First Century!! Wish 100, St. George Utah (October 22, 2011)

We signed up to ride our first century in St. George, Utah on October 22, 2011.  The Wish 100 is an all woman ride with all proceeds going to support the Make-A-Wish Foundation.

We left Salt Lake on Friday October 21 and then headed down south.  On our way, we stopped at Old Iron Town and wandered around the ruins.  The town was set up in the 1850's by Brigham Young, but only lasted for about 10 years.  The ruins are near Cedar City, Utah.

We also drove through Mountain Meadows.  The Mountain Meadows Massacre was the killing of 120 emigrants who were passing through Southern Utah in September of 1857.  The massacre occurred on September 11, 1857.  The emigrants, men, women, and children, were traveling from Arkansas to California.  They were killed by a group of Mormons with the help of local Paiute Indians.  

Intending to leave no witnesses of complicity by Mormons in the attacks and to prevent reprisals that would further complicate the Utah war, the perpetrators killed all the adults and older children, totaling about 120 men, women, and children.  17 children, all younger than age 7 were spared.    

Currently, a monument rests on the site where the bodies were buried.  

Packet pick up for the ride 

We stayed at the Marriott Courtyard in St. George, and the girls (our two Trek Madone bicycles) stayed in the room with us!!  We checked in at the Best Western, got our T-Shrits and met some of the other riders.  We couldn't wait to to ride!!

Holly and Carolyn at the start line, Wish 100 Century!

We got up early on Saturday morning and headed out to Ivins, Utah - the start of the race.  We started just before 8 am (the official start time was 8 am, but we wanted a little bit of a head start because we are a bit slower than most).  

Watching the sun come up over the red rock was beautiful!!  We rode down the west side of St. George to the Arizona border, then headed north toward Hurricane, Utah and Zion's National Park.  It was a GORGEOUS ride.  It was also a very HILLY ride - we climbed a total of 5,000 feet!  Whew!  Towards the end of the ride, Carolyn started to get heat stroke.  We pulled off the road, laid on the grass and cooled down.  After a short rest, we knew we were close, and hopped back on the girls for a triumphant finish!  With tears streaming down our face, proud of our amazing accomplishment, we crossed the finish line, side by side. 

Carolyn - zooming down the road near Sand Hollow State Park, Hurricane, Utah

The next day, we headed home.  We stopped at Cove Fort, which was built to offer protection to the Mormon travelers in the 1840's and 50's.  We had a nice little tour and the missionary was happy to snap a photo of us.  

Holly and Carolyn at Cove Fort, Utah