WILD WEST RELAY
AUGUST 1-10, 2008
[Note: Judy has
competed in several races this year, but none before or since has had
the challenges of the Wild West Relay, a 195-mile course from
Fort Collins to Steamboat Springs. Judy wrote an account of her
adventure and took photos along the way. After the race, we camped at
Steamboat Lake State Park and for a few days at Lake Granby. Below is
Judy’s account of the race, followed by some notes on our camping that
followed.]
I. WILD
WEST RELAY
Actually the Relay Race started a
night early (July 31) for me! I decided to go ahead and run in
the Pearl
Street Mile. We drove to
Boulder’s
Pearl Street area in plenty of time for Hughes to check in as a
volunteer. The masters wave (men and women over 40) started about 6:40
pm. I did take first in my age group even though my mile
time (sub-8 minute) surely has slowed down over the years! Much later
than promised, the awards were finally given out and we
headed home for what sleep we could get before the early alarms went
off.
At 4:30 am on Friday, August 1,
the coffee was ready,
we gathered the last few items I wanted with me for the Wild West Relay Race, loaded
the dogs into the car, and headed down the mountain to Boulder again.
We met my teammates in the parking lot of an exercise club, loaded up
everyone’s “stuff,” and headed up to Fort Collins.
There were 123 teams registered in 11 different
categories, including high school teams,
masters, men, women, and mixed teams, flatlanders (must live below
2500'), and hash house harriers (or the Red Dress Division—wearing red
dresses and/or running in red), ultra runners, 12-person teams,
6-person teams, even a 3-person team. Runners came from all over the
country to participate. It certainly invites a wide range of
outstanding runners.
The race started at the Budweiser
Beer distribution center just off I-25 just north and east of Fort
Collins. We got to the start about 7 am for our 8:30 start time. The
race officials required teams to arrive at least an hour before their
start times
to be sure that there was adequate time for check in. Not only did the
runners have to wear race numbers at all times, but each van had to
have
regulation signs, a first aid kit, reflective vests for night running,
headlamps, red blinking lights for runners to wear at night, and other
things that our captain had to show to the officials. We took a team
picture, which included all twelve of us (six per van), and then I
wandered around looking at the way some of the vans were decorated and
saying “hi” to some of the runners who I knew but were on other teams.
The start times were staggered
starting at 7 am and spaced a half an hour apart to ensure that runners
would be spread out on the course. At 8:30 on the dot, our first
runner took off with a group of about 25 other runners. My teammates
who were in Van 1 ran their legs first, so our van had about six hours
to get to the van exchange. We decided to start off with a good
breakfast, so we stopped at a nice little eatery on the north edge of
Fort
Collins. Then we found a store where we could buy fruit pies to enjoy
later in the Relay!
About 11 am we arrived at the
first van exchange. It was at a school on Red Feather Lakes Road near
the town. It was
stinking hot (about 100 degrees!) and we tried our
best
to find shade in which to wait for the last runner in Van 1 to arrive.
At about noon, she handed off the “baton,” which was a LiveStrong
bracelet, to the first runner in Van 2 (my van). [Note: Each
green dot on the map above is the beginning of a leg of the race.]
Because of the extreme
heat, we
lost a bit of time that day. (It was 104° in Denver
that day, one degree shy of the record for the hottest day in Denver’s
history. We later heard that one runner from
another team dropped
out because of heat exhaustion or heat stroke and was taken to a
hospital in Fort Collins. His team had a substitute who finished the
race for them, but the team was disqualified anyway.)
I was runner #12, so I didn’t get
to run until about 4 pm; while it had cooled ever so slightly, it
was still well over 90 and the pavement was radiating all the heat
stored
during the earlier hours of the day. I felt good that I was able to run
my entire leg with no walk breaks as most of the previous runners were
forced to take.
When I handed off to runner #1
from Van 1, our van was directed on a slightly different course from
the actual race, purely to relieve some of the congestion and dust on
the road. We drove up the Poudre River Road,
passing beautiful fields
of wildflowers and low, marshy areas where we saw at least four groups
of moose! We also saw antelope and even horses wondering down the open
range road we were on!
We arrived at the next van exchange about 6 pm or
so.
It was at a small rustic resort near Woods Landing, Wyoming,
where the runners could enjoy a
spaghetti buffet! I had no idea! Spaghetti sounded a bit heavy to me,
so I opted for a chicken breast sandwich and salad, which were
excellent. Then I understood why we purchased the pies in Ft. Collins!
This was where they were to be enjoyed! After we ate it was time to
either
stake claim to one of the seats in the van or spread sleeping bags out
on the grass. Because the mosquitoes nibbled on me earlier, I
opted for a
van seat, which was plenty long for me! We rested or snoozed for a few
hours till it was our turn to run again around 11 pm.
The time that we lost during the
hot day we started to make up with our first night run. Everyone came
in a bit faster than our predicted time on these legs. My leg was the
one that brought us in to Walden
(Colorado) High School. I arrived
about 5 am,
handed off to Van 1, and then all of us from Van 2 rushed in to the
school to take warm showers! Wow! Did that feel good! Then we
arranged ourselves for another few hours of sleep or rest before
heading in to town to try to find a place to get a cup of coffee!
We got to the next van exchange
at the base of Rabbit
Ears Pass in plenty of time,
and our first runner did an amazing job of running that leg. The
slightly cooler weather during the rest of the day leading into
Steamboat Springs also
helped us make up a lot of lost time from the
day
before. I was the anchor runner, so
I had the pleasure of running in on Steamboat’s bike path (with all the
non-relay race traffic—bikes, strollers, walkers, etc.) into town, and
then back up the valley and up
hill to the Steamboat Springs High School. I’m not sure what the
temperature was for that leg, but it was plenty hot! It is tradition
that the whole team joins the anchor runner to cross the finish line
together, so it felt great having the other eleven with me to go under
the banner! We arrived about 3:00 pm, only a half hour longer than we
had estimated.
One of the things that we kept
track of during the
race was road kill! When we
passed another runner during one of
our legs, we counted it as a road
kill. Of course if you then got
passed
yourself, that was negative road kill. I managed to score the
highest, a grand total of eight road kills, including three in the last
leg! I also ran faster in each of
my legs than my predicted time, so all in all, I considered myself to
have been a team asset! And icing on the cake: our team was first in the Masters
Division and 69th overall! We all have medals to prove it! (See top
of the page.)
All in all, it was quite an
amazing experience for
me. I’ve never done a relay race before, though I was invited to be
on this team two years ago right before my cancer was discovered. So
not only did it bring chills to think that I am a two-year survivor,
but that I was strong enough to participate on this team now.
When I write my letter to the
race director, I will
praise the organization of the race to the highest. Also the numbers
and quality of the volunteers were rather amazing. Some stood outside
for long hours in extreme heat, others managed to stay warm during a
long and chilly night. They all remained cheerful and encouraging. My
one not-so-positive comment would be that there were not enough
port-a-potties at the runner exchanges. I was actually late for my hand
off to run my second leg because I was stuck in the potty line for too
long!
II.
CAMPING: STEAMBOAT LAKE AND LAKE GRANBY
While Judy was in Fort Collins
getting ready to
begin the run, Hughes was completing the final packing in the RV: fill
the water tank, pack the dog food, etc. The rest of the family
(Sophie, Bella, and I) left Saturday morning at 7:30, heading south to
I-70, through the Eisenhower Tunnel, north from Silverthorn on SR 9
along the
beautiful Blue
River (great fly fishing) to Kremmling and got to Steamboat Springs
High School about
11:30. Judy would not arrive until around 3:00.
By the time the awards and
drawings were completed by 4:30 we were away and headed for Steamboat Lake
State Park, 25 miles north. Our campsite was disappointing—no
view, surrounded by noisy families, a loose dog—so we walked down to
the lower area near the water where we’d camped before to scout
possibilities for changing sites. All filled. (A bit noisy there
also—dogs this time). The park was full this weekend and we hoped that
lots of folks would leave
and make openings for the next four days.
[Note: We
couldn’t move our campsite, but we did learn a useful lesson/strategy
for future reservations: we should (1) know where we want to be—or
which sites we should avoid, and (2) reserve separately, if necessary,
for the nights we want. Further, we decided we really should do more
dry camping at campgrounds that do not require reservations—that are
just off the beaten track or along rivers or in the backwoods or
whatever. We have a generator for the times we’d like to heat water,
take a shower, or what have you, and we should take advantage of the
conveniences we have.]
We were dismayed how much the
mountain
pine beetles have nearly devastated the forests even up here in the
beautiful Elk River Valley. The slopes show
large areas of red needle pines; only the scrub oak and aspens
keep the area looking even partially green. We have photos
from last year when there were far fewer red-needled trees. The spread
of
beetle-kill has devastated large areas of forest on the west side of
the continental divide and the flying insects are slowly migrating to
the east and south toward our
side of the divide. It’s not a question of if they’ll attack our
forests, but when.
Did we mention the crows? The
Sunset Campground area at Steamboat Lake SP is home to at least one
“gang” of a dozen noisy crows that attack a campsite as soon as
the campers leave. They scavenge for whatever might be left behind and
then sit on tree branches yelling at the rest of us to get out so they
can sort through our campsites. They don’t attack humans or dogs (and
there are lots of dogs in camp), but they certainly fuss with each
other and with people; their cawing is continuous from sunup
to sunset. I suppose it’s due to them that the nights seem especially
quiet and still.
•Day
1: Our first full of camping was very restful. We slept in just
a bit, read a lot, walked the dogs a few times, and just hung out.
Hughes
worked on
more notes for the Alaska trip, selecting from Fodor’s, National
Geographic, and Lonely Planet
guides for recommended places to eat, and
for what to
do and see in various areas; today he worked on the Kenai
Peninsula—Seward, Homer, etc. Judy didn’t hurt from her relay but she
did decide to take the day off from running. After lunch, Hughes biked
with his fly rod
to Hanhn's Peak Lake, a nearby (four miles) smaller lake, to discover a
species of laughing and
taunting fish live there. He’ll try the other side of the lake
next time, and maybe at a later time in the day. Good exercise and a
lot of sun.
By the time he got back, the sites around us had just about filled with
adults. Judy fed the dogs and then
we all took naps until just before six. It has been a really lazy day.
•Day 2: We woke to a warm sunny day, perfect camping weather.
Judy
did a 40-minute run through the park to the marina and back along the
shore in the direction of the visitor’s center. She showered and
shampooed after her run. After breakfast we biked about 5 miles to
Pearl Lake SP,
which is just south of here and a couple of miles off
the road. The campground there has two loops with 34 sites, no
electricity, several water taps, and one flush toilet plus three
vault toilets. The lower loop is
closest to the water, excellent both for views and for access. If we
were to make
reservations, we’d opt for #24, #25, #26 or #27 as first choices
(views, access, near flush toilets and water). Fishing from the shore
is just a short 10 yards from most of the campsites. It would be nice
to have an
inflatable canoe/kayak at either lake, but especially at Pearl Lake
since we could tie it up at the campsite. I’ll start looking on Craigs
List when we get back.
As we were leaving for Pearl
Lake, we stopped at the
visitor’s center and bought postcards, put stamps on them, and wrote
quick notes. There was no mail pick up at the visitors center, so I
decided that since we were already three miles from our campsite that
Judy could bike back to camp and I
might as well bike on down to the Clark post office, which was
just a
short six miles away. Mostly downhill as it turned out—but not all of
it. I was tired and thirsty when I got there, so I rested, looked in
vain for more postcards, and refilled my water bottle. The trip back
was a full 10 miles, most of it uphill: a 5 mph grind for a fellow who
is clearly out of shape. In all, I biked 24 miles that morning, which
included the
Pearl Lake out and back—all to mail two postcards! I was done for the
day. Judy had a very relaxing afternoon waiting at the campsite with
the dogs. We finished the day with the usual round of gin rummy, some
Ian Tyson songs in the background, shrimp for dinner, a walk or two
around
the park with the dogs, and topped it all off with a glorious first
fire of
the trip.
•Day 3:
Another lazy day— very lazy!
Judy ran (to the Hahn’s Peak Café and
back—4 miles) and I biked over to the marina area to check out the
camping spots in that area (and found nothing special) and the boat
rental fees
(not exorbitant). We didn’t go out this evening, but we
planned to take a small fishing boat out in the morning when the
fishing might
be better than mid-day. Other than that, we walked the dogs and read a
lot. We had another fire tonight in spite of the black cloud
hanging overhead. We discussed future trip possibilities
and the cost of getting to and from places like Vancouver Island,
Banff-Jasper, western Arizona, and other destinations in a car (cost of
gas for
the car plus motels) versus the RV. Surprisingly, it’s not
significantly more expensive in the RV (we got just over 20 mpg on this
trip!), and maybe even less if the cost of food is thrown in. And even
cheaper if we overnight in Wal-Mart parking lots! Conclusion: we should
go more often and stress less about the cost of trips in the RV. And we
should take such trips before things in the RV start to wear out
or go bad or
break down. We thought of checking national racing information and see
if it’s possible to take trips that involve running events along the
way.
•Day 4: We began our last full day here with breakfast, Judy got
a run in while I cleaned up, and then we biked to the marina to rent a
fishing boat. We thought we’d see the lake and park from a different
vantage point and I bought some worms (imported
from
Waterford,
Michigan) for some real fishing. Of course we spent most of our time in
the “no fish” portion of the lake. Not even a nibble! Judy hadn’t
brought
a book or binoculars, and she didn’t want to drive the boat. She did,
however, take some lovely
photos of the surrounding area, even though the clouds were gathering
for the rain that would begin about 2:00 in the afternoon.
The dogs were glad to see us when
we got back and after walks and lunch we settled in for some afternoon
reading outside, until the thunder and rain started (it
rained—sometimes hard, sometimes gently—the rest of the afternoon and
into the evening). We were comfortable inside: dry, and very
glad we’re no longer car camping, tent camping, or any other style of
camping
we’ve done in the past. The dogs lounged with Judy while she read and
we continued our on-going gin rummy game. We had our "coketail" hour:
Judy will have some wine (this trip she brought an
outstanding 2006 Vinas
Chilenas Reserva Cabernet from Trader Joe’s) and
I have my diet Coke before dinner. After dinner we got things ready
for our departure in the morning.
A final thought: We had climbed
Hahn’s
Peak last
year because we wanted some good hiking. And it was a great hike. You
can see for miles from this volcanic cone-like promontory. However, I
don’t think I appreciated just how much of a real landmark the mountain
is. It stands tall above everything, though it’s only a little over
10,000'. Its sides are sloped with some beetle-kill, but most of the
way to
timberline it’s thick with hearty aspen, which must be a glorious scene
in the fall. The mountain hovers over the little town of Hahn’s
Peak Village where gold was discovered in 1862. I don’t know how
much of a strike it was, but a town evolved, turned ghost, and is
lately attempting a mild comeback—there’s some new construction and
remodeling among the old miners cabins that line the main/only street
in town. It’s close to the lake, and there are beetle kill trees to cut
and
skin and stack like Lincoln Logs. We didn’t get to the Hahn’s
Peak Café for the very tasty margaritas and enchiladas as we did
last
year, but we will next time.
•Day 5: Our
stay in Steamboat Lake SP was, in the end, a good one. We rested a lot,
biked and fished some, and we felt relaxed and refreshed when we left
this morning. We filled our tank with good tasting water at the park
and drove
into Steamboat Springs to restock up on groceries to for our time at
Lake
Granby. We discovered Safeway prices are higher in Steamboat than in
Boulder. The drive to Granby was smooth and scenic. The rig
pulled up the grade to Rabbit Ears Pass briskly and very easily. When
we passed Meadows, Walton Creek, and Dumont Lake Campgrounds near
Rabbit Ears Pass, we thought about doing more dry camping in the
future:
no reservations, no electricity, no fuss. The places we’ve stumbled
into
(e.g., Transfer
CG near Mancos or Big
Meadows CG on the other side of
Wolf Creek Pass—or camped at someone’s recommendation (e.g. Teal
CG above
Pagosa Springs) have been very scenic, with good hiking, and relatively
private and quiet. We really should do more of these. Our RV is well
built
for movement, not necessarily for going to a place and sitting for a
week.
We drove along the Colorado River
through Kremmling,
Byers Canyon, Hot Sulphur Springs, and into Granby for a quick shot of
diesel and directions to the farmer’s/produce market held Fridays in
Granby. Then we drove five miles up to Stillwater
CG on
Lake Granby, where we had camped a few years ago and vowed to
return. It’s a national forest facility, but our site had water
and electric hook-ups
and was across from the cleanest bathrooms in the state. Plus it offers
free showers! The view across the lake to the east side of Rocky
Mountain NP and the Indian Peaks is stunning, especially with the
evening sun adding a reddish tinge to the landscape. And it is less
than eight miles to Grand
Lake, a charming mountain resort town just
a short bicycle ride away.
Speaking of the color red: it is
the dominant color
of the area,
sad to say. The beetle kill
has devastated the entire region in Grand
County. And there’s nothing that can be done about it. Hundreds of
square miles
of beautiful pine forests have turned red-needled and are dying for as
far as the eye can see. Here at Stillwater it is especially sad to see
the piles of cut trees that have been downed by forest service chain
saws, leaving the few green-needled pines as reminders of what the
entire shoreline of the park was like just a few short years ago. It’s
not clear what will come back first: there are few aspens in the
immediate area, the scrub oak is hearty but short, and there are only a
few pine seedlings surviving. Whatever comes first will take several
generations. While
the park facility is one of the nicest we’ve encountered, it may be a
while before we choose to return for camping.
Lake
Granby sits in an unprotected
valley where the wind can blow
pretty strong. In fact, since we got here there was a constant wind
from the mountains
to
the east with 35–40 mph gusts, and
whitecaps on the lake have driven all watercraft to safe
harbor—and us indoors. The temperature is in the low 70s and
the dark, thick clouds that gathered yesterday at Steamboat Lake
threaten to
bring a pretty good thunderstorm this evening.
•Day 6:
The morning weather looked a lot like yesterday’s, but we had planned
to do some retail therapy today anyway. Judy did get in a nice run
while I
cleaned up and got things stowed away so we could unplug and leave.
It turned out that Granby’s farmers produce market was not in the
morning, like most
farmers markets are; it began at 3:00 (who knew?). However, a stop at
the Granby thrift store proved fruitful: Judy bought three pairs of
pants and
two tops (one of which is a short sleeve print she’s worn all day and
looks really nice on her)—bargains all, and I got a long sleeved shirt
for a buck, which I’ll leave in the RV for buggy evenings, and a Souza
margarita shaker for a mere 50¢! What a find! We do like our
thrift stores.
We drove up to Grand Lake to see
what might be happening this weekend and learned that tomorrow there
would be
an arts and crafts show at the city park. We turned down the purchase
of the last two tickets for a
production of “Urinetown,” put on by a summer repertory group. The
woman at the visitor’s center said it was well done and hilarious, but
we decided another time. We ate our lunch at the marina and
then walked the dogs along the shore. We decided that a place like
Lemmon Lodge
(or a nearby condo), at the shore with boats and a
private beach,
would make an excellent place for a family vacation: there’s excellent
sailing, swimming, boating, fishing, hiking (in Rocky Mt. NP),
horseback riding, good restaurants, events most weekends, and lots of
downtown retail just a single block away.
Later, at the farmer’s market, we
bought some
fresh veggies for ourselves and for Jeannie and Steve, campground hosts
who
can’t leave the park on weekends. We also stopped at an
Antiques/Collectibles store on the way out of town and would have
bought one of the two old fashioned tin bathtubs for sale, but not for
$125
each. A nice store but pricey, we thought. The owner didn’t. Then back
to camp
for a shower, afternoon “coketails” and gin rummy. We built a lovely
fire, ate dinner, including a
delicious salad with fresh lettuce and arugula grown near Granby by the
Morales Family and sweet tomatoes brought in by a couple of wholesalers
from Steamboat Springs, walked the dogs, and were just settling in to
enjoy the afterglow of the fire when the first drops of rain drove us
inside
about 9:00.
•Day
7: We woke to warm sunshine this morning, though there were
clouds all around, some fluffy white, others dark and threatening. Judy
had a nice run followed by a very satisfying shower and clean clothes.
I ate my breakfast, donned my fishing outfit (after all, you’ve got to
look like you know what you’re doing), carried a folding chair, my
fishing gear, and the
container of Michigan
worms, and headed for the shore. The bright sun
stunned the worms when I opened the container and they protested, as
usual, when the one selected was skewered on the hook. Forty minutes
and three worms later, I landed a nice sized trout: about a pound and
12"–13". But like a gambler who says, “Just one more hand or one more
roll
of the
dice,” I thought if one fish strayed by mistake into the usual “no
fish” zone I seem to find, maybe a second had followed. An hour later,
I took
my valiant worm off the hook (he’d worked with me for the last hour)
and freed him into the lake, and headed back with my pretty nice, but
solitary, trout. I cleaned it, Judy pan-fried it in olive oil and
onions, and we had an early lunch. Delicious. Dick Sanders would
approve, though if he were with me he’d have caught a half dozen on his
own.
In spite of threatening skies, we
decided to chance a visit to the art show in Grand Lake, though not on
bicycles. It was a
rather small gathering of artists where Judy lingered over several
jewelry makers, winding up with a couple of pairs of earrings and a
very nice house gift for some friends. We enjoyed a cup of
coffee and when we had finished and got back to where we’d parked
the RV, the first raindrops were coming down. On the way back to the
campsite, it
poured; the clouds hung low and the wind came up. We were very glad to
be inside and off the ground. The rest of the afternoon and evening was
mighty wet, windy, and cool—time to hunker down with a good
book.
•Day
8: We woke in the morning with plans to hike a portion of the
Continental
Divide Trail that can be accessed from Green Point CG. It’s a trail
we
walked the last time we were here and it parallels
the Colorado River. Instead, we looked out the window and faced a
dreary prospect for a wet and wild day. With gloomy skies, temps in the
low 50s,
and more rain on the horizon, we opted to cut our visit short by a day.
We thought it would be better to be on the road in the rain than
be prisoners in a soggy campsite. So, in short order, we unhooked and
unplugged, and left
Stillwater. We were home in just over three hours with one stop
for
coffee and another for a fill-up of “cheap” diesel. As usual, arriving
home was a
pleasure; the dogs relished the freedom to romp unleashed through
familiar
terrain and to revisit old smells. We took our time unpacking and
parking
the RV in its familiar spot. We slept well in our own beds that night.
Of course Sophie and Bella always
travel with us on road trips like this one. After all, that’s why we
have that expensive doghouse on wheels. They seem to always have a
grand time, though they are on leash a great part of the time.
But they meet lots of other dogs, they eat some new and exotic flora,
they get buzzed by unfamiliar flying insects, and always receive lots
of attention
from strangers. They have learned to relax when we do, to snooze when
we
do, and they are always the quietest dogs in camp. They bring smiles
from
everyone they meet and, of course, from us. And, most important,
they keep watch like the guard dogs they are. What would we do without
them?