Altitude training

Leadville, CO is an old mining town 30 miles off the interstate in the middle of Colorado.  It’s high altitude has also given it claim to the site of the highest and most difficult ultra marathon in North America.  I am not an ultra athlete by any means, and even my running capabilities would be stretched to the brink to complete a marathon.  But I figured I would head to Leadville to see what all the hype is about.  Most of the way there, the road climbs and climbs, and my little Prius was working hard to get up those mountains.  I felt like a bum simply driving there, as I passed insane road bikers who were pedaling hard to crest the next hill in the road.  Hills that reached over 11,000 feet.  I was blown away by their abilities.  I eventually reached Pbville (get it! Check your periodic table).  I tried to show my own personal toughness by doing a run, real easy, more or less just to say that I did it.  The town itself is located at 10,200 feet….so did it hurt?  Was it the worst run of my life?  Oh no, I’ve had far worse.  The town itself is fairly flat, and although I was definitely breathing hard for a flat run, the whole run was well within my abilities.  Plus I only went for 35 minutes.  Great town though.  Bought a few souvenirs, and moved on my way.  

probably the highest Pizza hut in america

Leadville with 14-ers in the background

Found an antique shop selling old beer cans for $15.  Worth a purchase?

My goal was to drive from Rocky Mountain National Park- on the front range of the Rockies- to Colorado National Monument, located just east of the Utah border.  I was a lot of driving for one day, but worth it.  The surroundings of Colorado NM are vastly different from the subalpine habitat I’d become accustom to so far in the mountainous west.  This part of western Colorado give you your first taste of the American Southwest.  Red sandstone canyons, dry arid plateaus, and more drought resistant trees like juniper and pinyon pine.  And the sun is always scorching.  So very much like the southwest that many folks think about.