First, everyone’s favorite downtown zealot posted a sweet video showing a Porsche GT3 racing up Pike’s Peak, one of the fiercest rally/hill climbs in the sport. The video (seen below) is absolutely awesome, both in the feat of the driver and that of the cinematography.

Not only did it make me want to go tear around town in my own car (we’ll save that for the winter) but it brought to the forefront of my mind an incredible hill climb of my own in the same locale, albeit on two feet instead of four wheels.

But the second (and more personal) angle to this story was brought on when @classicgrrl wrote this to me on twitter:

It was May 18, 2009 and I was in Colorado Springs to witness and celebrate my sister’s graduation from Colorado College. My Mother and Father were there as well, though we all had our own hotel rooms. Pictures=1,000 words, so to describe my love for that part of the country I simply need to show you the view from my hotel room–what I woke up to every day that trip.

That mountain top with the snow on it? That’s Pike’s Peak sitting over 14,000 feet above sea level, permanently covered in snow, tempting you to venture up its sides. If you click on the picture and look to the right, you can see a brown line running almost vertically up the adjacent hill (anything next to Da Peak is, in my opinion, a hill, although here it would be a mountain towering over the whole state….but I digress).

That is the Manitou Springs Incline…here’s a closer look.

Now, for a bit of backstory.. This was not my first trip to Manitou Springs. The previous Thanksgiving (we’re talking Nov. 2008) my family decided to fly out to CO to visit my sister for the Turkey Day celebration. My Mom and Dad had separated roughly 18 months before that, but it was just now becoming apparent to all parties involved that reconciliation was not part of the future picture. In fact, my Mom was in Florida, Dad was in DC, I was here in Cincy, and sis was, as stated earlier, in CO Springs. “Family Time” was all but nonexistent save for phone calls and video chats (Barses are nothing if not technology nerds). To say it was an awkward holiday season would be putting it mildly. In fact, it was one of the most soul-crushing, dreadful holidays of my life…..I mean, my parents had been married for 25 years, and 5 years prior had celebrated their 20th anniversary with large gathering of family near and far. I grew up watching my friend’s parents split, all the while thinking that could never happen to my Mom and Dad. Even when they broke the news to me it wasn’t that real, not until that Thanksgiving. The sentiment that surrounded that “vacation” had a profound effect on me and the way I view relationships.

Fast forward 7 months and I’m back in Colorado with my immediate family, but some things had changed. I had taken every bit of anger/sadness/pity and turned it into motivation to kick my own ass back into shape. I’m an active guy, especially when I’m in troubled waters (ask my Dad how much my mountain biking picked up when I was grounded and/or screwed up in the head during high school). My mom and sister are also runners, and we went out together a few times during the graduation trip. But I’m taller/stronger/faster than both of them (not bragging, just saying) and at some point the awkwardness of the whole situation got to me, and I needed to get out and run myself ragged.

My sister had told me about the Manitou Springs Incline before. An old rail incline that took people and their belongings partway up to Pike’s Peak, all that was left were the railroad ties, some more mangled than others from the constant freeze and thaw that part of the country goes through each year. Technically closed to hikers, the area still sees steady foot traffic as people climb the ~5,000 railroad ties to ascend roughly 2,000 vertical feet (keeping in mind the base of the hill is already 6,800 feet above sea level). At that point you meet up with the Barr Trail–a route that will take you four miles back down to the base, or continue up to the top of Pike’s Peak.

As the first picture demonstrates, I could see the incline from my hotel room, a thin brown line beckoning me to come scale its ascent. I got directions from my sister, the rental car from my Dad, an apple from the hotel, and I took off 7 miles west to Manitou.

I didn’t have my digi, but I did have my phone, and I quickly realized this was a picture worthy trip. That, and it was going to kick my ass.

Standing at the base let's you appreciate what you are about to tackle

In denial about the difficulty of the endeavor I started out jogging my way up, skipping ties as I went. Yeah, that lasted about as long as [insert extremely short fad here] and I slowed to a not-so-brisk walk before things even got steep (side note: they could really use more oxygen in the air out there).

Eventually I realized (like most of life) it was as much about the journey as the destination (and shit, I knew I wasn’t going to make to The Peak in shorts and a t-shirt) so I took it (kinda) slow and made sure to soak it all in.

The steeper it gets, the more mangled

I hit the top and kept hiking up the trail, making sure to take some self shots with Pike’s Peak in the background.

At some point I remembered I had to get back down, and I ran downhill, jumping over rocks an stumps on the Barr Trail, doing my best not to roll an ankle. I did pause to catch a glimpse of the Garden of the Gods protruding out of the trees in the distance.

For a few hours I lost myself out there, like a kid, with my mind focused on nothing but the environment around me. As I drove from one Springs to the other I realized, as I had many times before, that nothing in life is a constant (screw you death and taxes) and this journey was just another manifestation of the pendulum that swings back and forth between highs and lows. The important thing I have to remind myself is to stay positive, to know that at times things can look bleak, but damn it that will pass.

I see a lot of Facebook and Twitter updates which are cryptic and depressing…lord knows I’ve left my fair share (mostly in the form of lyrics) and I just want to remind people that life isn’t all berries and cream…but it doesn’t suck either. In fact, far from it. Sometimes it takes a race up a mountain to remember that.

]]> http://www.theboilover.com/2010/11/manitou-springs-incline/feed/ 1 http://www.theboilover.com/2010/08/gettin-my-steps-back/ http://www.theboilover.com/2010/08/gettin-my-steps-back/#comments Thu, 12 Aug 2010 15:33:13 +0000 theboilover http://www.theboilover.com/?p=1891 Last Friday’s run at the Downtown Dash was spectacular, and it’s gotten me excited to get back to more running workouts. I’m almost ready to tackle this horrendous workout at Nippert Stadium again.

It’s amazing what one good race can do for your confidence. I thought I might have lost a step or two after taking so much time off from actual distance running. I guess the last 8 weeks of pick up soccer have really paid off though, because I kicked ass on that hill. I’m sure all my biking didn’t hurt either….

Only three ways to get faster: Hills, Steps, and Sprints…and I love ‘em all.

It was also a pleasure to have my Dad out for the weekend….never underestimate the power of family at a race. It was like being a kid all over again, stomping on home plate and running back to the dugout to get a high five from Coach (especially since my Dad was our baseball coach).

You can tell this is pre race because I still have a shirt on

Coach and I

About to head out for a warm up run

Waiting...

Waiting....

Go!

21:22 later...didn't want to keep Dad waiting too long....

Tired and smiling, a great feeling

I hear the minerals in beer are good for you after a run....

Congrats to everyone who ran, I hope you had as much fun as I did! And a special heartfelt thanks to Pops for not being too put off that I want to go run a race right after he drove 8 hours to see me. Besides, I think he had enough fun at the after party to make it worthwhile.

This week, when I had the chance to climb high on two skyscapers and had to pass, I felt pretty bad about the whole thing.

It started when my boss and I drove to Dayton to look at expanding our business to the north. We went to the 12 story administrative building on Third St, discussing our course of action as we passed through the above ground tunnel from the parking garage to the building lobby. I didn’t think twice as he called the elevator, and we continued our banter as we entered the cab. The doors closed and a look of panic washed over my face as I said “Oh shit!” My boss, realizing the situation, simply laughed as we rode up 3 stories.

I managed to walk between floors after that, still disappointed in myself for taking that first ride. When we hit the lobby again, my boss asked a question which could only be answered by someone on the 10th floor. I gazed at him with the why-are-we-just-thinking-about-this-now look, and he knew I was about to break for the stairs. He replied to my nonverbal communication with “You can’t be out of breath when we walk into that office, just make it up later.” Not worth the argument, or having to wait outside an office to catch my breath, I agreed, and we ascended ten floors with the push of a button.

At this point I owed myself 13 flights of stairs.

Then two days ago we were wrapping things up in the office and I had to take some things over to 3CDC, located on the 14th floor of the Kroger building. It was already past five o’clock, and I wasn’t sure anyone would be in their office. As I walked along court street I wrestled with the stairs vs. elevator argument. My delivery couldn’t wait until the next day, and I heard my boss’ voice in my head “Just make it up later.” I succumbed to the ‘vator.

Now I was up to 27 flights of stairs.

Last night I was thinking about the make-up stairs, and frankly 27 flights seemed like a lot. To make that up in my building was going to mean hiking top to bottom over four times. While there wasn’t going to be that much time involved in executing those stair climbs, the thought of simply walking up and down the steps wasn’t all that appealing. Instead I decided to mix it in with a workout routine. I went down to our “gym” (one room with a few machines and some free weights) and started on one of my weight training circuits I’ve put together. In between sets however, I ran up the steps to the top floor and jogged back down, all in an effort to knock out some of my make-up stairs.

It was actually a great feeling to be worn out from lifting weights only to will my body upwards in the building. It kept my heart rate up when I would normally be taking a sip of water and relaxing before my next set of weights. Instead my trip back down the stairs worked as my cool down, and I was still ready to go into my next circuit.

I’ve still missed all my opportunities to climb anything over six stories thus far. But I discovered another facet of training to work into my routine, and I think that’s well worth it. Not to mention I’ve still climbed almost 10,000 stairs so far this year.

And I still can’t wait to get back to my stadium workouts this summer.

Back in late January a friend of mine from Columbus drove down to visit. He had just purchased the Wii Fit, and brought it with him for what would become quite the wiikend. I been working out for about a month, weighing myself at the gym when I was there playing racquetball. I didn’t have a weight loss goal in mind, but I knew I was really out of shape from four months of injury recovery. My goal was to be healthy and active, and I knew the weight would take care of itself if I focused on that goal. I still paid attention to it however, and at the time my friend came down I had already lost about 6 lbs. When his new ‘toy’ told me I was 190 lbs I was surprised at how accurate it was. The scale matched up with the class-leading Tanita scale I used at the gym (not a paid endorsement, just what I’ve come to trust over time) within .2 lbs.

That weekend I learned all about the balance games, strength training, yoga, and aerobic workouts that came as part of the Wii Fit package. I was hooked, and my friend wasn’t even back to Columbus yet by the time I ordered my own Fit.

When the package showed up in my lobby I was ecstatic. I vowed to use it every day, getting stronger and more flexible with my own body weight, on my own accord. For a long time that held true–damn near every day after work I came home, weighed myself, and began a regime of yoga and strength training. After that I would run or bike, and later in the evening I would have fun ski jumping or heading soccer balls (my favorite of the balance games).

As much fun as I had with all of the games and exercises, the best part of the whole package was watching my weight tumble. Not wanting to see the graph go up (and then have the Wii yell at me, which it does) was more motivation than I thought. The ability to set a goal for the next four weeks and watch myself get closer and closer to it was great. And if I missed the goal it was ok, this wasn’t high school wrestling (which, to be clear, I never took part in) but it was all the more incentive to try harder over the next four weeks.

Over time I began to do many of the stretching and strength training exercises without using the Fit itself, and I would hop on every once in a while to check my weight. Like I said above, hitting a certain weight was never really a goal of mine in the first place.

At this point I don’t really worry about it at all–my biggest goals were being healthy, active, and to generally feel like I was in good shape, something I have definitely accomplished (not that I’m stopping/slowing now).

And the weight took care of itself…

A nice steady trend down

Changing some of my eating habits helped as well, but that was more about being well rounded–I still eat just about anything I want, I just do it in moderation.

I’m not saying that if you buy a Wii Fit you will lose 25 lbs. You still have to put in the work to get the results, but this may be one of the best tools for the job–and we can all use as much help as possible in accomplishing our fitness goals.

So thanks to my old college roommate (who has also seen weight loss success) for coming down and introducing me to the Wii Fit, who knows where I’d be without it.

By running…as fast as you can…

Interval training involves running at near max speed and intensity, and then an interval of jogging. There are a number of track workouts (see Yasso 800′s) which are great, if you have access to a track. But living downtown, I don’t always feel like getting on my bike and riding up to UC to use their ring. So I’ve created a number of downtown interval workouts, one of which I’ll share right now.

I was trying to find a good place for interval training and I figured if I’m trying to workout out and get as strong and fast as I can, I should go where the pros go. So I went down to PBS and found a great spot at the SE corner of the stadium. You start at the bottom of the ramp on Mehring Way and sprint up the ramp to the stadium deck. Then continue next to (or better yet, jumping over) the concrete benches. When you hit the stairs that lead back down to the parking deck you’ve hit a 1/4 mile.

At that point you turn around and jog back to the bottom, where you do it all again. Repeat ten+ times, then go for a cool down jog, stretch, and take the next day off. Do this a few times a month and watch the results.

I figured I would try it out for a few weeks before I gave it any sort of review. Let me tell you, I really like it.

The site is set up for logging different workouts (running, biking, swimming, etc) which is a must for me. Using google maps you can easily create and store routes, all the while calculating your mileage. It can provide you pacing time if you keep track of your overall workout time, and you can add detailed comments about how it went.

In facebook like style you can ‘friend’ people through the system to compare progress and give each other motivation. If you leave your profile open for public viewing, you will also be able to look at a workout news feed of sorts with other local area residents sharing their routines. It’s a great way to pick up on new places to play and train.

You may have noticed I added the ‘next race’ widget to the side of the blog. I have found that racing gives me little goals to shoot for, always with another one in the distance. You can click on the link at the top of the entry, or on the widget, to get to dailymile and check it out for yourself.

Do some pull-ups (let the GIF load for a demo)....

....and run the skinny's....

....and jump over some shit!

On top of that, I think the “fun theory” is a pretty good one. I look at every “workout” I do as fun, perhaps making it more of a funout?

Ok maybe not, but the idea still holds true for everything from keeping active, to working at your job, to making a good meal. It doesn’t seem (as) difficult if you have a good time doing it.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=2lXh2n0aPyw

via

With 26 flights of 59 stairs a piece, running up and down the aisles is almost masochistic. Which is why I smiled when I pulled up on my bike and looked out to see a handful of people dispersed amongst the rows, all concentrating on not missing a step. It’s an interesting crowd of mostly college age athletes, with a few gray hairs mixed in. And while one person may be sprinting up and down a set of stairs to work on speed, there are others like me who are there to work on their endurance. I like that mix, and even as we pass by each other, there is an acknowledgement of the work that is taking place.

As for the workout itself, I like to run all the stairs, then do some sprints around the football field. After a break, another set around the stairs and I’m ready to call it a day. Without hitting the top section of the stadium, and depending on whether you run the short rows in the lower part as well, you end up hitting about 3100+ steps over about a mile (according to google earth mind you). It’s the sort of thing that turns your legs to jello, but when they re-solidify you are that much stronger for it.

And riding back down the Vine St. hill on my bike is always fun!

If you’re a runner, why not consider this nice 5 mile route that will take you from downtown to Mt. Adams, over to Newport and Covington, down past the stadiums, and back up thru downtown to finish in OTR. Sounds like fun eh? It’s certainly more fun than running around the streets of your subdivision looking at the same houses…..

If you’re interested I’ll be doing this route this afternoon. A little warm up run will take me from my house to the top of the pedestrian bridge that spans I-71 (connects Van Meter St. in Mt. Adams and Court Street by the Greyhound Station, and is the banner image of the site). I’ll be leaving the top of the bridge (Van Meter and Warhem) at 6:30 pm. Drop me a line in the comments or meet there a little before 6:30 if you want to join me.

Be warned I use stairs, benches, and other manmade obstacles to make this more than a normal run