Weekly Newsletter: December 26th, 2023 - January 1st, 2024
- Written by Keith Huster
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- 7 min read
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- Last updated 4 months ago
Happy New Year! 🥳 2️⃣0️⃣2️⃣4️⃣ It's hard to believe that 2023 has come to an end. We had an amazing 2023 and we hope you did as well. Be sure to subscribe to our blog so that you don't miss out on our end of the year post.
Check out our new posts and videos 🆕 🎥 📝
Experiencing the holidays, Vegas style! 🎰 🌴
We decided to get away this year and take a road trip to Las Vegas, NV. We first visited Vegas back in 2015 and have been looking forward to visiting again ever since moving to Utah. Las Vegas is less than a 6-hour drive so it is a relatively easy trip for us to make.
We were fortunate to be able to meet up with our friends Jason and Kristen again while in Vegas. They also decided to take their own short vacation to Vegas to celebrate their birthdays.
We experienced so many amazing attractions, food, and activities while on this trip. I won't dive into too much detail in this newsletter since we plan to write a dedicated post about our time in Vegas. However, here is a quick rundown and a few photos from some of the highlights of our trip to Vegas.
- Titanic: The Artifact Exhibition
- Bodies: The Exhibition
- Christmas display at the Bellagio Conservatory & Botanical Gardens
- Museum of Illusions
- Sphere Experience at the Las Vegas Sphere
- Fremont Street Experience in Old Las Vegas
- Observation Decks at The Strat
Side trip to Valley of Fire State Park 🔥 🥾
On our way home from Las Vegas, we decided to take a side trip to visit the Valley of Fire State Park. We have driven past this state park a few times now but never had the time to stop. This time though, we made sure that we wouldn't miss the opportunity to visit this beautiful state park.
We had initially planned to simply do the scenic drive through the park. This drive takes about an hour and routes you through the most beautiful areas of the park. There are plenty of places along the way to pull off, relax, and take photos of the park's highlights.
However, after seeing just how beautiful the park was, we knew that we needed to make time for at least one hike. We chose to hike the Fire Wave and Seven Wonders Loop which is listed as a 1.9-mile (3.0-kilometer) hike with less than 200 feet (61 meters) of elevation gain. The Fire Wave feature near the start of the hike was beautiful and definitely the highlight of the hike.
The end of the hike also provided spectacular views of the surrounding red rock formations. However, the middle portion of the hike wasn't that great as it had you traversing through a sandy wash area. Even so, it was great to get out and get back to nature after being in Las Vegas for the past week.
Ringing in the New Year 🥂 2️⃣0️⃣2️⃣4️⃣
We decided to have a low-key New Year's Eve after spending an exhausting week in Las Vegas and visiting the Valley of Fire State Park. We chose to stay at home, watch a movie, and watch some of the New Year's celebration shows. It was nice to finally sit down, relax, and just enjoy the evening after such a busy week.
Our New Year's day was also pretty low-key. We were both dealing with some chest and sinus congestion due to being bombarded with cigarette smoke from our time in the Las Vegas casinos. So, we weren't feeling great. It is nice though to be able to spend the day catching up on some things and just generally being lazy.
Tour Divide Training Update 📆 🗺️
Keith really enjoyed this week off from training. He brought our Hyperice Hypervolt Go 2 percussion massager to Las Vegas and he used it nearly every morning to help aid in muscle recovery. It was also nice to spend so much time walking around the city and giving his legs a chance to stretch out all of his sore muscles.
Hypervolt Go 2 in Black - Handheld Percussion Massage Gun
- On the go: Compact and lightweight, the Go 2 fits in your hand and your bag.
- Feel it, don’t hear it: No need to hit pause. Featuring QuietGlide technology so you can keep your music playing.
- Power your progress: Handheld relief anywhere, anytime. The Go 2 delivers all the power you need to keep going. It is only compatible with USB A - USB C.
- 3 speeds, Brushless high-torque 40w motor, Patented QuietGlide technology
- Lightweight design (1.5 lbs), Cordless – 3-hour battery life, Travel-friendly (TSA approved carry-on)
Tomorrow starts Keith's next level of training. Keith will start working in some weightlifting along with his planned indoor and outdoor rides. The next 6 months will be packed full of travel logistics, race route planning, workouts, and last-minute bike preparations. This coming week, Keith will also send in his official Letter of Intent to race in the 2024 Tour Divide. It's exciting to know that the race is quickly approaching.
Upcoming posts and videos 👷 👷♀️️
We will be making a limited number of ski videos this year. We have decided to take a step back from focusing on YouTube content and instead put more energy into our blog. Our first skiing video of the year is out! ⛷️ 🚠 Be sure to let Lindsey know how much you enjoyed the video in the comments section below.
We hope that you are enjoying our newsletters. Did you have an amazing 2023? What were some of your most memorable moments from the year? What are you most looking forward to in 2024? Let us know in the comments section below.👇 💬