Skinny Tire Bike Festival
While I was updating my other website, West Coast Cycling Events, I came across some bike events in Moab that I hadn’t had on my radar. I was trying to find the date for the Moab Century Tour, but it appears it’s being replaced this year by a fall version of their Skinny Tire Bike Festival. That sounded interesting, but I was already traveling to Utah in October for the Fall Tour of St. George. Looking at the other events, I saw that the “spring” festival was happening and got excited! While I would have liked to have gotten the 4-day pass to make it really worth the drive, it was sold out (if only I had known about it earlier). Instead, I settled for the 2-day tour with an additional ride on my way back home.
Because of the expense between gas and hotel stays, I asked some friends if any were interested in joining me and splitting costs. Donna would have, but she was just arriving home from a trip to Japan the evening before I started driving southeast. I next asked Shannon, who is a staff member of Cascade Bicycle Club, my second family. She got just as excited and said she was in!
Thursday, March 6th
Shannon arrived at my house a little after 6am. After loading up our gear and bikes, we departed Seattle before the commuter traffic got bad.
I had only interacted with Shannon a few times at Cascade events and once on an overnight bikepacking trip, so I didn’t know that much about her on a personal level. During my drive, I was a motormouth and Shannon got just about my complete history. LOL! I did give her a chance to talk, so I was able to learn more about her.
I had split the drive to Moab into two days, averaging around seven hours each. Our destination for the night was in Boise, ID, near the airport. Super 8 motels are hit and miss…they are either fairly good or really terrible. Thankfully, this one wasn’t too bad and we slept well.
Friday, March 7th
We got up early (again) and I tried to eat a little breakfast, but nothing at the motel sounded appealing. They didn’t even have any protein (most Super 8s have hard boiled eggs). Since I can’t eat much first thing in the morning, I figured I’d just grab something further up the road.
As we drove between Twin Falls, ID, and into Utah, the weather was a bit nasty with some snow flurries and a long slow down (a complete stop at times). Google rerouted us onto an old highway along the interstate so that we could bypass whatever was causing traffic to back up. The road itself wasn’t too bad, but whatever they used to keep ice melted really did a number on my car and our bikes. No matter how many times I used my windshield washer fluid, I couldn’t get the gray stuff to wash off the windows. Stopping at a gas station and using the window washer didn’t help very much either. Once we were further south near Salt Lake City, the weather got better.
As we got closer to Moab, the more excited we got!
We arrived to pick up our rider packets for the bike event around 4:30pm, then drove to the Apache Motel. It wasn’t on the main drag like most of the other hotels, but it was more affordable and quieter. It was a little quirky, but in a good way. Our room was a nice size and we didn’t feel crowded even with both our bikes stowed inside. The beds and pillows were comfy and the shower had a very strong spray of water, the most important things when I stay somewhere.
Shannon was delighted that the motel had a nice bike wash set-up and went to work getting the crud off her Specialized Diverge. I, meanwhile, unpacked and checked my messages & email.
Next on the agenda was to get some dinner. I had noted some restaurants before departing on the trip and we agreed we had to try the food at the Moab Grill. Shannon ordered breakfast, but I wanted comfort food. I ordered an open-faced roast beef sandwich with brown gravy and fries. Yum! We got there right before the place got really crowded, but in spite of that, the staff were so attentive and quick.
After dinner and back at the motel, we went to bed early and were asleep by 8:30pm. All the driving I did really wore me out!
Saturday, March 8th
Our day started early, but the sky was clear and the weather promised to get warmer as we drove to the alternate starting spot for the first day of the Skinny Tire Festival (the first aid station). We had a lot of climbing to do to get to Dead Horse Point State Park and the overlook where we would turn around to head back.
While the climbs were tough, even on an e-bike, the views were amazing! Since my e-bike was faster than Shannon, I stopped at all the view/rest stops to take photos so she wouldn’t be too far behind me.
When I got to the visitor center for the park, I went inside and did some souvenir shopping after taking photos behind the building.
When I reached the overlook, I was amazed at nature’s beauty all over again!
When I got back onto my bike for the return trip, I heard someone call my name. Huh? Who knew I was here besides Shannon? It turned out to be a woman from the PNW Cycling Sisters group on Facebook. She knew I was coming and had also ridden it in 2024. I’m always running into people who know me. LOL!
The descent was bitterly cold and windy…I wasn’t enjoying it as much as the ascent. I’d rather climb hills in mild weather than go fast and freeze!
While waiting for Shannon to finish, I loaded my bike and went to fill up my gas tank. I returned to wait and my timing couldn’t have been more perfect…she was loading her own bike within 30 seconds of me stopping!
After we finished, we headed to our event lunch that included barbecued chicken and beef, roasted potatoes with the skins on, and a salad while listening to a pretty good band.
Back at the motel we changed and headed to Arches National Park. I had been there in 2021, but it was a first for Shannon.
When we got back to town, we opted to eat at the Moab Grill again.
It was another early night after that.
Sunday, March 9th
Because of the time change overnight, it was still dark outside when we headed to the start of day two of the festival. Our route took us along the Colorado River. There was still some hills to climb, but nothing as hard as the day before. It was still pretty chilly in spite of starting the ride at 9am. Both of us decided we would turn back at the first rest stop and making it a shorter ride day.
After we finished, I dropped Shannon off at our motel. She wanted to rest and I planned to go to Canyonlands National Park (she doesn’t like heights). While it was nice, the scenery wasn’t that different from the previous day and I could have saved my gas.
We were going to eat at the Moab Grill again, but were said to see it closed when we got there (they are closed on Sundays). Instead, we ate at Cactus Jack’s. I had a craving for a loaded baked potato. They didn’t do loaded, so I had to ask/pay for the bacon, sour cream and cheese (lame). I also ordered the chicken noodle soup. The broth and bowtie noodles were ok, but the chicken tasted like it came from a can, throwing the whole taste off. Oh well…I wasn’t that hungry anyway.
Monday, March 10th
Before departing Moab and heading northwest, we just had to have breakfast at the Moab Grill. Our motel did offer grab & go breakfast, but it was mainly cereal, yogurt, croissants and home-made cinnamon buns (too sweet that early in the morning). We spent about an hour there filling up on good food before getting back in the car.
We would only be driving around four hours to head to Antelope Island State Park. This was another place I have been and wanted to go back to ride my bike there. When I was planning out this road trip, I gave Shannon two options for the Monday ride. Once I mentioned that wild bison and antelope roam the island, she was hooked!
We changed into our bike kits while we waited for one of Shannon’s friends to arrive an join us.
Trent is such a delightful person! He had ridden STP for the first time in 2024 and was an Instagram friend of Shannon’s. He lived about an hour away and had ridden on the island before. I told him about a bike event in Yakima, his old stomping grounds, and he may join me for that event.
The weather was so pleasant during the ride that I didn’t even need a jacket (just thermal sleeves). There was very little wind as we road to the historic ranch and back. On the return we saw a herd of bison within about 10 yards of the road. Later, we even got to see antelope (which I didn’t see when I visited before). We had such a good ride! Afterward, Trent joined us at Red Robins for a late lunch/early dinner.
We only had about an hour’s drive to our hotel in Ogden that night. We stayed at the Sleep Inn. The bed seemed a bit bouncy if you just flopped on it, but I was actually very comfortable all night. It was also very quiet. Another good find at a good price!
We weren’t really hungry for dinner, so we decided to drive into downtown Ogden for some froyo. It really hit the spot!
Tuesday, March 11th
Today was going to be a very long drive. Originally we were going to stop in Pendleton, OR, but I was feeling good after seven hours of driving, we decided to push on and stay in Yakima, WA, for a total of around 10 hours of driving.
We stopped at a gas station mainly to get something to drink. It was in the middle of nowhere (even had a sign that said that). The store was closed, but we were delighted to see goats, mini donkeys and alpacas outside in a petting zoo. They even had a coin machine to feed them. We spent more time than we probably should have, but it was a nice surprise along our drive.
We arrived at the Best Western Plus in Union Gap around 4:30pm (we went back to PST after being in mountain time). Best Western hotels are my favorite change besides the Hampton Inn & Suites. They always have good service, comfortable rooms and yummy breakfast food. The staff were so nice (no surprise) and since they weren’t full, they upgraded our room to one with a balcony and view at no additional charge. After unpacking, I decided to do my laundry while Shannon finished a conference call with Cascade while sitting in the car.
The hotel didn’t serve dinner, but Outback Steakhouse was across the parking lot and gave a 10% discount to hotel guests. I splurged on shrimp, rice pilaf, steamed broccoli (which I had been craving for days), and a blood orange margarita, followed by half a piece of carrot cake (Shannon got the rest).
I had put my wet clothes in the dryer while we went to dinner and it was done when I got back to the hotel. Not a bad deal….$1.50 to wash and $1.00 to dry.
Wednesday, March 12th
We only had a two and a half hour drive to get home, so we took our time with breakfast. I ate a scramble of eggs, potatoes, onions and sausage with country gravy over everything. So good, I went back for seconds! Best Western doesn’t disappoint!
After dropping Shannon off at her place, I got home and loved on my cats before unloading the car and my bike. I loved my week away, but I did miss my girls. I still have almost a week to miss my hubby since he went to Wenatchee and won’t get back until St. Patrick’s Day.
