Rocky Mountain Run

I got to run in the most awesome place I have ever ran. My nephew was getting married, so we were headed to Westminster, CO for a few days. It was a no brainer that we were going to get in a training run while we were there.

We decided to find the Mesa Trail. This is located in the foothills of Boulder, CO. We found a trailhead right off a residential street. We had to run on a gravel path for about 3/4 to 1 mile to get into the trails headed up the mountains.

Going up the gravel path was up hill of course, and I felt like I was going to die within the fist 1/4 mile. So I slowed my pace for awhile and power walked up the hill to get my breath. This area is around 5,400 ft of elavation. Checked and Wichita is around 1,200 ft.  Doesn't seem like a big difference, but it was. This area gained around 1,400 feet I believe.

I finally got comfortable with the surroundings and started to push it a little. I could not believe how many people utilized the trails there in Boulder. There were people of all ages and all walks of life, everything from those out for a nice walk to the serious runners.

Most everyone that I passed by were very nice. Said "hello" or "good morning". I was very suprised.

With starting our run around 9:00, it was around 52 degrees and the two hours we were there it might have went up around 10 degrees. I really wanted to be there longer, but with a wedding to go to that day, that is all we could fit in.

With climbing a lot, there was a lot of walking up the mountian. I could not help but stop every once in a while and just take in all the views. I was like a kid in a candy store. Grinning from ear to ear the whole time. There were so many different trails I could have taken, but since I was by myself I decided when I came to an intersection, that I would always go straight.

I did not get up as high as I would have liked to, but I did not get lost. I got back to the gravel path I started on with 40 more minites I could run, so I went up the mountian and found another trail. It was very rocky, but it gave me the best views of the day. I was around halfway up the highest mountain that was in the area we were running. All I can say is it was amazing!!! That was all up hill, so the run back down was a blast.

The trails were very well mantained and very technical. You had to be very careful not to twist your ankle. The trees were beautiful and everything was green. I cannot say enough about the surroundings. I did not get in a very long run as far as distance, but I would not trade it for any other training run I have ever done.

I ran 8.44 miles in 2:00:17.

Here are the pictures from Patsy's cell phone.