Ponderous Posterior Pikes Peak 50k

Yesterday was the final 'race' of the Colorado Fat Ass 50k series, which comprised of three informal events across the Front Range: Boulder in November, Ft. Collins in December, and Colorado Springs in January.

The field for these informal races would make any race director jealous, with Scott Jurek, Matt Carpenter, Tony Krupicka, Scott Jaime, Justin Ricks, Joe Grant, JT and yours truly all running. Despite not being prepared to run an ultra-distance event just two weeks into the new year, and nearly equalling my year-to-date mileage in one run, I was NOT about to miss the opportunity to run with these guys.

The course was a 'best-of' collection of our local trails which provided a treat for people unfamiliar with the area and locals alike. There was an abundance of single-track, fresh powder, gnarly climbs and descents, beautiful views of Pikes Peak, and thousands of feet of elevation gain/loss. For those of you familiar with the trail network around Colorado Springs, we hit the following: Garden of the Gods, Rampart Range Road, Williams Canyon, Waldo Canyon, Longs Ranch Road, Barr Trail, Intemann Trail, and Red Rock Canyon. In close to 32 miles there was less than 3 miles of running on pavement.

I had the privilege of meeting and running with a new friend, Patrick Garcia, for most of the day. He and I were both in less than peak condition, so we really had no interest in pushing the pace and tearing our bodies down too much. With several stops, including the PBR aid at mile 30, we were out there for about 6:35.

I'll let the pictures speak for themselves:

(Pikes Peak as seen from the top of Waldo Canyon.)

(A long and snowy 2000ft climb up Longs Ranch Road.)

   

(Pit stop at No Name Creek on Barr Trail.)

(Patrick and I showing off our sweet winter running moves.)

 (PBR can hit a guy quickly afer 6 hours of running!)

(The final climb out of Red Rock Canyon.) 

(This guy kept CLAIMING to be Scott Jurek. I don't buy it.)

It was a perfect January day for a long trek in the mountains with some cool and talented people and just the kick in the 'posterior' I needed to get back to training for the 2011 race season!