Take My Breath Away

Day 5 (The Incline)

(In an effort to get caught up, I’ll try to make these short)

“Hey Willie, show us something that will take our breath away”. These were the words uttered to Willie in reference to our run on Monday. I think the intention was to see some “breathtaking” scenery, but Willie interpreted it quite literally. The Incline is a famous (to most ultra runners) 1 mile stretch of “trail” (really just steps) in Manitou Springs, CO. The lie at the base of Pikes Peak. This is what Willie had in mind for the day. Words cannot possibly describe how steep this is, nor can pictures really do it justice. But the stats don’t lie. The Incline is approximately 1 mile long, boasting 2000’ of vertical gain, with an AVERAGE grade of 38%!!! It took me just over 43 minutes to make it to the top, and I was passing people along the way. A 43 minute mile. Wow. Once at the top (after catching my breath), we continued up the Barr Trail to Barr Camp at just over 10,200’. Here we filled up our water bottles (with cold stream water) and headed back down to Manitou via the Barr Trail (no Incline down). 14 miles total for the day, with just over 8,000’ feet of elevation change.

(The Incline)

(Willie filtering our water at Barr Camp)

I showered and headed of for Lake City, a tiny town nestled in the heart of the San Juan Mountains. I love the mountains, but the San Juans have captured me like no others. Their majestic beauty is heightened by the distinctive red hue. They are awe inspiring features. I pulled into Lake City just before dark, checked into my cabin (trust me, it sounds way more glamorous than it is), and headed to the saloon across the street for dinner (all that was missing were the swinging doors).

Day 6 (Lake City)

The next day I met Claude, a friend of Joe’s dad who lives in Lake City and was going to map out a run for me. Since this area of Colorado is currently at 200% the normal snowfall, he advised me to avoid the high mountain trails (deep snow and raging streams can be dangerous) and stick to the jeep roads. I still managed to log 20 miles with 6500’ of vertical, all the while taking in the amazing views. The best part is my legs felt great the whole day (60 degree temps help). I had a blast and felt like I could have run all day. Running in these mountains makes me very happy.

(How can you not be happy when you run here!!!)

I’m excited about how well my training is going and can’t wait for the next run. Tomorrow I’m up early and headed to Durango to pick up Adam. We will spend the next 5 days in my favorite Colorado town, Telluride, for the annual Telluride Bluegrass Festival. I can’t wait!!!

Trip Totals (Through Day 6)

Driving Mileage – 1750

Running Mileage and Vertical Change (est.) – 4 runs/66 miles/27,000’