to. It's gorgeous. I know you'll have a great ride with your sisters.

---

Some parts aren't even very pretty.
I expected not to like living in Utah, and I planned to leave for about the first 10 years I was here, after 23 years, I guess I'll stay for a while.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by malkin

I'm enjoying your trip report Marni!


Some parts aren't even very pretty.
I expected not to like living in Utah, and I planned to leave for about the first 10 years I was here, after 23 years, I guess I'll stay for a while.

---

I've been to Utah a lot since I used to live in Idaho and my sister lives in Colorado. We'd drive over regularly. It's true there are ugly spots like all states, but the pretty spots are drop dead gorgeous!

Marni, can't wait to hear the rest of your report. I bet y'all have a fantastic time.

crankin- thank you for the link to the WASP museum. I will try and stop by on the way back to houston.

Today we went to two bike stores one for a sale at which sister kris managed to find a black skirt and biking shorts combo and I found a pair socks with I (heart) my bike. For some reason the bike shops in Houston seem to have recently gone over to a shorter style of sock that barely covers the ankle bone. These are high enough to actually provide the protection they are supposed to.

Then we went to the brand spanking new TREK superstore. Gorgeous with a full line of trek bikes and a whole lot of very nice canondales as well. Lots of bike "bling" like coclor coordinated bar tape and cable covers and bottle racks which I checked out for the new bike which I will be ordering in celebration of the big 65, after I get home for this adventue. Lots of happy fondling and considering. The store is so new that not many people know about it yet. The sales persons were so bored that they were rding demo bikes in cirles around the displays practicing rear wheel lifts, wheelies and track stands which was both inpiring and amusing.

Utah is a great spot for sure. LRRH is a lovely ride, I won't do it again I suspect because it is such a pain to get into nowadays, but I have enjoyed the 3 I have participated in. Plus, I think it is too far to drive from my part of the SLC outer burbs LOL.

In Salt Lake City with sisters after a long beautiful and dramatic day of driving from Albuquerque via the Navajo Reservation on former route 666 now route 491 past Shiprock then west past Canyonlands, Arches, Goblin Gardens, Bryece, Zion, and Capital Reef Nation Parks, gorgous land forms and colors, each more striking than the last, Lots of climbing up through mountain passes and dramatic swooping dropsinto the canyons. Saw about a dozen bike riders on various bikes with or with self supported camping gear. Moab is definitley a place to go back to to visit and ride, it looks like the area has every sort of outdoor and biking on and off road adventure that any one could want. About 150 miles further on at Fort Cove we turned north into rain dropping veils of most over the mountains and canyons, into heavy rain with the sun sending slashes of golden sunset light through mists and veils of dark heavy rain to the west of us and black clouds with lightning to the north and right of us. By the time we drove into Salt Lake it was black as night and pouring down and loooking and feeling distinctly like tornado weather. The weather is looky wet and cool for the ride today and through the week and the ride. Fingers crossed that it improves. Great to be together having sister time.

We've had a crazy weather week. Thank goodness it looks good for Saturday!

molliewog- absolutely although I did bring both cold weather and rain gear with me. Right now I am just a Texas hot house flower in feeling chilly at mid 60's low 70's here in SLC.

Oh my arm warmers and leg warmers are packed for LRRH! It will be a chilly start for the century. I'm really excited for the ride :)

I wore my LRRH jersey from 2006 on my ride today --- not intentionally, it's one of my favorite sleeveless jerseys and it was warm out --- but it's a nice coincidence!

What an awesome day for today's Little Red. The weather certainly was absolutely perfect, and I saw significantly fewer undisciplined riders than in past years. Not sure if it's because we left earlier this time (right @ 7:30), or if the routes were staggered better. The motorcycle sag guys also were good about telling women to ride single file. After struggling to complete a 70 miler 2 weeks ago and a 42 miler last week, I wasn't sure I was ready for a century today. But it was a fantastic day. My new wheel set helped too, especially in the flat morning stretch. The only bummer was that bee that stung me in my lip at mile 90. Thank goodness for the sag guy who had ice. He even gave me some ice in a baggie to put in my bento box so I could keep reapplying it for those last 10 miles. Saved the day!

Marni, how did you and your sisters do?