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Boats and Bikes

As the date of my surgery quickly approaches the long list of things I need to get done beforehand continues to grow. Although I could definitely keep myself busy with these endless tasks, I’m also trying to make sure I make time for some fun too.

Last weekend Jason and I squished in a lot of recreation! We went boating on Utah Lake with Cam, Fran, Jim, and Cindy. Cam and Fran bought a new boat and we were more than happy to let them show it off to us. Jas did a little wake boarding and I got to demonstrate my minimal knee boarding skills. Jas, Cam, and Jim took a couple spins on the tube together. Those three large men sandwiched together on one tube looked absolutely ridiculous, but they seemed to rather enjoy it (silly boys).

Oh the manliness!
Oh the manliness!

Although we were burnt (very burnt in my case), tired, and sore after boating we weren’t ready to stop. We played our usual Saturday soccer game and I couldn’t let the whole weekend go by without doing some mountain biking.

Jas is sooooooo tired!
Jas is sooooooo tired!

We decided to go up American Fork Canyon and bike from Tibble Fork Reservoir to Silver Lake. Aaron, our biking buddy, joined us. Those of you who have journeyed between these reservoirs know that the ride is a very steep one. We opted to go on the horse trail heading up to Silver Lake instead of taking the dirt road. This turned out to be a very bad idea. The dirt on the horse trail was extremely loose due to the equestrian traffic. This, combined with the steepness of the slope, made most of the trail impossible to travel on a bike. We ended up hiking-a-bike through the majority of it. The boys were a little disgruntled by what they termed a “Rachel trail”. So half way up we decided to abandon the trail and continue on the dirt road. The rest of the climb went much faster.

I wouldn’t recommend that horse trail to anyone riding a bike. The dirt road is a much better option. There’s not much traffic on it and personally I am always in favor of pedaling, rather than pushing, my bike up the mountain.

We took the Old Sheep trail coming back down. This single-track trail proved to be a lot of fun and worth the miserable uphill experience.

The Old Sheep Trail
The Old Sheep Trail

Aaron has become one of our regular biking companions. He’s tolerated the “Rachel trails” very well even though he has been riding the old Trek 800 I got for my 16th birthday. I think he probably got twice the workout we did dragging that heavy contraption up to Silver Lake. Way to go Aaron!

Jas is weak again?! At Scott's Pond on the backside of Sundance
Jas is weak again?! At Scott’s Pond on the backside of Sundance

Yesterday we were ready to hit the trails again for one final ride before surgery puts an end to my biking season. This time we went to Sundance Resort. It was awesome! Except for the part where we got lost on the wrong side of the mountain due to some poorly marked trails. That wasn’t so cool. But otherwise, it was a nice final day of riding for me.

Off the cliff!
Off the cliff!

I would recommend Sundance for those who like to do technical biking without the whole strenuous climbing up a mountain thing, since lifts take you and your bike to the top of the mountain, there is relatively little uphill biking required. It’s funny how many mountain bikers don’t actually like biking up mountains. I enjoy having to work for my downhill, but if you don’t, Sundance might be the perfect biking spot for you.

Rachel August 25, 2008 No Comments

What Happened in Vegas…

We’ve all heard that old adage: what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas. Well I guess it’s not always true because last weekend here’s what happened in Vegas.

The boys pay homage to Siegfried and Roy
The boys pay homage to Siegfried and Roy

The largest hackers’ convention in the world, DefCon, takes place in Vegas every year. My geeky husband has been dying to go to it for years but has never managed to make it. This year I promised him that not only could he go but that I would actually accompany him.

The boys eagerly wait in line to change their temp badges for super geeky ones
The boys eagerly wait in line to change their temp badges for super geeky ones

We went down with a large group of geeks that included Aaron, Dave, my brother Drew, and Jason’s brother Jeremy.

Chillin on the strip
Chillin on the strip

Some things about this convention were not too surprising, like the occasional whiff of BO you encountered as you walked amongst the geeks. I was surprised however by just how many of these hardcore geeks actually looked relatively normal and seemed to have some semblance of social skills. The proportion of normal to abnormal appearing geeks was much higher than I expected, though I definitely saw many attendees that fit the part of the stereotypical nerd.

I attended a couple seminars with Jason just for fun. (Did I just say “for fun”?) I was surprised and disturbed by just how much of the lecture material I actually understood. I guess all that geeky stuff Jason has been telling me over the last decade has taken its toll.

Aaron wearing the awesome hat I helped him pick out
Aaron wearing the awesome hat I helped him pick out

Since we were in Vegas we couldn’t just geek out, we had to party a little too. I was keen on doing some shopping, of course. I was really stoked to go to the new Vegas H&M store. But after having been to the huge H&M on Fifth Avenue in Manhattan, the tiny H&M in Vegas was a bit of a disappointment. I still found some good stuff though. And more importantly, I bought a couple pairs of shoes.

The crazy Sabin boys at the Blue Man Group show
The crazy Sabin boys at the Blue Man Group show

We also decided that we should go to a show while we were in Vegas. Although our original plan was to see one of the Cirque du Soleil shows, we didn’t buy our tickets in time, so we ended up going to see The Blue Man Group. Jason and I saw this show in Vegas a few years ago but we still really enjoyed it the second time around.

Catching some of the performers after the show
Catching some of the performers after the show

And what’s a trip to Vegas without a little gambling? I tried playing 21 for the first time on this trip. It was a lot of fun. Jason and I managed to win $52 dollars with the $20 we gambled. But my most amazing gambling feat was winning $90 in about ten minutes on a 1 cent slot machine, using only a dollar. I was surprised and thrilled! It was awesome that Jason and I managed to actually make some money in Vegas, over $120, using only $21. I’ve already spent most of our winnings on shoes. After all, there’s really no better way to spend your money!

Catching one of those blue boys
Catching one of those blue boys

It was a fun trip, perhaps a little too testosterone and geek laden, but still a lot of fun! Sorry boys if I ruined your geek-a-thon with my girly presence.

Rachel August 17, 2008 4 Comments

Surgery and Sanity

I got the sad news last week that surgery on my ankle will unfortunately be necessary. The physical therapy and orthotics didn’t improve the condition of my ankle enough. The doctor told me that at this point, after everything I’ve tried, it appears very unlikely my ankle will ever improve on its own. At best it will stabilize and not get any worse. However, it is possible that, instead of stabilizing, the tendons will continue to tear further up my leg and that at some point they might even rupture all together. So he recommended getting surgery.

Since I have tried every noninvasive option available to me, and my ankle may continue to deteriorate without intervention, I decided that going ahead with the surgery is probably a good idea. I opted to have it done at the end of this month, so I can just get it over with and start the recovery process.

The good news about this surgery is that it takes relatively little time, about an hour, to perform. The doctor will be stitching up my tendons in a few places, cleaning out scar tissue, and exploring the area to fix anything else out of whack. The surgery has about a 90% chance of significantly improving the condition of my ankle and could potentially make it as good as new.

However, not everything about this surgery is good news. The worse part is that I won’t be able to go back to doing the things I love (snowboarding, soccer, mountain biking, running, racquetball, etc.) until February. This is very depressing. By February my sanity may be questionable.

Unfortunately, in order to give my ankle adequate time to heal after surgery, I will be in a cast for two weeks, on crutches for six weeks, in a boot up to my knee for three months, and then back in physical therapy to regain strength and movement. In total, my recovery time will be about six months.

Me getting a ride with Aaron
Me getting a ride with Aaron

Those of you who know me well know I need exercise. It keeps me balanced and focused. It also helps me get rid of some of that excess Rachel energy, which I have in abundance. So, if I have to go without it for months, I might as well institutionalize myself. I am therefore trying to come up with alternative, non weight bearing, exercises I can do while my ankle is out-of-order. I have already ordered several arm and ab exercise videos but if any of you have other excellent ideas please let me know.

Me and my boys
Me and my boys

In the mean time, I am trying to pack as much fun into the few weeks I have left as possible. Jason and I went biking up Millcreek Canyon on the Millcreek Pipeline twice last week. Aaron joined us on one of those occasions. The ride was excellent and the mountains were beautiful. Those of you who live here in Utah and don’t take advantage of your proximity to these lovely mountains are really missing out. I plan on getting my fill of them in the next few weeks before my surgical escapades.

Those crazy boys
Those crazy boys

Rachel August 7, 2008 2 Comments
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