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Sent: Thursday, February 21, 2002 3:06 PM
Subject: Incline Club V6 LR #14
Hi ICers,
Some of you may have noticed that I had a measuring wheel with me on Sunday for the UPT/Waldo run. Yesterday (Wednesday) I took it on the Rampart Range Road run as well. Results of that fun are now on the respective map pages on the club site. While both of these had been measured via GPS several times some of us felt we were getting shorted. Turns out the GPS does a pretty good job even in this type of terrain (we were mostly concerned about switchbacks) and the difference was minor to say the least. Bottom line, these are some hard courses so we just are not covering as much ground as we like to think we are. However that is why I for one always say, “go by time not distance” and that is also why we are out there for such a long TIME every Sunday. Keep it up!
After one week the new club site has had over 4000 page views! Proving what a strange club we are the most viewed photo on the photos page was Connilee Walter’s bloody leg. The two pictures of ICers puking are running a close 2nd. I want to thank those of you who don’t live in the area that offered to send in a donation to help pay for the club site hosting fees since you can’t make our fundraiser. This is awesome and a very pleasant surprise. For the rest of us, I hope we all see each other next Thursday night (the 28th) at 6pm at the Colorado Running Company for what I hope you will find to be fun presentation (complete with a digital projector to show off some 3D maps) on all things Pikes Peak! Again the talk is free but donations to pay for the website will be accepted.
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NEXT RUN:
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Sunday, February 24, 8:00 a.m. meet at Soda Springs Park
Run up the Barr Trail to the 1/2 mile sign. Turn left and run out to Mountain View on the COG. Return via Barr Camp or head straight back down. 2.5-3.5 hours. If it would take longer turn around earlier.
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ICers WRITE:
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Luke Cammack writes:
Re: headband thingy
Hey, I think its mine — does it connect in the back with Velcro closure, black on one side/dark blue on the other, wind-stopper fleece-like? Thanks, can I pick it up Sunday at the run?
(Matt C adds: One headband thingy went back to it’s owner on Sunday;-)
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Mike Kolesnik writes:
I have a question on the trail work from a photo on the new website. What the heck is a “yellow jack?” Is it used to break rocks like a sledge hammer? I love using my big tools.
I’ve got two sledge hammers, and axe, a maul, shovels, rakes etc. I cut my own firewood with a hand saw then chop/split it with an axe or maul. After doing this for 4 months, my upper body is in great shape.
When I do work on rocks or wood I use baseball catcher’s gear for protection, shin/knee guards, chest protector, and eye protection. Before I used this stuff I learned the hard way, while chopping wood one day I hit a piece off center and it drove straight into my knee. I could not walk for 2 weeks so I learned my lesson.
I hope you guys are safe out there.
(Matt C adds: So far so good, as in none of us have had any major accidents. You are correct about all the gear needed. The little tiny rocks that fly off when smashing big rocks hurt like heck when you are in running shorts! I know glasses have saved me a few times. Yes, a Yellow Jack is used to break rocks. Think of a bicycle pump action with a hollow metal tube with moving heavy metal rod in the middle and you get the picture. For the most part those that have used it thought a sledge hammer or pick worked better.)
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ICU (Incline Club Ultra) REPORT:
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3 showed for the last ICU run. Keith says that to keep things interesting and avoid burnout they are changing things up quite a bit. If you are interested in joining the them just e-mail him for the latest meeting time and place. (e-mail address removed for www posting).
I heard a good story about Paul Sullivan’s truck driving skills but since it is not in writing you will need to ask — them, not me... However the story could pass a few miles if you ask while you are on a run.
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R REPORTS:
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Kelli Lusk reports:
Race = US National Snowshoe Championships
Location = Traverse City, MI
Date = 02/16/02
Distance = 10k snowshoe
Goal = Finish in top-5
Results = 4th overall woman
Website = http://www.runningfit.com
General = The US National Snowshoe Championships were pretty cool. It was neat to see quite a few people come from all over the country to compete. Last year was the first year for the event, but 2002 was the first year you had to qualify in your region. I qualified at the Meadow Mountain 15k in January, then decided it would be fun to go and spend a few extra days with my family (Michigan is my home state). When I arrived on Friday afternoon, there looked to be very little snow and it was raining. Not good for a snowshoe race!! Actually, it turned out to be a surprisingly challenging course because it was rolling and relatively fast (well, my time wasn’t fast...but that’s beside the point). The course was different than a typical Colorado event...no powder descents, hikes on steep climbs or altitude! The woman who won the North-American Snowshoe Championships, the US Nationals Rockies regional qualifier and just about every race in Colorado this year won the US Nationals...which I pretty much expec
ted.. I was in a solid 2nd place position on the first lap (it was two 5k loops on the same course), when I got nasty sidestiches. I’ve had them twice before (the 12k at Penrose in 2000 and the Boulder Backroads Half in 2001). They basically force me to walk or stop. After I had tried running, stopping and slowing down, the eventual 2nd and 3rd place girls caught and passed me. I was recovering on the 2nd loop and was gaining quickly on the 3rd place girl. I finished about 10-15 seconds behind her. The results posted to the website are incorrect. My finish time was 49:31 (they have the 3rd place girl listed with that time).
Overall, the event was fun and will hopefully grow each year. Both the men’s and women’s winners were also the North-American Snowshoe Championship winners and both were from Colorado.
Things Done Right = Adequate warmup. Dressed appropriately...it actually felt a little balmy than what’s the norm at most snowshoe events.
Things Done Wrong = Damn sidestiches! Probably needed to relax and focus more.
Any Other Stuff = Course: 10k, VASA trail, Traverse City, MI
Type: rolling, hardpack, no powder. There wasn’t any trail to break because of lack of snow. A few sections of singletrack, but many opportunities to pass.
Aid Stations: one + pre-race water and energy drink
Registration: A confirmation letter was sent a few days before the event. The event cost was only $15! ($10 if you were a USSSA member). This included a race t-shirt and a packet of GU energy drink.
Start Time: The start time was changed from 9am to 9:30am a few days before the event. The event did start on-time once we lined up for the race.
Results/Timing: Well, they got my time wrong, but my place right...
Awards: I didn’t stick around because the awards were at 2pm a few miles from the racesite and we had a four-hour drive home. Apparently, the medals were engraved “showshoe race” instead of “snowshoe race.”
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WWW POST:
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2/17/02 75 showed for an incredibly nice day weatherwise. The temperature hit the upper 50s and because of that a lot of people hung out at the park afterwards. Of course part of that was due to the long runs some were putting in to include Waldo and Longs Ranch Road. It does not get much better than this in February:-)
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Go out hard, when it hurts speed up...
Matt Carpenter
http://www.skyrunner.com
Incline Club
http://www.inclinclub.com
Barr Trail Mountain Race
http://www.runpikespeak.com
Friends of the Peak
http://www.fotp.com
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