Racing Aravaipa's MTB Summer Series in COS

Trailblazers is a group of mountain bikers, runners, and hikers that congregate at Trails End Tap Room every Wednesday night to hit the trails at Red Rocks Canyon Open Space. Also, Trails End has a mountain bike race team that races throughout Colorado. 

Curt Mulick is both a Trailblazers’ regular and a Trails End Race Team member. Originally from NY State, Curt started riding at age 25. His friend lent him an extra bike, a Trek 8200 hard tail with a big cushioned seat, and he started riding that bad boy all the time. He moved to Colorado in 2016 to study mechanical engineering at UCCS and since then has been riding all over the state (albeit with a new bike).

His first race was in 2018 - the WMBA Purple Pursuit on The Air Force Academy’s Falcon Trail. Four years later In 2022, he dove in and absolutely loved riding in the Moonrise Summer MTB Series - a local Friday night race series hosted by Aravaipa. 

He participated in the first one, Lunar Liftoff, at Cheyenne Mountain State Park in June. The race was split up into the ‘Never Evers” for first time riders, Juniors ages 9-17, Intermediates, and Experts. The race had 70-80 riders and Curt finished the 7 mile, fairly technical route in 42 minutes and change. He enjoyed Aravaipa’s beer garden and quesadillas afterward and appreciated having the full weekend to recover.

In July, Curt participated in the 2nd race of the series, The Gravity Grinder at Ute Valley. It was a beautiful 3 lap, 2.7 mile course. And he finished the season off with The Quarter Crusher - the final race in the series at the techy Palmer Park.

Ladies getting ready for The Lunar Liftoff

Curt also volunteers with Aravaipa pre and post race, which gives him $10/hour in credits for future races.

You can find Aravaipa on Instagram, often tabling at Trailblazers on Wednesday nights, or at other group rides around town. Aravaipa also hosts trail running races and a Monday night run at Fossil Craft Beer Co.

Forest Therapy: Restoring Connections with Ourselves, Others, and Nature

By Nate Van Noord (RO Staff)

“In every walk in nature one receives far more than he seeks.” John Muir

My brother taught English in Japan in the late 1980s, when the country was booming economically. He walked to school every morning in awe of the beautifully landscaped streets and parks and centuries old architecture. But he also saw plenty of businessmen rushing to work early in the morning and napping on the subway late at night on their commute home. The general population was working longer and longer hours - usually indoors in sterile office environments.

Consequently, a movement called Shinrin-yoku started to encourage folks to immerse themselves in the forest as a way to improve their mental and physical health and find a renewed connection to themselves, others, and the natural world. As this movement spread around the globe in recent decades, it also became known as ‘forest therapy’ or ‘forest bathing’.  

L to R: My sister, Janna, and Serena, and Autumn

A few months ago, I walked into Mountain Equipment Recyclers with a $5 coupon burning a hole in my pocket. I walked past the front counter and saw a brochure for Restoring Connections Forest Therapy. Serena Vogel, a retired school teacher and certified forest therapy guide, was advertising a 2-3 hour forest walk with the intention of connecting others with nature in a healing way. 

Later that afternoon, I gave Serena a call and found she recently finished her 125 hours of training through the Association of Nature and Forest Therapy (ANFT). She first discovered forest therapy when she met ANFT’s founder, Amos Clifford, at a conference. Growing up, Serena had a troubled childhood and regularly escaped into nature to cope. Hearing Clifford’s vision of helping participants disconnect from the stress of life to uncover the joy and peace of the forest sounded very appealing to her. 

It sounded appealing to me too. So we set up a time for a walk. 

The next week, my sister and I met Serena at Cheyenne Mountain State Park on a Wednesday morning. Accompanying Serena was Autumn, one of Serena’s former middle school students, who 25 years later is now a massage therapist in Manitou Springs. We walked for a mile into the forest to a spot Serena already had scouted out. 

My tree.

We put our bags down and Serena explained how this would work. She would give us a prompt, or invitation, to embrace the forest in some way. We would each wander a stones throw away with the freedom to sit, stand, lie down, walk around…whatever felt right. After 15-20 minutes we would reconvene, and share about it if we wanted to. 

After a few invitations, our last prompt was to experience a tree nearby. Stare at it, feel it, smell it, listen to it. So I meandered off and lied down under a 40-foot Oak.

I watched its tops gently sway and listened to the faint rustling of the wind moving its highest branches. The pace of movement contrasted sharply to a bird who swooped into the Oak, perched on a branch, and a moment later, fluttered away. 

I stood up and plucked a leaf. I rubbed its smooth surface in my hand and tried hard to smell it. I dropped the leaf and nestled my upright body into the tree. Like a bear, I scratched my back along the ridges of the bark. I took a deep breath, turned back around, and gripped a couple waist high branches. I shook the branches hard, hoping to release some pent up stress. 

Sharing tea, with the leaves often foraged nearby, is a tradition after a Forest Therapy walk.

I peered around the tree to see if Serena, my sister, or Autumn were in sight. They were not. So I wrapped my arms all the way around the trunk of my tree. I held my guy for a few minutes - soaking in his strength, his age, his wisdom. As a single person, I don’t receive much physical touch. My tree was providing, even if for a few moments, a love language I sorely lacked. 

A moment later, Serena gently gonged her Japanese bell and we strolled back. She had prepared tea and put out the homemade pumpkin bread she brought. We sat and debriefed and I felt a little weird sharing about the deep bond my tree and I had going on and that I straight up hugged him for a long time. But Serena nodded affirmingly like it was completely normal.

While my sister and Autumn shared, my mind wandered to a passage in the Old Testament about God’s people being stricken with poverty and despair and He raises them up to be Oaks of Righteousness - restoring places and people long devastated. Now, God had patiently watched as my tree grew from a small sapling to a flourishing staple of the forest - rooting itself deeply, providing shade for those below, and branches for the birds above. It had taken years, but my guy had fully matured and was nourishing all those around him - including me. I took a deep breathe, felt my body relax, and reveled in the bounty of the forest and all of Creation.

With Serena as my guide, my tree as my therapist, and God as my witness, I was ready to go home and take a long, deep nap.

Serena Vogel, MA, Certified Forest Therapy Guide, can be reached at natureheals622@gmail.com

A Spiritual Experience: Ascending Colorado's 14ers

Blanca Peak

People enter into the wilderness for different reasons. Some crave the solitude and slower pace. Others love being out there with friends and talking about life - with beauty as their backdrop. For Pastor Kevin Feldotto, it is a time to be with God - of prayer, meditation, and developing next week's sermon in his head. 

Originally from Nebraska, Kevin moved to Colorado Springs in 1989 to help start a church. A few years later, he started trail running and eventually did the Pikes Peak Marathon. And then, he did it eleven more times. 

Little Bear/Blanca Traverse

Even after all the trail running, it didn’t dawn on him to start climbing Fourteeners (a 14,000 ft. peak) until 2013. Nine years later, he’s done Pikes Peak 75 times.

As a pastor, he has Fridays off…and while his wife worked, he often would make a quick summit of Pikes. It is one of his favorite Fourteeners as he has met lots of interesting folks on Barr Trail and at Barr Camp.  

By summer of 2022, Kevin had completed 48 of the 58 Fourteeners.

At first, he did the easier ones - afraid of those with lots of exposure. But as he honed his skills as a rock climber, he gained more confidence to do the class 3 and 4 Fourteeners. Even as an experienced hiker now, he still does a ton of research on each Fourteener, is careful not to be overconfident, and always takes someone with him on the more difficult climbs. 

This Fall (2022), he is taking a sabbatical and hopes to do the rest of the Fourteeners, including the last one with his daughter and son who are in their 20s. When he hikes with others, it is still a rejuvenating time of introspection and enjoying God’s creation. At age 63, he will become one of roughly 1,400 people who have climbed all of Colorado’s Fourteeners. 

Northstar

Kevin is a campus pastor at Woodmen Valley Chapel Southwest.

Race Organizing - A Labor Of Love

Throughout the ROutsider blogs, we’ve continued to share many stories of folks enjoying the trails of Colorado Springs and throughout Colorado - which often include participation in bike or run races. We’re excited to share the story of someone behind the scenes now, who put together a race here in the heart of Colorado Springs this last summer!

Drew, with his Pulpit Primer hats and other race swag.

Drew Vidano, a friend of Routes and regular participant of The Trailblazers Bike, Run, and Hike Group, organized in the summer of 2022 the inaugural - and maybe final - Pulpit Primer 10K at Pulpit Rock Open Space.

Drew is from Monument, CO and graduated from Western Washington University in 2020. He studied marketing and entrepreneurship and also ran for the cross country team.

Drew currently works as a rep for Adidas Terrex & Five Ten, but he and a high school buddy, James, also have a business named ‘Berziege’ - German for ‘mountain goat’. They started the company with the mission of building the community of trail running and progressing the sport through unique, local races. Pulpit Rock Open Space was specifically chosen for this 10K because few people around town know of its beautiful trails or the adjoining Austin Bluffs Open Space.

Drew and James immediately dove in with their first few tasks…

1. They started by navigating the process of acquiring permits from the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs (who owns much of the land), and securing the necessary insurance for the event.

2. With other established races happening in town that same weekend, they had to find creative ways to promote the event, mostly online. Drew also designed a free hat for the first 25 runners to sign up. They set up social pages and accounts, and continued to try and get the word out organically.

3. They sought sponsorships to help offset the cost of the event for participants. Unfortunately, most of the bigger brands already had their sponsorship money allocated for the year or were hesitant to invest in a first time event. Despite the void in available sponsorships, Starbucks donated coffee and Hoka donated some gear.

By race day, 43 runners had signed up.

And all of Drew’s family - his parents and younger sisters - agreed to volunteer.

Race day came…and…

Unfortunately, no one was in the mood to drink the coffee they were handing out because it was the hottest day of summer thus far. And…Drew and his partner thought they had the 10K route marked well with flags the day prior, and even stationed a couple of volunteers at key intersections - but some runners still took wrong turns and had to backtrack. It was hard to ignore these elements of the day that felt a bit sour.

In the end, when Drew saw the first place runner approach the finish line, he felt a wave of relief. Not all was lost! The top runner finished the techy, single track course in just under 45 minutes. And they celebrated this finish in more ways than one.

After all the runners crossed the finish line, from ages 14 to 63, Drew relished in seeing how satisfied they were with the race and having the chance to explore new trails. Plus, he and his partner were excited to hand out some nice prize money for the top 3 finishers for the men and women - a common practice for European races but not yet here in the U.S. Facilitating the race was a tremendous amount of work for Drew and his partner, and they are not sure if they will do another one, but are grateful to have organized an experience that brought a lot of fun and enjoyment to others!

In the end, isn’t that what it’s all about?

One Last Ride With Bob

By Nate Van Noord (RO Staff)

When I first moved to Colorado Springs in the summer of 2021, I met Bob at church. Bob is 65, a retired police officer, and a daily bike rider - mountain, gravel, or road. I told him I just bought a mountain bike and he offered to take me on a ride. I failed to mention I had yet to ride my new bike or I had yet to ride any mountain bike. 

The next morning, I met him at the Falcon Trail on the Air Force Academy. When I stepped out of the car, it was already hot. Bob said it would be 13 miles plus a few extra he was gonna add. I thought no problem - I had ridden that far on my road bike in Detroit many times. Once we got on the trail, though, I realized I was gonna have to hang on for dear life. Bob was flying down the descents and easily navigating through all these rocks - big and small. A mile into the ride I went over my handlebars and scraped up my hands and arms. I had no gloves, so Bob had me wash my arms off in the stream, and gave me some toilet paper to wrap my hands in.  

Two and half hours later, when we finally got back to our cars, Bob still looked fresh and was heading to a church meeting. I was ready to go home and not leave my couch for the next two days.  

Bob was gracious enough to take me on many more rides over the next year - around Colorado Springs and even up to Breckenridge. But in the Spring of 2022, after 23 years of living in COS, Bob and his wife decided to move back to Florida to be closer to family. So Bob and I decided to get in one last ride. 

I met Bob at the Sante Fe Trail at the Woodmen Exit with the new Revel Rover on my rack. These gravel bikes had recently arrived as demo rentals at Routes. They looked smooth and sleek, and I was eager to try one. The bike was so light, and the 11 speeds were plenty going against or with the wind. The XL frame fit me perfectly and 27.5 inch tires kept me moving quick. This time, I had no problem keeping up with Bob. We rode up to the Routes shop in downtown Monument, said what's up to the guys, and turned around. We cruised back to our cars and it felt like I was just gliding on the Rover - I almost forgot I was on a bike.

I’m gonna miss riding with Bob. But while he is in Florida, I will have plenty of time to work on my game. When he comes back to visit, hopefully I’ll be able to keep up with him on the mountain bike. Or, maybe I’ll just get a Revel Rover.

The Essentials with MTB Stacy

By Nate Van Noord (RO Staff)

A personal experience with a local legend - Stacy Gery.

Stacy Gery, getting ready to lead her class.

When I moved from Detroit to Colorado Springs in 2021, I hung up my daily commuter and bought a mountain bike. I was surprised how different the mountain biking skill set is with navigating roots, rocks, switchbacks, and descents. I’ve had a blast exploring all the trails around town, but like learning any new sport, I realized I have a lot to learn.

So, I signed up for a class with Stacy Gery of MTB with Stacy. Stacy, a former high school Spanish teacher, has taught mountain biking - and piano - for many years. She moved to Colorado from Pennsylvania 12 years ago - after spending a couple years in Bolivia for her graduate degree. A woman of adventure, she has hiked the whole Appalachian Trail and Colorado Trail (the CT was her favorite!).   

Luis, on the left, demonstrating while Baron explains.

I signed up for MTB Stacy’s ‘essentials’ class held at Eagleview Middle School, next to Ute Valley Park. When I arrived, I met two of her instructors, Baron and Luis. Baron, a former student of Stacy, was a highly competitive rider for years. Luis interned with Stacy originally as part of his college degree and now works as a technician at a local bike shop as well.

They, along with Stacy, led the class of 7 other students in a round of introductions to start the class. Most folks were in a similar boat as me having picked up the sport recently. After intros, they showed us what to check on our bikes before riding and recommended specific gear like pedals, pads, and shorts. Once we got through the preliminary stuff, we proceeded over to a grassy area where the instructors explained, demonstrated, and then coached us through a variety of skills like proper riding positions, braking, and cornering. As a former schoolteacher myself, I can attest that they did an excellent job of both explaining and demonstrating each skill. They weren’t hesitant to correct our form but did it in a tactful way that helped us learn the skills.

Working on keeping eyes up and looking through the turn…

Once the session was finished, I struck up conversation with a few other participants.

Karl and Dalene, both 63, were very fun to meet. Karl is picking up the sport after many years away and had encouraged Dalene a couple years ago to pick it up for the first time. They thought the class was great and regret having not taken it sooner.

I met Bekah too - who is also from Michigan! She was inspired to start riding after moving to Colorado a year ago. She is a software engineer, in her mid 20s, and learned about Stacy through a Facebook page of women riding in COS. She learned a lot about cornering - like keeping her eyes up and looking through the turn. Bekah’s looking forward to taking a ‘rock’ class from Stacy next, but wants to apply all the skills from the ‘essentials’ class first.

Similar to Bekah, I’m excited to get out there and practice everything I learned with MTB Stacy! This is a great way to dive deeper into mountain biking. I couldn’t encourage a better route than to engage one of her sessions. You won’t regret it.

Check out MTB Stacy’s website below.

MTB WITH STACY - Home

FINDING A PASSION: FROM HATING TO LOVING RUNNING

By Jamison Brandenburg (Friend of Routes and part of Trailblazers Running Group)

As a kid I abhorred any activity that included cardio. I played baseball from the coach pitch level all the way up until my freshman year in high school, and as anyone familiar with the sport knows, it requires a minimal amount of running. Whenever we had to run during practice, I always referred to it as the ”devil’s exercise” (maybe being just a tad dramatic). 

During high school I got heavily involved in band, another activity that doesn’t require a high level of physical fitness but kept me active. Now I wasn’t a lazy kid growing up. I loved being outdoors hiking, backpacking, fishing, and disc golf. But still no high intensity cardio.

Flash forward to my junior year of college and meeting Emily, my partner. Emily grew up with an active family, her dad walked onto the track team at Texas Tech and she ran cross country in high school. After falling out of running regularly Emily and one of her close friends decided to train for the Niagara Marathon in New York. 

To avoid the Texas summer heat Emily would run during the evening in the small town we lived in. I didn’t love the idea of her running alone at night, so I’d go with her kicking and screaming the entire way. “I hate this”. “This is stupid”. “Why are we even out here”. These were all common phrases I uttered on our runs together. Emily was a great sport and tolerated me for the most part. 

During the spring of 2020 I landed a job based out of Woodland Park, Colorado, just northwest of Colorado Springs. I had embraced running as an exercise that allowed me to eat whatever I wanted and maintain a fairly healthy weight. Knowing that I needed some encouragement to continue running once I moved up to Colorado, I signed up for a race called the Pikes Peak Ascent, not fully grasping what I signed up for. 

I soon started running on trails and quickly came to realize that trail running was basically hiking but faster, and I already loved hiking. Things started clicking for me and soon a local trail runner out of Woodland Park reached out via Strava and we became friends. Through Rachel, my new trail running friend, I met a whole community of like-minded people who enjoyed spending time outside just as much as I did. 

All of a sudden running became more than just a way to eat whatever I wanted. Trail running became community, friends, belonging, and acceptance. Trail running became a way for me to explore my new backyard and spend even more time outside. Trail running became a way to test new limits, challenge myself mentally and physically, and spend time with people I love.

KEEPING IT FRESH: RIDING TO RIVENDELL ON A RIVENDELL

By Nils Eng (local schoolteacher and friend of Routes Outfitter)

“Yet the deeds will not be less valiant because they are un-praised." –J. R. R. Tolkien

The most current event poster on my garage wall is the 2017 Tommyknocker 10, a mountain biking endurance event in Silver City, NM, almost five years ago.  As the first day of Spring drew closer, I found myself searching the internet in vain for an event that interested me. 

If I’m honest, I craved a new experience and some new “swag”—something tangible to look at or hold and remember the fun of an event, just like my aging poster. I also desperately needed a goal to give my riding some direction--some focus as winter drew to an end. 

The problem is, I don’t enjoy racing any more.  I ride my bike to explore now, and I don’t think I ever want to make another visit to the Pain Cave.  The thought of riding my bike in circles around the same course over and over as fast as I can just isn’t appealing anymore.  I want to explore!  I want to see new things!  …and I want to drink coffee while I do it.  Thus, the Ride to Rivendell was born.  

To back up a little, I’m not a winter person.  I know that’s blasphemy in Colorado, but being from New Mexico, and a non-skier to boot, winter in Colorado is something I’m still coming to terms with.  To get me through this past winter, I decided to try to read The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings trilogy, and The Silmarillion by the first day of spring.  With the epic journeys of Bilbo, Frodo, and Sam reverberating in my mind, I decided to make my own event—a challenge inspired by Bilbo’s journey to Rivendell.  The touring bicycle I happen to have is made by a California company called Rivendell.

I decided that I would ride my Rivendell to “Rivendell.”  Doing a little digging, I found that it took Bilbo and company 39 days to walk the 397 miles from his home in Bag End to Elrond’s house in Rivendell.  That would be my goal.

As for the swag, when I reached Bree and The Inn of the Prancing Pony (at 85 miles) I’d treat myself to a Prancing Pony pint glass.  If I finished the challenge, I’d buy myself a Green Dragon Pub “event” T-shirt (for you non-hobbit nerds, The Green Dragon is Biblo’s home pub).  Along the way, to make it more interesting, I’d create a list of challenges I had to complete. 

By the end of the 397 miles, I’d try to visit at least three regional parks, have tea three times, coffee three times, visit three ponds, ride three regional trails, and ride in all four cardinal directions from my house.  

Over the next thirty-nine days, I did just that.  I rode early in the morning to work, seeing deer, skunks, rabbits, and nearly colliding with a turkey.  I rode in the snow, I rode in the rain, and I rode in the sun.  I created new and interesting multi-surface loops, connecting single track with bike paths and open roads as I tied many of our amazing city’s parks and open spaces together, stopping frequently for tea and coffee.  In short, I had a blast, and I learned that, for me, I just need a little creativity to keep my riding life fresh.  

KIDS ON BIKES - CREATING COMMUNITY THROUGH CYCLING

By Nate Van Noord (RO Staff)

Back in Detroit, where I moved from in the summer of 2021, there is an organization, Back Alley Bikes, that gives kids the opportunity to work on bikes and eventually earn a bike. They empower kids to get on the road for fun and for transportation. They have been very influential in changing the transportation culture of Detroit beyond being just the “Motor City”. 

When I moved there in 2006, there was one bike shop in the whole city. When I left, there were seven. That same year, I rode in a Critical Mass bike ride event…and there were seven of us total. Now, Critical Mass ride events in Detroit regularly have over 10,000 riders.

After moving to Colorado Springs, I immediately was struck by our access to the trails around town and was hyped to see all the folks out there riding for recreation. I was disappointed though, to see so few peeps riding the roads for transportation. 

Where were the bikes carrying commuters each day on our city streets? Where were the kids cruising across town to their friends’ houses? Where was the population that carried a mindset and torch…to promote alternate forms of transportation as a great and positive community dimension?

Fast forward about a year later, a community influencer named Mark Schenberger stopped by our south COS Routes location one day to visit with me, and I was encouraged to hear that he and all the good people over at Kids on Bikes are trying to change that.

Mark rode his Surly over to Routes from the Kids on Bikes office a few miles away. He recently rode this same bike solo from Denmark to Turkey for four months.

Mark first shared a little bit about his story.

He attended The Ohio State University (Go Wolverines!) and studied abroad in Copenhagen - the mecca of bicycle commuting (where you see businessmen riding to work in suits and moms dropping their kids off for school on cargo bikes). His time in Europe inspired him to contribute to the growing movement of alternative forms of transportation back in the States. After graduating, he took an Americorps position at Kids on Bikes.

Mark explained that Kids on Bikes started in 2005 and originally gave bikes away to kids who reached academic goals. They soon realized they wanted to do more….  

Through the years, they have provided opportunities for hundreds of kids to learn the fundamentals of operating a bike, everything from which side of the road to ride on to fixing a flat, and eventually giving them the chance of earning their own bike. Once they do, they help the kids pick a safe route in their neighborhood to ride and they ride it with them. 

They also set up bicycle libraries in different neighborhoods around town. Kids and adults in the community can access the tools inside these shipping containers for free.

In addition to all of that…they organize rides to school! How cool is that! A couple weeks ago, they had three different rides of 30-40 kids and their parents pedaling to three different elementary schools. They were even led by a 3-time Paralympian, Tyler Carter.

In 2016, Kids on Bikes launched a very cool new part of their organization - the Pedal Station. They have been operating the Pedal Station as an integral part of their strategies for long term sustainability since then. The Station operates as a bicycling community center and sells used bicycles to fit any budget through its retail store. They also offer a wide assortment of new and used parts and accessories. They accept bikes for donations and folks can volunteer as well!

Organizing family bicycle rides called “PopCycle Rides” is yet another very cool angle of what they do. These rides are on Sundays from 1-3 at America the Beautiful Park throughout the summer. They are a great way to celebrate bicycling cross-generationally, and give families really fun and easy activities to engage in together.

This summer, they will host their annual “Great Bicycle Carnival” and their weekly camps with hundreds of kids attending throughout the warm months.

One last notable activity to mention for this great organization - Kids on Bikes is in the midst of building the Cresta Pump Track at Cresta Open Space. They are hoping to complete it by summer of 2022. It will be a learning opportunity space to build skills for riding the Cheyenne Canyon trails nearby.

This organization does so much!! And they do it with lots of support from the communities around them.

The mission of Kids on Bikes is to empower kids to live healthy, active, and happy lives. They are doing just that…as they bring joy and freedom to kids and families in our community one bike, one ride, and one mile at a time.

If you would like to support all the great work Kids on Bikes is doing, check out a few of their website pages for volunteer and giving opportunities below.

Learn more about Kids on Bikes!

Volunteer with KOB and the Pedal Station!

Donate to Cresta Pump Track!

Join the Kids on Bikes Newsletter!

KOB on Social: Facebook and Instagram

RACING, VOLUNTEERING, AND FINDING COMMUNITY

A fun personal story from a friend of Routes and local community member…

Moving to a new state amid a global pandemic was not ideal. Leaving my family and friends to pursue this new adventure with my boyfriend of two years was already a leap out of my comfort zone that I didn’t think I was entirely ready for…or capable of. That I arrived as Colorado shut down and mandated masks didn’t help. Soon, I secured a traveling job that put me at risk of infection and kept me from exploring my new home. Then I received an email that crushed me.

“It is with deep regret that we must cancel the full marathon and relay for this year….” 

madmooseevents.com

I had been training for a year to do the Niagara Falls International Marathon with my best friend…and having to take the deferral to 2021 felt like all the work I’d done didn’t count. It seemed like life was dumping disappoints on me, and I needed a positive goal to focus on. I registered for the Valkyrie Trail Marathon in Cheyenne Mountain State Park to give me something to work towards ⎯ a challenge to distract me from how left out I felt as all my friends’ lives moved on without me.  

Months passed and I couldn’t shake this feeling of being utterly untethered. There would be pops of color when friends and family came to visit and then it would all dull back to the same gray of my everyday life. I ran to keep myself from admitting that it felt like I had made a mistake. I couldn’t understand how I could be so torn between such a beautiful state, holding the possibly of the life I always saw myself living and still wanting to move back to a state filled with humidity, mosquitoes and all my loved ones. I don’t know that I’d ever felt so lonely. 

September faded into winter and then spring, and the Saturday before my race I flew home from a work trip in Seattle. That Thursday my dad and sister flew in to spend the weekend with us and to cheer me on.

We hiked some of the course and at the Garden of the Gods and made tamales from scratch. A blink later, it was Saturday morning. My dad and sister left early for their morning volunteer shift, helping to set up the start/finish line and the aid stations.  

My boyfriend and I drove to the state park blasting Pusha T’s “Untouchable” on repeat. I felt recharged on the weekend’s positive energy and ready to go. My sister, dad and boyfriend were going to post up at the aid station I would pass four times throughout the race, and every time I saw them the whole table of volunteers erupted into cheers. It carried me through. 

madmooseevents.com

I finished my first trail marathon 24 minutes under my goal time while enduring some major stomach issues the last 5 miles. I was exhausted and so grateful for the whole experience. 

It wasn’t until we got back home late that afternoon that the true magic of the race unfolded ⎯ after forcing down lots of fluids, cooling down and reliving the race mile by mile for my family. 

My dad handed me a mask with a sharpied phone number and said, “I made you a friend. Here’s her number.” 

Little did I know, this was the turning point I had been needing. 

Another volunteer assigned to the table started chatting up my incredibly quiet dad, and today, she is one of my best friends. She helped me build a strong and supportive sense of community here in Colorado, and I have finally found where I fit. Within the running community here, I’ve found my people and everything that was missing.

SANTE FE OPEN SPACE

On Thursday, April 7th, El Paso County had its grand opening and ribbon cutting of Sante Fe Open Space in Palmer Lake - located on the east side of the New Santa Fe Regional Trail. It is a 60-acre site of rolling and moderate terrain with 1.75 miles of singletrack trail for hikers, bikers, and horseback riders. The open space consists of thick stands of scrub oak, mature Ponderosa pines, grassy meadows, and the remnants of an old ranch. The county purchased this beautiful piece of land that boasts views of Mt. Herman and the Front Range in May of 2017. The west entrance is ½ mile SE of Palmer Lake Recreation Area, which offers both parking and a restroom, and the east entrance is 2.5 miles NW of the Hwy 105 Trailhead parking area. Both entrances are along the New Sante Fe Regional Trail. The county has built maps at each trailhead and signage at each trail intersection. The open space is open daily from dawn to dusk.

This trail system is simple, well thought out, and beautiful. Whether you’re headed out for a leisurely stroll, a long gravel bike ride from Baptist Rd. to Greenland Open Space, or a run from the front door of Routes Outfitter and back to Trails End Taproom…you are guaranteed to enjoy this new addition to our delightful trail systems in the Tri-Lakes areas.

It’s exciting to continue to see our area grow its offerings like this. The northern El Paso County area on the Colorado Springs front range is simply amazing.

A beautiful landscape surrounds the newest Santa Fe Open Space trail system built by El Paso County Parks and Rec.