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Late Season Colorado Cyclocross Fun - On The Cross
Looking for some fun and/or competition this weekend? If you’ve ever wanted to give cyclocross a try but are still hesitant due to intimidation, lack of experience, fitness, or the fact that you’re only four years old, then On The Cross is for you! The annual “On The Cross” at Chatfield brings a nice competition for experienced racers, and will also feature some of those fun categories that lend themselves so well to cyclocross, including contests like bunny hop, bike limbo, kids race, and what I predict to be a sweeping trend, the “Huffy toss” (see video)!
2008 Heart Center of the Rockies Half Marathon
Pat wrote in a few comments about this Loveland race:
This one is a decent, small scale half marathon. Course is point to point, mostly flat, which is nice for speed. While it’s nice to have a course that doesn’t compete with the cars, racing on the bike path isn’t my firts choice. I personally prefer a dedicated half marathon without the 5K, 10K, Kids Run…. but I guess the race would be on the small side and I know the point is to profit. The race shirt was a white long sleeved tech shirt, with black ad logos which probably contributes to the $45 early bird entry fee. I thought there would be a little more happening at the finish line. The beach/park offer the potential for some post-race fun, but overall I can’t complain. A glass company had donated their service van to help runners get back to the starting line. Overall, no major snafu’s - I could do it again next year.
“Bowl of Death” Taunts Colorado Cyclocross Riders
Last weekend capped Boulder Racing’s cyclocross series with a technically challenging course at the Louisville Rec Center. Affectionately called “The Bowl of Death”, the course lured some of Colorado’s top riders to come out and test their mettle. The course features some tight turns, lots of elevation changes, and bumpy terrain. While Mother Nature has kept the CX courses mostly dry this season, that didn’t prevent all casualties, namely in men’s Cat 3. At least one rider was sent to the hospital after a spectacular crash involving multiple riders, but aside from that it was a great day for cyclocross. There’s a great descriptive write up in this post from the Chipotle-Titus Mountain Bike Team blog. A trend in cyclocross that seems to continue growing is the inclusion of open, “fun” categories, such as a cruiser category. This race featured the rare chance for the rug rats to get a taste of cyclocross.
The season’s winding down, but we still have Mammoth Cross at Fossil Trace, Supercross in Colorado Springs, and the annual “On The Cross” at Chatfield to go. Check out the race calendar for more details on these.
2008 Chatfield Five And Dime
Well my friends it was cold this morning. But not cold enough to stop a pretty good size crowd from rockin’ the trails at Chatfield State Park. Organized by the Colorado Masters Running Association, the Five and Dime consisted of a 5 mile and 10 mile trail run.
This was my very first trail run and it was awesome. As far as the level of fun had while running a race goes, this is way at the top of my list. The course started on a dirt road that wound through a field and turned into single track about 2 miles in. I was super nervous about rolling an ankle at first, and though the trails got pretty narrow, they stayed relatively smooth for the first 6 miles so I had a good chance to get comfortable with the course and my pace. This particular section (from about mile 2 to mile 6-ish) was so much fun to race on… and not just because nobody can pass you due to the narrowness of the track (hahaha to everyone stuck behind me)! It moved quickly through a lightly wooded area and had several turns and small but worthy hills to keep the legs limber and the mind active. After mile 6, the course took runners out into a field where the path itself was quite a bit rougher and involved some longer hills (including some sketchy and steep down hill sections) but did offer more visibility, and of course the prospect of the finish line.
So, the race itself was amazing. Getting to the race was… questionable. The CMRA website is a bit rudimentry and doesn’t include contact or registration information. It was only after I talked to a few people who had done CMRA events that I realized one can just show up to the race and pay. The only other thing that bothered me was that the location was listed as “Chatfield” and it took a conversation with a less than pleasant park ranger to find out where exactly in “Chatfield” the race was.
While I did hear a few people mention that course wasn’t marked well, I didn’t have any real problems finding my way around and felt pretty confident the whole time. In fact, I have to say I was impressed with how smoothly things went along once underway. And hey, for only $10, one can’t really complain.
Despite a few very minor glitches with actually getting myself to the race (old-school website, no contact info, etc), I think the Five and Dime was pretty well organized and the only thing missing was a t-shirt to commemorate the event (though, with that kind of price tag, I can probably make my own).
This is by far my favorite race this year - fun course, small race, laid-back atmosphere, cheap, good competition if you’re into that and plenty of folks just out for a good run - and gets my very selective and awesome stamp of awesomeness.
Denver Red Thread Run 2008 Race Review
Red Thread Run
Here’s a comment from Amy, one of the recipients of a free race entry from Racing Colorado. Nice job, Amy!
I ran the Red Thread Run with my comp entry Saturday (thanks Racing Colorado) and had a blaast! The course was changed from last year which was nicer, as we ran on the streets within the City Park the entire time and never had to run on sidewalks as we did last year. I was able to run with my dog, which really excited me!
The race shirt is long-sleeved (yippee). Kids submit drawings and one design is selected to be on the shirt. There were plenty of beverages and snacks after the race. A lot of door prizes (gift cards to Dick’s Sporting Goods and Safeway, etc.) were drawn for particpants at the end of the race.
This is a fun, small race with many participants being parents and small children (proceeds are for adoption grant programs) that is also trying to recruit serious runners with a $150 cash prize for the top male/female. I had a lot of fun and really enjoyed the gorgeous weather and surroundings!
2008 Littleton Stride - 5K/10K
So have you even heard of this race? I didn’t think so. It’s small and not advertised much outside of Littleton Public Schools. But, my friends, it is definitely worth looking into.
When I stumbled on this last year, I happened to read a little blip on the Littleton Public Schools website saying something to effect of “For the experienced runner, this is the most challenging course in the Denver-Metro area”. Being the snob that I am, I instantly thought “Psssh. Whatever, Littleton Public Schools.”
Yeah. They weren’t joking.
The event benifits (um, obviously) Littleton Public Schools and consists of a 10k run, 5k run, 5k walk, and 1k fun run. While I can’t speak for the 5k or 1k course, I can absolutely attest to the beastiness of the 10k course. It is hilly. And when I say “hilly”, I mean borderline mountainous. I consider myself a strong runner and this course just rocked me. After the first two miles my legs felt like marshmallow fluff, my lungs felt like they may be bleeding, and I found myself wondering why I payed money to put myself in such a position. If it means anything to you, I finished in 43:30… and I won (okay, okay, I was the first female, but 6th overall).
What I didn’t see this year was Derek Griffiths of Colorado Runner Magazine out taking pictures… Ya know, high school volleyball players seem to get more press than even the fastest runners in Colorado, so a nice little shout out in Colorado Runner is pretty awesome (even if it’s a bad picture, which it will be ’cause this race doesn’t make anyone look pretty). So I don’t know if that happened this year or not, but I’m pretty vain so I’m keeping my fingers crossed.
Either way, it’s suuuuuuuch a good race. When you’re done and you get over the strange and disturbing burning sensation in your bronchial tubes, you feel like you should be hanging out with the X-Men. The Littleton Stride also seems to be pretty well organized - there’s a ton of parking, plenty of port-a-potties, a fair price tag, and a well marked course which employs a lot of high school students to cheer for you (which they do quite well - thank you to all the girls in the tie-dyed shirts and the folks on the corners going “First Girl!! Woo!!!”).
This is one tough but tasty cookie. I highly recommend giving it a try if you haven’t, and I will leave you with a bit of advice: hill repeats are indeed your ally, and keep your eyes peeled for folks jogging with strollers and dogs. Hope to see some more of you out there next November!
