U.S. Pro Cycling Challenge and the Week That Was

Great time today watching the pro cycling parade of color whoosh by up on Lookout Mountain in Golden. A nice capstone to a solid week of running.


It wasn't until about 10 a.m. this morning when I decided to head over to the Lookout Mountain area to catch a bit of the U.S. Pro Cycling Challenge race. I've been watching each stage on Versus (thanks to whomever invented the DVR!). Time to see some of the action up close.

I parked over at the Mt. Vernon Country Club, about 3/4 of a mile from the junction of Lookout Mountain Road and Highway 40, both on the race's route today. I ran pretty hard about 3.5 miles to the King of the Mountains arch, then another half-mile to get down into the crowds. I figured if I was going to watch the race, I should do so among the rabid throngs that line the climbs.

I wasn't disappointed. The vibe was great, the crowd seemingly vibrating with anticipation. As the racers appeared below (great view of the switchbacks below from our vantage point), the spectators limbered up. There was the guy in the gorilla suit and viking helmet, a couple of guys in the now-ubiquitous Speedos, a few guys with their chests painted, a Gumby, a banana and a whole bunch of regular folks out on a beautiful morning watching a first-rate athletic event. Good stuff.

Proof that evolution continues.

I had to tell this guy that the racers were coming from the other direction.

Much waiting for a few seconds of excitement as racers whiz by.

King of the Mountains arch, post-race.

Here's a couple of videos. The first is the leaders blowing by. The second is what was left of the main peloton.

The week that was:

Monday:  Matthew Winters/Red Rocks/Hogback - 1:19, 6.75 miles, 1,182 feet o' elevation gain. Tough day in the heat. Bonked hard.

Tuesday:  Apex Open Space - 1:20, 8.3 miles, 1,210 feet o' elevation gain. Still hot, but was fueled and carrying water. Solid climbing. Good day in the heat.

Wednesday:  Evergreen Mountain - 54 minutes, 5.68 miles, 1,052 feet o' elevation gain. Nice evening dog run. Had to use headlamp for last mile or two. Maya led the way on the climb. Perfect running temps.

Thursday:  Elk Meadow Open Space - 42 minutes 5.18 miles, 579 feet o' elevation gain. Squeezed this one in post-land trust board meeting and dinner.  Nice jog.  Followed it up with short dog park jog with Maya and Cisco.

Friday:  Off

Saturday:  Eccles Pass Loop - 3:51, 15.07 miles, 4,049 feet o' elevation gain. So great to be back in the high country running. Eager to get out into the hills again soon.

Sunday:  Lookout Mountain Road - 1:03, 7.31 miles, 671 feet o' elevation gain. Road run in the heat. Ran solid in both directions. On the out, I was driven by the desire to make sure I found a good vantage point before the riders appeared. Turned out I had plenty of time. Run back was harder (and hotter...thermometer in the truck said 87 degrees...and that's at 7,200 feet!

Totals:  49.23 miles in 9:29 with 8,854 feet o' elevation gain.

A solid re-building week. Very glad to feel like I'm getting back into things.

Building Back

I've definitely been feeling better of late as the effects of the out-of-nowhere brachial plexus neuropathy continues receding and the body does its repair work. My muscle strength is slowly returning (such that it was) and my endurance is showing signs of revival.

The best runs of the last few weeks definitely were a pair of runs done in the Big Ivy area of Western North Carolina's Pisgah National Forest. There is a Forest Service road, located about four miles from my father-in-law's place (Pop-pop's Farm), that climbs from the valley bottom up through a dense forest to the Blue Ridge Parkway. The road is the perfect grade...steep enough to guarantee a very solid workout, but very runnable.  The two times I set foot on the road, I felt the best I've felt since late June.

Of the two runs there, the best was an early morning 12-mile jaunt with Rick M., who calls Asheville home.  It was great meeting Rick and spending a few hours together, telling stories, getting to know one-another and enjoying the shaded uphill climb we shared. All told we were out for just under 2 hours, ran 12.32 miles and climbed 2,280 feet by my watch.  Many thanks, Rick, for coming out!

Just inside the national forest boundary. Let the uphill running begin!

 While in Carolina, I got in another run just outside of Asheville on the Mountains to Sea Trail along the Blue Ridge Parkway. This gem of a trail was located just a couple of blocks from where JP was getting some bodywork done. Worked out perfectly...she get's adjusted and I get in ten miles and 1,100 feet of elevation gain.  (Thanks, Rick, for the recommendation and directions!)

Every farm needs a swing.

The view from the front porch toward the Big Ivy area where Rick and I ran. Note the rainbow.

Once back home, the greatest challenge to running has been the late-summer schedule. Between work, school starting and out-of-town guests, it's been hard to find the time to get out. Well, there's one other thing that's been messing with my (our) schedule.  This guy:

Even Cisco was digging North Carolina

One dog just wasn't enough. Enter Cisco, an Australian shepherd.  He joined our clan just before the trip to North Carolina (and went along with us, sleeping soundly in a carrying case beneath the middle seat on our Southwest Airlines flight). This is the first puppy I've had since college. I forgot how much work they are. Seems like a new baby was easier. Can't wait until the potty training is complete. It's only been a couple of weeks, but it feels like months. Must be the regular 6 a.m. wake up whines. Thankfully, he and Maya are getting along swell.

Maya and Cisco ride again!

On another front, I put together a "Beers of Colorado" barrel as my contribution to a silent auction at a recent Mountain Area Land Trust (MALT) event here in Evergreen. It was a lot of fun gathering a solid collection of bombers, six packs and more from breweries around the state. The collection netted something like $160 to support open space conservation in Jefferson, Clear Creek and Park Counties. It was a little hard to let all that great beer go, but it was for a great cause. Check out MALT...it's a great organization doing great work here in the foothills and beyond.

The Beers of Colorado barrel.

I'm now focused on getting back into some consistency on the running front. Had a terrible run at Matthew Winters/Red Rocks/Hogback on Monday. Running in 85-degree heat at 10 a.m., with no water and not having eaten was a poor decision. I bonked like I haven't bonked in years. I was walking some short, steep climbs on the Hogback that I haven't had to walk before.  On Tuesday, I got out for 8.3 miles in JeffCo's Apex Open Space. It was hot again (90+ degrees), but I was fueled and had a bottle of water with me. Huge difference.

On another note, I sent in my formal notice to the Bear 100 folks that I was to be a DNS this year. Fortunately, they have a pretty generous refund policy - all but $25 to be returned, according to the Web site. I hope to have that race on my calendar again next year.

In the meantime, I am really feeling the need to get something on the calendar...something to motivate me to get out there on a MUCH more consistent basis. Time to start looking at the options...

Thanks for reading.

Apex Loop

Nice late afternoon loop through Apex Open Space en route home from the Boulder office. As a special treat, the sun made an unscheduled appearance.


Time: 47 minutes
Distance: 5.29 miles
Effort: Moderate
Body: Good
Weather: Mostly cloudy and warm(ish)


Squeezed this run in between the end of an early-starting workday and picking up the kids. Apex Open Space is incredibly convenient for these rushed runs. The parking lot is just a couple hundred yards off my regular commuting route.

Glad to see the sun poke through the clouds just as I was setting off. Made it warm enough to run in just shirt sleeves, a far cry from the sleet/snow runs of the past two days.

Ran a nice loop through the park using the Apex, Sluicebox, Grubstake, Pick-n-Sledge and Argos Trails. Got some nice turn-over going through the rollers on Grubstake and on the Argos descent. Good stuff.

1,210 feet o' elevation gain.

Apex Open Space - Here & There

A post-early morning flight run in a local gem of an open space park. Explored some of the new trails built there this summer.


Time:  1:27
Distance: 9 miles
Effort: Easy
Body: Fair
Weather: Sunny and warming

Got up at 3:30 a.m. in Washington, D.C. to catch a 6 a.m. flight home from Dulles. Got a solid couple hours of sleep on the plane. When I landed in Colorado at about 8:30 a.m., the sun was out and things were warming up nicely.

Since it was so early and I had my running gear packed in my suitcase, everything lined up nicely for a quick morning run. En route home, I stopped off at Apex Open Space, which is located just above Heritage Square in Golden. I head heard from Todd G. that the county put in some new trails at the park this summer, so I was eager to see what was new.

The first thing I noticed at the park was all the new signs put up to instruct bikers about new rules governing which direction on which days they could ride certain trails. There have been some significant hiker/biker conflicts at this small, close-in park. The directional days and new trails are the county's solution to the identified problems.

The first new trail, is the .7-mile Argos Trail, which switchbacks up the east-side face park's foothills mountains.  The trail is well built...I'd say over-built. It's a good 3-4 feet wide. This seems to be JeffCo's modus operandi these days...widening trails, removing rocks, etc...  I'm sure the trails will feel more narrow once the vegetation has regrown and preferred lines get worn into the wide tread. Will be interesting to watch how the trail matures. Still, my critiques aside, Open Space should be thanked and commended for investing in new trails, particularly in these challenging budget times!

From the top of the new Argos Trail, I cruised along Pick-n-Sledge and made a small loop out of Grubstake and Bonanza before dropping down Sluicebox to the Apex Trail. From this junction, I headed up Apex to its upper reaches and then ran down Enchanted Forest back to Apex (the upper part of Apex also has been re-routed), which I followed back to my truck.

Good stuff.