| Report on Pike's Peak "Rike" |
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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 The Run, or more accurately the "Rike" 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!
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.
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.
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 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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January 23 Upcoming Dig It Triathlon and Multisport lecture for the Lakes Area Multisport club on Racing Selection and Season Planning. if you're in Brainerd area on Thursday, January 26, make sure to come. Email Jason for full details. January 16 The cyclocross racing spectacular contined with Coach Jason in Louisville, KY for the UCI Masters Cyclocross Championships.
It was a great weekend of racing, though some tough conditions and competition had Jason ready to go home and train even harder for next year. Check out the mud on the bike.
Jason post race with his finisher medal (muddy of course), and a lot of the course still on his bike. January 9 Coach Jason's been doing some cyclocross this fall and "winter." He was in Madison, WI this past weekend for the USA Cycling National Cyclocross Championships. It was a fun and hard weekend, just like cross is suppose to be.
Above is the Dig It kit with pinned number. Always exciting to be putting on a National Championships number.
Above an upward look at one of the uphills on the course, in much better shape than when Jason got to experience it.
Here is the bike on the verge of taking the start. Not the dirt and grime and that's after being pressure washed a few times. January 1 Dig It Triathlon and Multisport wishes you a Happy New Year. If this the year for athletic improvement, we're here to help. December 15 Dig It Triathlon and Multisport's Threshold Thursdays (TT) has begun. It's a free, Facebook based workout group dedicated to training bike threshold. Coach Jason analyzes his first TT session in the article below..
December 12 The 2012 racing season is beckoning. Dig It Triathlon and Multisport and the Buffalo Triathlon are teaming up for a 5 week Introduction to Triathlon Course. Details on the race site at www.tribuff.com/active_training.htm Coach Jason in action at the Badger Cross in Madison, WI yesterday. With only 4 weeks until cyclocross nationals, it was great chance to check out the course on a day with crazy nice weather (for Wisconsin in mid December). December 8 The Dig It Triathlon Facebook page is now live at www.facebook/DigItTri We have a new training group, Threshold Thursdays, starting up. A free workout is presented each week for all who join. November 21 At Ironman Arizona, Andy has a great race, knocking over 40 minutes from his PR and getting oh so close to a Kona slot in the toughest of AGs. Coach Jason has a great time at the MN State Cyclocross as well. November 8 Dig It's Jill rocks the NYC Marathon. Wow, what a month for Jill as she climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro and then came home and ran a great marathon. Major props! Coach Jason had some fun at the VeloCX in MN as well this past weekend. October 31 Despite a lack of updates on our part, it's been a busy October for Dig It Triathlon and its athletes. Dan had a solid run at the Marine Corp Marathon with a PR, Kathy rocked the Toyota Cup Tri in Dallas, Coach Jason was in Colorado for a coaching conference. Last and certainly not least, Jill and Cliff put their endurance training to a real test and climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro in Africa. Now that's how you celebrate a special event! To Learn more about Jason's confernece
October 16 Coach Jason in action at the Cross at the Y in Hudson, Wisconsin
today. A fun event. Here Jason gets ready for some cross fun. October 2 It was great to hear that Dan broke through with his first multisport overall win today at the Half Full Tri in Maryland. Way to go Dan, can't help but love the podiums with Dig It on the top step!
Dig It family also in action at the Twin Cities Marathon, doing our annual 5K time clock volunteer duties.
September 25 The Dig It crew was in action at the Duathlon World Championships in Gijon, Spain today. Rob, Greg and Richard flew their national colors (USA, UK, and USA respectively) for strong races amidst serious competition. Nice work, gentlemen!
Above Rob rocks the run. Below Greg on the bike.
September 18 Coach Jason's cyclocross skills clinic was a big success as we got our CX groves going, and it even rained. Nothing says cross like cool temps and rain. September 11 In Madison, Eric had a strong debut Ironman with a well balanced swim, bike and run. Way to go Eric!
September 10 As the multisport season wraps down, Rob and Tony showed great running fitness. September 4 Tony rocked the St. Croix Sprint Tri today, putting a great and fast end on an IM focused year. August 28 Today was an Ironman kind of day and Dig It's Lindsey was rockin' it in Canada while Keith kicked it hard for a great IM in Kentucky. Way to go crew. August 28 Dig It's Eric showed his fitness is there for Ironman Wisconsin with a 2nd AG placing at the Lakes Country Triathlon in northern MN one day after racing the Tri 111 event. Wow is all we can say. August 27 The inaugural Tri 111 in the United States was in Minnesota and Dig It was there with a strong showing. Andy went top 10 overall and Betsy and Eric were showing their fitness off as well. Nice job gang! August 27 Coach Jason was in action at the Big Ring Flyers TT near Hudson, Wisconsin. It was a great day and Jason had fun while doing his best and getting soundly beaten. Nice way to end the TT season nonetheless.
August 22 It must be a USA Triathlon themed week as Coach Jason's article on bike training into goal races came out in the USA Triathlon Coaches Newsletter and Dig It's Kathy and Dan rocked USAT Age Group Nationals with outstanding performances. Dan earned a berth on the World's team, always a tough ticket and a particularly challenging one this year. Way to go Kathy and Dan. August 9 Coach Jason taught a transitions skills clinic in Buffalo, MN tonight. It was a fun and useful evening. August 8 Always fun to wrap up a weekend when athletes reach new highs of performance as Kathy scoring another strong race and an AG win in PA and Andy notched up another win in MN, toping his own course record along the way. July 17 At the ever competitive Heart of the Lakes Triathlon in Minnesota, Cliff and Jill swelter to AG wins. Nice work! July 9/10 Across the world, literally, and Dig It athletes are having fun and getting it done.
Above Greg wins his division at a local duathlon in the UK.
Kathy scores an AG podium at the Lifetime Minneapolis Triathlon. Dan wins his AG with a 4th overall at the DITR in Maryland. In Colorado, Lindsey had fun racing the the Boulder Peak Triathlon even while living at sea level. July 2 The month might be on its second day but Dig It athletes are already rockin' as Jill scores an AG win at the Minneman Triathlon. June 27 Dig It's Betsy and Tony had great races at Ironman Couer 'd Alene. Dig It couldn't be prouder of these two as they braved a rough winter here in MN for some great training that carried over to successful races. June 21 The Nature Valley Grand Prix was a great time with bike racing fun run amuck. Jason's got a report about it and a TT.
Jason was in action too, as you can see at the Tuesday Night TT.
June 13 Ho hum, another summer weekend, another batch of strong performances from Dig It athletes. Eric, Josh and Tony show their fitness with great races at the Liberty Triathlon, Kathy earns another AG placing at Trinona with her 2nd in the 40-44 AG and Lindsey gets 2nd overall woman and 1st in her AG in Wisconsin. Well actually, weekends like this are never boring! Keep it up Dig It crew. June 7 Tri season is here and Dig It clients came out swinging. Kathy had a great race in Minnesota at the Buffalo Triathlon, taking minutes off her PRs from last year and Jennifer had a great return to multisport racing in Utah with a strong performance. June 6-8 Coach Jason in Colorado for coaching meetings with a bit of riding thrown in when possible.
Above Jason poses for a pic in Ward, Colorado a great ride up and out of Boulder. Note interesting decorations in Ward. May 22 GearWest Duathlon a big success as we had some great performances. May 21 Coach Jason's clinic at the Land Between the Lakes Triathlon was a success as Jason talked about race execution and various other topics in Albert Lea MN. Also of note, Dig It clients Rob and Richard officially in for Duathlon Worlds in September. They'll be rocking the Team USA kit in Spain, awesome work dudes! May 15 Duathlon season in full swin for Dig It crew and the great performances keep coming. In Minnesota, Cliff and Jill won their age groups with Jill 5th overall woman at the Lake Elmo Duathlon and Rob scored his first ever overall podium in Florida while winning his age group too. Nice job gang! April 30/May 1 Wow, what a weekend! In one of the best weekends of action for the Dig It gang ever, and we're not ones for exaggeration, this weekend will go down as a great one.
Dig It's Dan pictured below gets ready for his swim.
Coach Jason was in action to at the Tour of the Gila in New Mexico.
Coach Jason above in Dig It kit during day 3 of this stage race, his first. The article below covers the details.
April 18 On a day for the ages in Boston, Dig It's Jill ran a great Boston Marathon today. Nice work Jill! April 17 The first of Dig It's bike skills clinics was a big success. We fun and improved bike awareness and riding skills.
Above Jason and Eric pose with some of the orange cone course visible in the background. April 2/3 Dig It's duathlon racing gang in full swing as Richard shows off the Dig It shorts in Florida and Greg kicks to a great race in the UK.
March 14 Let the racing begin! Dig It's Dan has a great debut duathlon with a 5th place overall and an AG win in Maryland and the MN crew threw down some good runs at the local 10 miler. All in the name of St. Patrick's day. Weekends like this make us proud! February 4 One of the age old questions regards doing versus teaching. In
triathlon, the particulars relate to coaches and their athletic accomplishments.
Coach Jason writes about it in his article, "Athletic Success and
Coaching, Is there a Connection? January 30 The great performances are starting already as Betsy and Richard rocked the Miami Half Marathon today. It was a great way to start the season and we're expecting great things from these and all the Dig It athletes. November 29 Coach Jason had a roller coaster cyclocross season with some
high highs, such as highest placing ever in a bike race and an category
upgrade, and some low lights. A good way to think about it was these two
images. As the cliche goes, it was the best of times, it was the worst
of times...
November 22 Tony had an impressive race at Ironman Arizona after battling a nasty bug in the last 2 weeks into the race, Tony used his fitness to a PR time, nice work Tony! October 15 Coach Jason’s thinking about 2011. It’s a time of the year when athletes look back on their racing and make plans for the following year. Jason’s got some thoughts on racing goals and the article, “Is Longer Better?” goes into more details. October 10 The multisport season is winding down and the Dig It crew is showing the world how to end a season. After raising her game all fall, Kathy goes to the US Open Championships in Dallas and scores an impressive 2nd place in her AG and top 25 among all the women and she’s only been doing this a year. Watch out 2011!
October 3 On a glorious fall day, Jill rocked the Twin Cities Marathon and Cliff did the same to the 10 miler. Another fall weekend, another great batch of Dig It performances. While it is routine, it never gets old! September 12 Ironman Wisconsin this year was a great day for Dig It’s athletes with great weather and inspired performances from Andy, Betsy, Sean and Alex. With determination and joy they swam a long way, rode a long way and ran a long way. Great performances all around. Way to go guys, Coach Jason enjoyed being there and hanging with you as you rocked it! September 3 The setting for this year’s Duathlon World Championships couldn’t have been better as the event was in Edinburgh, Scotland. Dig It’s Jill and Cliff made the trip and were in action. Jill had a great race and Clifford did his best as he caught a flu bug the day before but hung tough and finished. You don’t go all that way to DNS. Impressive display on both accounts September 1 Apologies for the lack of updates, we're working on a few look Dig It site with expanded features and educational content. A short recap of the summer's accomplishments among the Dig It gang includes more PRs than I can recall, numerous world championhip qualifications in duathlon, at the Olympic and half IM distance. Athletes got on the podium for the first time, won races, moved up to the elite field and no matter their place in the field just had a lot of fun using their fitness to the fullest. The fall's racing looks great as well, watch out Duathlon World Championships, Ironman Wisconsin, and races throughout the country, the Dig It crew is coming and ready to rock and have fun along the way! April 24 Duathlon Nationals weekend was a success for the Dig It gang. April 17, 18 and 19 A great start to the racing season for Dig It athletes across the country. Tony gets it done in the Big Easy at the Ironman 70.3 New Orleans, Debi grabs 5th overall woman and first master at a sprint tri in Virginia, the Minnesota gang throws down some great runs at the Trail Mix and last and certainly not least, Jill sets a PR at the Boston Marathon. Wow, this weekend would make many coaches proud for a given year and it's 3 days in April, awesome!
Coach Jason also raced, in green Nature Valley team kit, at the Durand Road Race, photo courtesy of www.skinnyski.com
April 13 Dig It now serves as an official coach/dealer for Quarq power meters. Contact Coach Jason for pricing details.
Here is the first order on Coach Jason's bike.
March 27 Dig It's Lindsey has a great day in Oceanside at the California 70.3 to grab her first ever world championshis slot. Way to go, Lindsey! March 27 Coach Jason leads clinic for GearWest tri club on duathlon performance along with Kevin O'Connor. March 13-14 Coach Jason was in Texas for a USA Cycling Coaching clinic on teaching bike riding skills. It was great, watch here for an upcoming clinic on bike handling.
Above Jason poses with camp participants outside in the sun, yeah Texas! December 3, 2010 Coach Jason reflects on training in the off season.
November 22, 2009 Dig It's Dan made his Ironman debut in Tempe at Ironman Arizona. He might have been new at the Ironman distance but Dan was fast and had a great performance. Nice job Dan! October 3 and 4 Minnesota cyclocross season is underway and rolling. Michael and Coach Jason got their seasons going with some fun and hard racing this weekend.
Michael in action at the Hudson CX. Photo courtesy of skinnyski.com.
Jason at the Planet Bike Orono CX race. Photo courtesy of Seth Iverson Photo.
September 26, 2009 It was a wet and tough day for everyone at the ITU World Short Course Duathlon Championships. Dig It athletes were out to play and did what they could on a challenging course in the midst of a downpour.
Debi is among this group of fast ladies before the skys opened again.
Here Justin Hurd closes in on the transition after a speedy first run. September 13 Wow, what a day for the Dig It gang. Debi was 12th overall, and 3rd woman, at a sprint tri in Virginia. Maria set a new half marathon PR in Chicago, and Forrest set a 5K PR by over a minute in Kentucky. Oh and then there was Ironman Wisconsin which was the scene of outstanding performances by Andrea, Lindsey and Henry. A successful debut and 2 PRs made it quite the day in Madison. Jason was there to cheer and take it all in.
Here Coach Jason hangs with Andrea after the race.
May 31, 2009 Dig It's friend Justin Hurd captures the US National Long Course Duathlon Championship today in California at the World's Toughest. National Champ baby, that's a good thing to call one's self!
Photo courtesy of Auburn Events October 11, 2008 Justin Hurd, who Coach Jason advises, shows shows his strength at IM Hawaii. On a challenging day, for the big island no less, Justin did great in his first attempt at the World Championships as a pro. September 28, 2008 Jason in racing mode at the ITU World Duathlon Championships in Italy. It was a fun day of action.
Here the bike awaiting its trusted rider.
September 27, 2008 Jason serves as Assistant Coach with the elite athletes of Team USA at the ITU World Duathlon Championships in Rimini, Italy. It was a fun day filled with great competition for Team USA.
Here is the women's team poses for photos immediately after their finish.
October 6 Coach Jason wins the inaugural Kickin' Leaves Duathlon in Grand Rapids, Minnesota. The new race had a small field but a great course. Hope everyone can make it there next year.
Jason poses with bike and trophy at home after the race.
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