UltraRob's Adventures

There was really good turn out today to build the Zipline trail. Over 30 people worked different parts of the day with Medicine Wheel. Zipline will connect the Section 16 parking lot to the Bear Creek Main Trail. The map above shows the section of Zipline that is now built.

Here are a few more photos.

Camelbak Oya 75L Hydration Pack Price: $37.50

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CamelBak Ventoux Hydration Pack Price: $109.99

Labels: Colorado Springs, hiking, mountain biking, running

I'm fortunate to live where there are plenty of trails for mountain biking, hiking, running and even cross-country skiing on the occasions we actually get enough snow. Now Medicine Wheel is building another trail.

The new trail is currently being called Zipline. It will be an important connector between Section 16/Red Rock Canyon/ and the Bear Creek Main Trail.

I frequently connect between those trails. Now it means riding about a mile on a narrow, paved section of Gold Camp Road. It will be much nicer to ride singletrack to make the connection.

This Sunday, May 31st, is a trail building day for Zipline. No previous trail building experience is needed and all tools are provided. I've worn blisters building trail so you may want to take a pair of gloves.

There are 3 different shifts starting at 10 AM, Noon or 4 PM. Please send an email to Jim at jim@medwheel.org so he knows you're coming. See the Medicine Wheel page for more details.

Related Link: If You Build It, They Will Come

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New Balance 909 Trail Running Shoe Mens Regular Price: $109.95 $87.96 on sale

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Labels: Colorado Springs, hiking, mountain biking, running

I'm not a runner. I've tried but just haven't been able to get in to it. I admire those that do 100 mile runs and sometimes wish I could do one. With cycling you can coast and recover a bit but not when running.

The Hardrock 100 Endurance Run was July 11th-13th last year. Our local paper did a good article and video on it. I've meant to post about them but didn't get it done until now.

The Hardrock 100 is a brutal running race in the Colorado's San Juan Mountains. It climbs 11 mountain passes and one 14,000-foot peak for a vertical gain of 32,962 feet. It's in the area where we camped and I did some long training for the Leadville 100 mountain bike race last year. The last day when we four-wheeled the Alpine Loop, we were on part of the Hardrock 100 course.

Two locals ran it last year. Jon Teisher and Neal Taylor are 2 very different runners. I've met both of them and they're both nice guys.

The Hardrock 100 Run is July 10th and 12th this year. A lottery is used to select 140 runners. Jon made it back in this year and Neal is 45th on the list.

Jon, more commonly known as JT or brownie, attends the Manitou Incline happy hour that I do. JT likes to eat double cheeseburgers and he likes beer. He even will drink beer during long races.

Just over a week ago, JT ran rim to rim and back of the Grand Canyon. He ran 42 miles with over 11,000 vertical feet in 13 hours. His write up is well worth the read.

Neal is the caretaker at Barr Camp and I've chatted with him a few times when I've hiked to Barr Camp. Neal is a strict vegetarian and rarely drinks. JT thinks Neal would drink more if it wasn't so hard to get alcohol to Barr Camp.

Mental toughness is a huge part of doing an ultra whether it's on the bike, running, adventure race or something else. One thing Neal has learned is it will get bad, you will suffer, but you're not going to die, so keep going. Leadville 100 organizer, Ken Clouber, says finishing hurts for a few hours but quitting hurts for 365 days until you can do the race again. Lance Armstrong said it even stronger by saying pain is temporary but quitting lasts forever.

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Labels: Colorado, endurance racing, running

This past week, I've enjoyed reading what readers would buy with a $50 gift card and what adventure they'd use it on. Mike Panic is the lucky winner of the $50 cycling and outdoor gear giveaway. Congratulations!

This is what he said.

Thank you! I've been looking / wanting a new travel bag, my Thor MX bag is too big to take for most week-long trips and I'm going to St. Thomas in June and need a manageable bag to carry a week's worth of clothing. While I should be buying new running shoes or a new rear derailleur for my road bike, I feel this Gravis bag in Rebel Yellow would be the best use of the $50 for me right now to help me schlep my gear to a sunny island this summer. I'll even send you a postcard!

Oh, I still need to purchase Thule LB50 load bars to complete the roof rack system I pieced together this winter.

Mike, I'm looking forward to the postcard! To claim your gift card, send me an email with your choice of cycling and outdoor gift card.

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Labels: cycling, gear, giveaway, hiking, mountain biking, running, skiing

Update 3/16/09: The gear winner has been announced.

Everyone loves to get some cool new gear. It's even better if it's free. You have a chance to win some free gear this week.

I am giving away a $50 gift certificate to the winner's choice of these cycling and outdoor stores. Deadline to enter is Sunday, March 15th. To enter use the search box to find your gear. Then tell me in the comments below what gear you'll get if you win and what adventure you'll use it on.

You don't have to limit the price of your gear but if it's more than $50 you'll need to use some of your own money. Put some thought into your comment because the winner will be mostly random but if you write something I like you could increase your odds.

The winner will be announced on Monday, March 16th. The winner will have until Wednesday, March 18th to contact me with the choice of gift certificate. It'll be easiest if you pick one that has electronic certificates.

Subscribe to the blog feed so you don't miss out on future giveaways.

Good Luck!

Update: I really intend for this to be easy to enter. As long as you aren't lame and don't try, you'll have a good chance at winning since I'll pick a random number. You just need to write something simple like I'd buy a headlamp so I can go on a moonlight hike. If you do write something really cool, I'll enter you twice.

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Labels: cycling, gear, giveaway, hiking, mountain biking, running, skiing