Into the (River) Valley of Death

The North Saskatchewan River looks like a sneaky slippery snake for a reason...

Early this morning I received an invite to ride the river valley. I've only ever been on the peripheral of the Edmonton River Valley - by car, on foot, but  never into The Valley and never on bike. "Sounds like a great idea", I thought, "sign me up!". I responded back, "Yup, I'm in!" - afterall, I've been doing hill training in the glory hills north of Spruce & Stony. I was sure I was ready.

HA!

The evening started with some warm up laps in a neighborhood northwest of The Valley as I awaited the arrival of my riding partner. When Keith arrived, we headed south. I was amazed by how few cars were on the streets of Edmonton at 7pm on a Tuesday evening. Of course, it was a business district and past rush hour so I suppose everyone had already left town.

When we reached the lip of The Valley, I looked down on the beautiful view but never registered just how far DOWN it went. Try it yourself - stand on the lip of The Valley, taking in the beautiful views and you'll find that you don't really think "Hmmmm, that looks like a long way down (and hence up)". And down we went. The wind blowing though my helmet, a huge grin on my face, rolling down, down, and down. It truly is a wonderful trail to ride.

Keith of RBF Cycles is a fantastic trail guide as he rides The Valley regularly and knows cycling. The route that he selected was an excellent challenge and I only felt like doing bodily harm to him once, amazingly enough! All kidding aside, you never realize just how NOT hill ready you are until you ride some real hills.

We crossed the river and rode east along the southern bank for some time (mostly uphill) before heading into the ATC for a break. Sadie took in the scenery while I thought about what I had just done (the steepest hill I'd seen in some time) and chatted with Keith about why his bike appears to fly uphill while Sadie feels like she is a sinking rock (besides my lack of practice) - Keith's bike weighs just about... oh, nothing! Must remember to take photos of Keith's bike the next time we ride.

  The trip out of The Valley and back into the city was easier and I got in some faster speeds than I have been riding and we zipped into one of my favorite stores - Italian Centre Shoppe for a drink before heading home. A huge thanks to Keith who taught me a thing or 3 (heels down, scrape dog poo, if you want to ride fast - you have to ride fast) and makes a great friend, guide, & coach. Sadie & I are delighted to have Keith & RBF Cycles as coach & sponsor for our ride. :) We couldn't ask for better.

And, I'll be back in The Valley soon. You can't keep me down, Hills!!!!