39 results for author: Sarah

Day 10: Dubois to Jenny Lake, Teton Nat’l Park – 73 miles

If every day in cycling was like this one, everyone would quit their jobs to ride across the country. The weather was perfect (up until 5 minutes ago), the scenery is astounding and rapidly varying, and the people hospitable. This morning John from Steamboat took off early. Jim and I got on the road around 7 after letting our tents dry out from the heavy dew and slowly climbed up Togwotee Pass. After Berthoud it really didn't feel too hard, or maybe it was the scenery distracting me.  A couple miles down from the summit, the road comes around a bend and BOOM- Tetons in your face.  The remaining 40 miles of my ride into Teton ...

Day 8 (rest day) And Day 9: Lander to Dubois, Wy – 78 miles

I'd like to start off by saying a MASSIVE thank you to the Crawfords, my warmshowers hosts in Lander for taking such good care of me for two nights! When I left this morning I felt like I was saying goodbye to a favorite aunt,uncle, and cousin- and not to random strangers I met on the internet. After Mark cooked a delicious and hearty breakfast on Sunday, sammy and her friend Ryan took me up to The Sinks, where the PopoAgie (pronounced popozha) river misteriously disappears into holes in the limestone and travels underground 1/4 mile(which takes 4hours) before re-emerging out of surface springs in a trout pool. The pictures are on my real camera, not ...

Day 7: Baroil to Lander Wy -100.37 miles

I  decided to set my alarm and get an early start this morning. It was overcast and breezy, and a couple miles past Muddy Gap it started to sprinkle. As I was putting on my rain gear at Split Rock Historic Site, another cyclist rode by and I worked hard to catch up.  I spent the rest of the day riding with Joel, a software engineer from Denver who recently quit his job and is riding to Coeur D'alene, ID to compete in an ironman before starting his own company.  The good conversation distracted me from the miles, and before I knew it we were only 40 miles (of mostly downhill!) to Lander. Joel got ahead of me on the last few miles, and I slowly ...

Day 6: Saratoga to Baroil, WY – 81 miles

After a solid night's sleep on a comfortable mattress, I got an early start from Brandon & Sam's in Saratoga. They recommended I stop at the bakery, so I picked up some delicious pastries on my way out of town for a mid morning snack. Between Saratoga and Wolcott, I had to be driven half way through a 12-mile construction zone (wy law), which almost made up for the time I lost picking my way down the grooved pavement through the other half of the construction zone. The 15 mile stretch on I-80 to Rawlins was actually pleasant- due to the wide, well-paved shoulder separated from traffic by a rumble strip, I actually felt safer there than on the ...

Day 5: Walden, CO to Saratoga, WY – 69 miles

Couldn't ask for better weather today- clear skies and barely a breeze. This morning I rode with John from Steamboat and we caught up with the British couple shortly after the state line. They all stopped for lunch in Riverside while I continued on to Saratoga to meet my wonderful warmshowers hosts, Brandon and Sam, who are both teachers. After a nice afternoon nap and an ice cream cone, I'm feeling much refreshed, though still very sleepy and everything is sore.

Day 4: Fraser to Walden, CO -79 miles

If yesterday's mental hurdle was the physical battle of the hardest pass of the trip, today was certainly the first big emotional hurdle. Since I lived in Fraser all winter and spent last night on my own former couch (thanks ex-roomies!), yesterday felt like a hard ride with a good friend and I got to go home when it was over. Today, however, I set out on my own, riding off into the unknown (ok, not entirely unknown as I've ridden this stretch of road and camped in Walden before.) It was a hard and emotional departure from the valley. Once I got past Granby and stopped crying, the ride up hwy 125 to Willow Creek Pass was spectacular. It's a quiet ...

Bike4Nepal Days 1-3: Denver to Fraser, CO

Day 1: Colorado State Capitol building to Golden, CO - 15 miles The kickoff ride and celebration was a huge success! Several news stations covered the kickoff at the capitol building, and five people accompanied me on their bikes to the celebration at the Sherpa House in Golden. Lakhpa and the rest of the Sherpa House staff presented me with a beautiful Nepalese scarf and had me circle the prayer wheel with my bike for good luck. Shoutout of the day: I'm so grateful to everyone who came to the Capitol, rode bikes, and celebrated my departure! Your encouragement and support makes this possible! Day 2: Golden to Floyd Hill, CO - 53 miles ...

Busy Days Ahead

Thanks to my friend Rob, we're now at $1000! I'm so grateful for all of your support, and to have raised this much before I've even started riding is awesome! Let's keep the momentum going. The kickoff ride is scheduled for Sunday (more details at ColoradoNepalAlliance.org/ride ), and with the weather clearing up I'm back on track to get out of town on Monday. It was hard to train and motivate with the rain the last couple weeks, but now that sun is on the menu, it's all systems go! In my last couple days before departure, I'm taking the GRE, moving out of my apartment, cutting off all my hair (this is going to be the hardest part of the whole ...

Sarah’s Blog: More Motivation

Yesterday, Nepal was shaken by ANOTHER EARTHQUAKE - this one magnitude 7.3. Though not nearly as damaging as the initial quake, the death toll from this one is rising. Due to the first earthquake, most buildings in Nepal have been severely damaged, and are highly prone to collapse in the aftershocks. People are rightfully afraid to stay in their homes, yet tents, tarps, and other temporary shelters are impossibly hard to come by in Nepal right now. Please help CNA finance the construction and shipment of large tents from India, which will serve as temporary living spaces for the people of Dharka through the aftershocks and monsoon season, until ...