After much anticipation, the 2021 Dirty 30 had finally arrived. Ben, Dave and I were allowed to roll over our 2020 entry’s, given it was cancelled due to COVID (which makes sense for a naturally socially distanced event full of young, fit people – but I digress). I was just glad to finally experience the legend that was this race, coupled with Race Director Megan Finnesy’s hard work and unrivaled attention to detail, it certainly did not disappoint. This was my 3rd ultra overall and by far the most difficult. Keep Reading…
The 11th running of the Golden Gate Dirty 30 near Blackhawk took place this past Saturday, and I decided to head up there and join the fun for a 3rd year in a row. Although it wound up being my slowest finish time thus far, I was happy with the overall effort and still felt I overachieved based on my training compared to past years.
It’s no secret that 2019 has been one incredible snow year. Living in the mountains has had some obvious and much-welcomed upsides this season, but one downside was the lack of dry trails in March and April. In Denver, a solid April long-run was almost always available at Green Mountain, Indian Creek, or Deer Creek Canyon. But up here in Vail, on a year like this one, good luck. So that just meant it was a lot of skinning and road running up until the end of April, when the desert side of the valley finally melted out and I was able to log a few 20 mile runs. Better late than never I suppose. Keep reading…
For the past year or so, Ben has been telling me about the Golden Gate Dirty 30 ultra marathon in Golden Gate Canyon State Park. He had a really good experience last year during his race, and he knew I would like this race given my running and trail running background. I kept it loosely on the radar throughout the year, but never too seriously. 32.2 miles on single track is a big commitment to train for. 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…
