I finally decided to try to run to the top of Mosquito Pass. I maintained running form the whole time, but at times it seemed like I was barely moving (probably because I was barely moving). It took me 2 hours and 26 minutes to go 7.75 miles. It was very windy at the top. I had trouble running a straight line at times. The way down was much nicer. Here is the elevation profile from my run route (average grade 7.3%):

Last night I saw snow in town for the first time since June 6 (it’s about time, this summer was starting to feel like it was dragging on forever). Actually it was mostly rain, but there were definitely times when it was snowing. This morning my car door was frozen shut and I had to scrape my windshield. It was a pretty cool and wet week and there is definitely more snow up in the mountains than there was last week, but it sounds like the weather is going to be back up into the 70’s again this week.

Today I drove to Winter Park to see a friend from Chicago who was out here on vacation. We went for a bike ride and stopped to eat at a restaurant near the ski resort. It was a very nice area, but I think that I prefer Leadville.

On Wednesday I hiked to the top of Mount Sherman (14,036′). I think Mount Sherman is the closest 14er to Leadville. The trailhead is at 12,000 feet and it is only a 2.25 mile hike to the top, so it is one of the easiest 14ers. Since it was easy, I decided to do the adjacent Mount Sheridan (13,748′) as well.

In other news, I sort of got back into the triathlon world last week. I did the swim leg for a relay team in the local sprint triathlon (my how the mighty have fallen). I had the 5th fastest swim overall, so there is definitely a home pool advantage when you are swimming at 10,000 feet. We won the relay division, but were beaten by 2 individuals.
On the fitness front, I finally broke 7 minutes for my downhill mile (6:56). That was at the end of a hard 5.5 mile run, so I probably could have gone a little faster on a solo mile, but I don’t feel like hurting that much again to find out.

Today I biked from Frisco to the top of Vail pass and back. It was about a 23 mile ride. It was on a bike trail right next to the interstate, but for much of it you are below the interstate, so you don’t really notice the cars. For the most part it is a pretty gradual climb and a very nice ride.

Since I’m sure all of you are waiting to see how my fitness is progressing with bated breath, I thought I would post an update (ok, maybe none of you are interested, but since I no longer keep a detailed workout log, this is a way for me to keep track of my fitness). My current best for my uphill mile is 10:10. I can do the same mile downhill in 7:05. My current 1000 yard swim time trial time is 14:50, so at least my run and swim times are moving in the right direction albeit not as quickly as I would like. I’ve been riding my bike a little more, but only for fun, so no updates there although I can tell I am definitely lacking the leg strength I used to have, but considering the fact that my total mileage in the last 3 years is less than i used to ride in a month, I guess I’m doing ok.

Yesterday I hiked to the top of Hope Pass. This was much more challenging than Mosquito Pass. I was hiking up the south side, so there was only one place where I encountered any snow. Mosquito Pass is 13,185 feet but it has a 4WD road all the way to the top and it never gets that steep. Hope Pass is only 12,580 feet, but the trail up Hope Pass is definitely much steeper. It took me 1:50 to hike 2.5 miles. I am definitely not used to the heat. It was 68 degrees today and I thought I was going to melt. I know that that is not hot, but it has yet to break 70 this year in Leadville and about 70% of my hiking and running in the past month has been done in the 40’s, usually with rain.

Leadville can be seen in the center of the third picture.

Yesterday I finally made it to the top of Mosquito Pass.
I had tried a couple of weeks ago, but there was still a lot of snow on the road. There were still a few places where I had to cross some snow, but most of the route was pretty good. It was a windy day and very cold at the top, so I didn’t stay very long.

This past weekend I hiked my first 14er of 2009, Mount Shavano. Mount Shavano is 14236 feet tall. It is about 60 miles south of Leadville. There were actually quite a few people out hiking it, probably because it is one of the few 14ers that doesn’t have a ton of snow on the top. There was some snow for the last 3/4 mile or so, but not too much. It did make for a much quicker descent because I was able to just sit down and slide.

Since I am now back in bike shape thanks to my Saturday ride around Turquoise Lake, yesterday I decided to try a challenging ride. I rode from Twin Lakes to the top of Independence pass and back. It was a really nice ride. They don’t open the route to cars until this weekend so there was no traffic (other than bikes, it was amazing how many people were out riding on a Wednesday morning). It was a little more challenging than Turquoise Lake, but not too bad. Actually Turquoise Lake wasn’t that bad, it was just a lot harder than what I was expecting. Yesterday on the other hand I was really expecting to suffer and instead was pleasantly surprised. I think the steepest sections were about a 6% grade and they weren’t that long. The last 5 miles got to be a little long, but the views made up for it.

About a 1/2 mile from the top I passed a road crew coming down the mountains painting lines on the road. You haven’t lived until you’ve inhaled paint fumes at 12,000 feet while working hard biking uphill Definitely the highest I’ve ever been on a bike (12,095 feet). Here are some pictures from the ride: