Getting Ready for Berryman

We have been busy, busy, busy getting ready for the Berryman Adventure, coming up in only 2 weeks! check it out! This race promises to be a good one, and a lot different race than we generally do around here.

Tiffanie's little Brother JT was staying with us for a week, so we tried to get a lot done! A couple of good days hiking in the hills just outside of Boulder, we even got up to the top of Green Mountain to see the swarm of ladybugs who have taken over the summit of the peak. After that, we took an overnight backpacking trip up into the James Peak Wilderness area to Crater Lakes. After a short little 4 mile hike up into the wilderness, we had an incredibly warm night and woke up to take a fun hike up to the top of the continental divide at over 12,000 ft. It was a fun free-form hike up a high ridgeline along an old power or telegraph line. The clouds cleared up just in time for us to summit out on the divide, but the smoke from the California wildfires proved to take a fair bit away from the view.

Since then, lots of training for all of us. Tiffanie, Boyd, and I have been really having a great time exploring all of the trails that Nederland has to offer. There are trails EVERYWHERE, a veritable maze. Fun, swoopy singletrack in every direction, there is no way to decide where to go except just going, and trying to figure out where you are later! Many of these rides we have been joined by friends and fellow racers, with occasional teammate Mike Thompson and his friend Jeff Oakey providing plenty of comic relief once, and Shane Sigle going out with us for an epic trying to figure out just where all of the trails go!

Finally about a week ago, James got back from his whirlwind tour of Germany and China, and we were all excited about training together before the Berryman. After attending my sister's engagement party (Congrats Gwen!) in Pueblo over Labor day weekend, Tiff and I drove down to Salida and met up with Boyd and James to do the classic MTB epic over Monarch Crest.

The Monarch Crest trail is listed by IMBA as one of the top 5 rides in the US, and once you ride it, there is no arguing with that. Generally the Monarch Crest ride is done as a shuttle. Most people park in Poncha Springs, then drive to the top of Monarch Pass in another car. We decided that 32 miles of singletrack wasn't enough riding for the day, so we decided to add in the 18 mile climb of Monarch Pass. Starting around 8am, we did the 18+ mile climb up US Hwy 50 to the top of Monarch pass in a little under 2 hours. Monarch pass is a great climb, starting in Poncha Springs at around 7,550' the highway climbs at around 4-6% grade for the first 12 miles. For the last 6 miles, the average grade jumps up to around 8% until you hit the summit of the pass at 11,400'. From there, a quick snack, and on to the singletrack. Climbing further on dirt trail, we hit the ridgeline for the 12+ miles along from Monarch Pass to Marshall Pass at over 12,000'. We had a ball riding along the high ridge, and despite James being at sea level for over a month, we all felt great at the high elevation. From Marshall Pass, the fun begins. Descending for over 4500 vertical feet on buff singletrack is the reward for all that climbing. We had a blast - everyone felt strong, and even adding the 2 hour climb up the pass, did the ride in about the same time as most people do as a shuttle!

Since then, we just keep going. Tiff, Boyd, Shane, and I headed down to Colorado Springs for an orienteering meet with the RMOC. We had a great time at Fox run, with Boyd, Tiff, and I doing the Red course and then the green course as a team. Shane did the opposite doing the Green then the red. Fun times, if you have never tried orienteering, it is a Blast!

I especially want to thank Alta Physical Therapy and Jeff Staron Massage for getting me back going again! I was having some pretty horrible knee pain on longer runs, but after a few sessions with Mike Kohm at Alta PT and Massage from Jeff Staron, I am running pain free! Check out Alta!

Cheers! Talk to you soon, and thanks for supporting our team!