On Sunday I ran the Pike's Peak Marathon, my first time.

Short Version :

Goal : 7:30

Ascent   (13.1 miles, +7800')    4:31:25
Descent (13.1 miles, -7800')     2:34:33
Total : 7:06:08

M45-49 : 34/67
Overall : 361/707

Longer Version :

This was my big race for the season. All my summer training and other races were about being ready for this day. But as the big day approached, I never really got my head into it. So I decided to just let my training do its thing. I ended up beating my goal by almost half an hour, and for the first time ever finished right in the middle of the pack (50th percentile). The moral : "If you run slow and don't try too hard, there's no limit to what you can accomplish." 

The race starts in Manitou Springs, a cute touristy town built in a funnel. Half of the funnel was scorched by a humongous forest fire last summer and the barren burn scar was pounded by pin-point thunderstorms several times in the week before the race. So poor Manitou was hit by some serious flash floods which caused one fatality and knocked out several businesses. It also nixed our pre-race expo, and (to drive home the magnitude of the disaster) put the kibosh on our unlimited post-race beer. 

Here's a pic of our hero, facing confidently downhill.

The race heads "gently" uphill on paved roads for a mile or so before squeezing abruptly into the rather narrow Barr Trail. One of the huge strategy issues in this race is how fast to run that first mile. Everyone says not to go out too fast - if you dig yourself into a hole at 6000 feet, there's no way to climb out at 8,10,12, or 14,000'. But if you don't run the first mile fast, you will find yourself here :

Once the trail begins, there are several miles where passing is nearly impossible. You simply "ride the train". Actually, the entire 13 miles to the top have that feeling, but at least the middle part gives you some opportunities to dart by people.

Somewhere around mile 4 or 5, the trail "levels out" some and I was able to start running again. It was great to run, and my pacing felt just right. Not pushing too hard, and felt like I would hit Barr Camp (a cool, old-timey log cabin) on a pace for a 4:15 - 4:30 ascent.

Last year, I ran the Pike's Peak Ascent (Half marathon, up only), went out a little too fast and let myself get dehydrated. I paid for it bigtime later on, but Barr Camp (about 10,000') was where I started feeling it. This year, with a slightly more modest start and scads more training, I was able to just go with the flow and cruise into Barr Camp feeling pretty fresh. I did not, however, feel like taking pictures. Sorry about that.

After Barr Camp, there's a tiny stretch that stays fairly "flat" and runnable, and it almost felt like the pack was spreading out a bit. But after 1/2 mile, the slope increases, people return to a walk and it gets crowded again. On a good day I can run this section, but for me it's still more efficient to walk it. It's very pretty, and on Sunday it was actually filled with little streams (including the trail itself !) due to the heavy rains.

Also, this is where altitude starts kicking in for a lot of people. It's where you first see people stopping for a sec, or leaning against a tree, or sitting on the ground, even doing the head down between the knees thing. And it's where you can't just "ride the train" : every now and then someone ahead will start to flag and you have to pass or you'll lose time. Passing can be tricky here, but it's doable.

The other thing that happens here : the leaders ! Those suckahs have made it to the summit already and are barreling down at crazy speeds. The uphillers are very good about getting out of the way and cheering. But still I saw a guy in the top 15 or so just take a leap over a 3-foot boulder just to avoid some congestion !

When I hit treeline (12,000') I was still feeling pretty good. This summer my acclimation has been awesome; it surprised me how much better I do up high than last summer. From treeline to the summit, the path gradually deteriorates into more boulders/rubble and less gravel/dirt. And the crowding gets pretty bad - the pack itself is beginning to turn and come downhill. But as I passed familiar landmarks and realized how good I was feeling, I took advantage of gaps in traffic and ran/passed when I could.

Here's one pic I couldn't help but stopping to take. Between the trail and those dark vertical rocks is a 1500' drop-off.

The summit is pretty non-eventful for the Marathon : Just a U-turn, more boulders to scramble over, and more traffic. But about a mile down (near the previous pic, say) the trail starts to get runnable again. And I LOVES me some downhill running ! From here to Barr Camp I ran non-stop, with bursts of speed wherever possible. A lot of others (flat-landers, I imagine) chose to shuffle or even walk. I gained a lot of position in this section.

By the time I reached Barr Camp (about 75% of the course done) I was feeling pretty tired. My upper body & arms were achy, and I had fallen once. For the first time, I came to a full stop at the aid station - perused the snacks like a picky eater, chatted/joked with volunteers, said hi to the BC staff people I knew, and then started off at a more modest jog.

My goal for the day was 7:30, and although I wasn't capable of doing any math I knew my time was looking good. Quite good. So I just went with it.

Blam ! This is where the falling started in earnest. I quit counting around 5 or so. My most spectacular wipeout happened when I caught a toe at fairly high speed, managed to fall towards some fluffy pine needles, and tucked in just a little bit as if I were going to roll. But the roll didn't happen. Instead I went down on the tippy-top of my right shoulder and my right ear, and my feet started going up. And up, and up. I couldn't tell if they were going to pass overhead or slow down and fall back down. For the longest time I was just sort of there, vertical as any tree, wondering what would happen next. What if there's like a big pointy stick waiting for me ? No hurries ! Finally, I came down, and everything was okay. Dude behind me saw it all and couldn't believe how long I was up there.

The next few miles were the most frustrating. Falling down takes away a lot of energy, and the more tired you get the more you fall. And I still can't say things like "Only 5 more miles" with any honest hint of optimism. There are a few very gently uphill sections here, and I stopped to walk every one of them. The big effort was to start running again as soon as the downhill resumed.

But finally, we could start smelling the end. For some reason, there seemed to be more people and we formed a train again, but an enthusiastic running train. This helped me enormously - it was kind of like a pace line in bicycling, but I could just stay in back and draft the whole way.

Finally, the trail ends and you're on pavement. I never run this in training, so had no real sense of how long it would feel. But the cool thing is that tons of town people line the streets and cheer. I never felt so proud in a race before, and so glad for support.

Wow!  Great job, jjs!   You always run such pretty races.

Nice!

DS has this on his bucket list, and a friend from high school is involved with the Pike's Road Runners for years.  He has 3 completes (best finish was 5th) and four ascents.  Must confess I have no desire to do this one.

Congrats jjs!

Cool pics, that must be a really tough marathon.  Great job on the finish and on making falling a non-injury event.

What an awesome adventure and experience!! Big congrats JJ!!

Awesome pictures and race.  Congrats on the great experience.

That would be a really cool race to do.  Sweet.

A 7800' ascent?!?! Hats off you, you beast. Tonight I am drinking a beer in your honor.