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Pike's Peak, near Colorado Springs, Colorado
11/5/06
13 Miles to Peak with over 7,000 Feet Vertical Gain
Planning
When thinking about my fall, I realized I really needed some goals
that were fun and challenging at the same time. I was coming to
Colorado Springs for a conference at USA Triathlon and had always
wanted to run up Pike's Peak. It was only logical that I would plan
an ascent up the Barr Trail to the summit of Pike's Peak. What made
sense in August, became a lot less practical in late October when
Colorado Springs got its third snow storm of the year. The last
one dropped over 1 foot of snow on the town, much more up top of
the mountain. My plan was looking quite unlikely as the trail would
likely be far too snow packed to allow for a successful ascent.
The Run, or more accurately the "Rike"
While I had harbored some thoughts otherwise, once I got to Colorado
Springs it was obvious given the snow that was still quite deep
at the peak that I was not going to be able to make it all the way
up the summit. In the weeks leading up to my trip, I altered my
plan to reflect the snow reality. Instead of running to the top
of the mountain and waiting for someone to drive me down, I would
simply go as far up as I could, turn around and run down. Easy enough
logistically and it still looked challenging and fun.
A little after 11am on Sunday, November 5, 2006 I showed up at
the base of the Barr Trail, the start of the climb to Pike's Peak.
I am excited yet calm. Given that it is about 65 degrees out, I
opt to wear long shorts and a sleeveless shirt.

Here I am at the trail marker before heading out.
As soon as I start up the trail, I knew I was not in Kansas anymore
as the saying goes. Trails in Minnesota are great but they are not
like this. I am at about 7,000 feet and am moving up a grade that
while it doesn't look super steep, still averages around 10%. Within
10 minutes, I am more winded that I would like and my calves are
already tightening up. There are two main aspects of this run that
set it apart from my normal training, the elevation and the grade.
I trained for neither of these demands specifically, and this realization
hits home far quicker than I thought it might. Oh well, not a big
deal as I am only out for a nice afternoon on the mountain. While
I planned to run up the trail, I knew quickly that was not going
to last forever. As my calves get increasingly tight, I start to
power hike. The views are great and I am enjoying myself.

Here is a view down towards Colorado Springs.

The trail up is beautiful, as you can see here.
I am happy to be moving and after awhile, I get my first view of
the summit. When you start the trail, you can't actually see the
top of the mountain.

The summit is the little looking point with snow on top. It looks
a long way away here, and while it isn't that far in terms of miles,
it is a long way up the trail.
After proceeding slowly up for about 50 minutes, I hit the first
maker of my progress. I've gone 2.5 miles, wow, I can't remember
the last 20 minute mile I've done. Not only that, those 20 minute
miles brought my heart rate up into the 150s and caused my calves
to get sore!

If I thought I was going slowly before, I had more fun awaiting
me.

This image is of the first section with significant snow and I hit
it about 3 miles into the climb. I'd already gone over some icy
sections, but the snow was now a reality. As I move through the
snow pack, I realize that I am comfortably dressed in shorts and
a sleeveless shirt and it is kind of strange. Intellectually I should
be cold but I'm not.
After about three miles the trail levels out a bit. You are still
going up but there are now flat sections in the trail and an occasional
descent. I use these as chances to run as I've been doing a lot
of walking. I know I just can't call this a run. A hike doesn't
sound quite right either so I decide that I'm going to call my session
a "rike." I'll use the "r" from run and the
rest of the word from "hike."
Here are two more great views of the mountain.


In the second photo you can see how suddenly elevation changes
things as the dominant type of tree totally changes.
I keep going and am enjoying myself. I am making progress and realize
that I should be hitting the Barr Camp pretty soon. I'm getting
tired now and while I've been good about taking in calories and
fluids via a camelback, I am beginning to think about turning around.
My goal was always to reach Barr Camp, which is 6 miles up the trail.
I happily get to Barr Camp around 1:40 into my journey. I chat with
some of the folks there. This place was a stop over camp established
in the 1920s. The camp is cool and I enjoy the stop. I chat a bit
with the great lady who manages the camp, and she tells me there
is a marker 1 mile up the trail. She hears that the trail really
deteriorates after this point as far as the snow is concerned. I
take stock of myself after my break. I am tired but feeling much
more energetic. I am comfortable in my clothes even though the outside
air temp is now in the low 40s in the sun. The one issue of some
concern is my hands. They have been cold for awhile and while I've
been managing it well, I know that with the elevation and the demands
I'm putting on my aerobic system, they aren't getting a lot of blood
and they will be getting less as I move up the mountain.

Here I am outside the Barr Camp.
I decide that I'm going to head for the marker 1 mile up the trail.
The snow above Barr Camp is a lot deeper and the going is getting
a lot tougher. I don't mind this too much. After about 20 minutes
of "riking" from Barr Camp, I am hitting a ridge and am
much more exposed to the conditions. The wind is picking up and
I can feel the coldness moving down my arms. While it had just been
my hands, my entire arms are getting cold and as I hit some wind,
I realize that I'm now in a place where I need to take some action
before things get dangerous. I have not reached the trail marker
at the 20 minute marker, I'm now pretty tired and my hands are real
cold. I decide to turn around.

Here is a picture from a little of the way down the trail. It is
hard to see high I am now compared to earlier views but this is
the same direction as the earlier photos towards Colorado Springs.
As I start down the trail, I am certain that I've made the right
choice. My hands are not warming up and I'm a little worried about
them. I am able to run down the snow trail pretty well. I make sure
to slow when I see rocks and just let myself go when the trail looks
safe. My feet slid around a good bit but I'm still under control.
I work my way down and happily hit Barr Camp again. I go inside
again and warm my hands. After a few minutes, my hands are better
but they are not normal by any means. There really isn't much to
do aside from getting myself off the mountain. I probably should
have brought gloves but given how much the rest of my body is comfortable,
I am not sure it would have mattered at all.
The run down the trail after Barr Camp was great. I make it the
3 miles of snow pack just fine and I'm having a good time. At one
point I'm running along and the realization of how fortunate I am
really hits me. I had a health crisis in June of 2006 and as I'm
running at one point I can feel the scar on my neck stretch a little.
Not painfully or anything, just a reminder that it is there. I am
surrounded by the most amazing scenery and can only hear my feet
hitting the ground ever so softly and the wind moving branches on
some trees. I can't remember exactly what I yelled, but it was something
along the lines of "thanks, I'm so happy to be here."
I keep at it and am having a good time. My hands have now warmed
up and the flat section of the trail is a treat. All things considered,
I am in good shape. With about 2.5 miles to go down, things start
to change. I'm starting to get pretty tired overall, "riking"
for 2:45 will do that to a guy, and my legs are aching a good deal.
While I'm tired, I make sure to keep looking around.

Here is a great view of a rock and the summit from my way down.
I don't know how I missed this view on my way up, but I'm real glad
I noticed it now.
The last 2 miles of the trail are real steep and my legs are now
thrashed. The trail is not only steep, it gets narrower and rockier.
I am running still, sometimes fast, but my legs are really complaining.
I keep moving figuring that walking will hurt nearly as much and
will take twice as long. It is amazing how many more people there
are in the last 2 miles compared to the top. I see more folks in
last 45 minutes than I did in the whole 2 hours I was up on the
mountain. Despite the fact that I want to be done, I keep running.
The last mile is tough but I make a point to keep it light hearted
and I joke with myself and people I see on the trail.
Lessons
If I ever needed a reminder about how much specific training helps,
this was it. I now have my talking point for this issue when I work
with clients. There was no way I was going to run up the trail continuously.
Despite the fact that I'm pretty fit right now, the demands of the
elevation and the grade were too much for me to handle on this day
when I had completed no elevation or consistent uphill training.
I will remember this as I prepare for next year.
This "rike" was a lot of fun. I will continue to use
my fitness to have a good time and to do things that I enjoy. There
is no reason not to celebrate and use fitness towards things we
enjoy. Life is too short to get too focused on race times and competition.
Those things are important, but they are not the be all, end all.
One way I like to judge a trail run is by the status of my shoes
and socks after I am done. In general, the dirtier the better.

Here are my feet before I started.
After I'm done, the toll of the run can be seen on the trail. I
had hoped for a little more debris but given that so much of the
trail was snow packed, the shoes kept getting cleaned off.

This was a great day on the mountain. If you get the chance, find
a challenge and take it on. While I did not make the summit of Pike's
Peak on this November day, I used my fitness to take on a challenge.
I also had a great time. See you out there!
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