After the end of ski season and a few trail races in June, it was time to switch gears and start focusing on bagging some peaks around the state. As is the case most years, the month of July went by in a flash. Between working, heading to the hills, a road trip to Sante Fe with Anna-Lisa, and starting a few projects on the house, I simply wasn’t able to keep up with writing trip reports. So I figured a quick recap with some of the better photos from the month would be a good way to catch up. Read more…
Probably my biggest single goal for the summer was to run my first 50-mile trail race. Well it didn’t take long (three days into the summer to be exact) to fulfill that goal at the San Juan Solstice 50 in Lake City. Though a complete whirlwind, it was one heck of a day out there.
After securing a spot in the lottery in January I began ramping up the miles and vert throughout the winter and into spring ski season. Then it was on to the Dirty 30 in early-June, which is perfectly placed in the calendar as a “training race” being exactly three weeks ahead of the San Juan Solstice. A few more big days in the hills after the Dirty 30, including a run of the Barr Trail on Pikes Peak (which somehow was my first time up that route), and I finally felt “ready” to give the SJS a go. Keep reading…
On June 3rd I ran in the 9th annual Golden Gate Dirty 30 trail race. It was my second “ultra” race and one I could definitely see going back to run again in the future. The event is so well executed thanks to a crew of awesome volunteers and one very dedicated race director, it’s tough not to view it as one of the premier 50k races in Colorado if not the country.
Truth be told the Dirty 30 was intended to be a tune-up race for my first 50 miler at the end of the month – the San Juan Solstice in Lake City. The Dirty 30 is a tough course and a perfect lead-in to a mountainous 50 miler like the SJS. Snaking up through the hills of Golden Gate Canyon State Park near Blackhawk, the course racks up 7,300 ft of elevation gain over the 32 mile distance. Keep reading…
On Memorial Day Rick and I managed to pull off a near-perfect climb and ski of Maroon Peak outside of Aspen. This one had eluded both of us for awhile and it felt good to finally get it done. The Maroon Bells are classic peaks and the ski options available off both of them are as interesting as they come in Colorado. While the north face of North Maroon may take the cake in terms of historic Aspen test pieces, its southern neighbor offers up just as much vertical and challenge. Read more…
