The Collegiate Peaks Trail Run 50 mi (CPTR) is a beautiful mountain ultra held in Buena Vista, CO, and I can now proudly call myself a finisher of this challenging race! I'm even more proud of the fact that this was my FIRST 50 mile ultramarathon, and I picked a tough one to get through...I was the final finisher, 22nd out of 22 that completed it, with around 49 I believe signing up for the distance.
The race is held at a pretty high altitude, starting out at 8,000ft and climbs up to 9,400ft twice. Just the altitude makes it difficult, but the sneaky hard 6,350 ft of climbing and descending makes it even harder...don't believe the elevation chart, it's full of tough climbs, rarely is it flat enough to sustain a good pace (for mortals). Being from Fort Worth, TX, I thought the altitude and elevation change would bother me, but it didn't effect me as much as I was expecting it to. The altitude could have had something to do with my stomach and digestion, but we'll get into that in a minute. Sticking with the course description, when I said it was a beautiful mountain ultra, it truly is one of the prettiest places I've ever ran. The constant view of the Collegiate Peaks keeps you in high spirits the entire race, just knowing you're out there on the trails with a beautiful view is enough to keep you moving, even when you are experiencing the lows of a 50 mile trail run. The trail is mostly Jeep roads, relatively smooth, but relentless up and down, while there is also a little bit of single track where you do need to watch your footing, and a very small amount of road at the beginning and end. The trickiest part of the whole race is the Sand Box...a wonderful mile plus stretch of deep sand on an uphill (or downhill on the way back) that made for a pretty tough section of the race. There are some rock faces along the route that are gorgeous, lots of cool looking bonsai trees, and some desert type plants like cactus in the lower section of the trail. There were two water crossings, neither one very big, but my feet got wet in both because I didn't feel like going around them like some runners decided to do. The course, for me, was as nice a trail run as I've ever been on, and I can't believe this race isn't more popular than it is. Given this courses altitude, and elevation change, I'll give it 3 out of 5 for challenge, and for beauty and trails, I give the course a 4 out of 5.
Aid stations were a little lacking in my opinion, but I think that's because most people carry their own stuff for the most part, so really all that's needed is water and electrolytes. But I would like to see more watermelon (my favorite race snack) and colder water. The first loop started with temps in the 30's, but quickly got into the 70's by noon and cold water would've been really nice, instead it was more like room temp tap water. I overheat a lot though, and like to complain about all things hot...so it was probably fine, I'm just a baby. The volunteers were AWESOME, and they don't know it but their cool and calm demeanor when I was up against the cutoffs were extremely helpful to my confidence, knowing that if I just kept moving forward I was gonna make it. Everyone was super nice, and looked like they were enjoying taking care of all the runners. Course aid gets a 2 out of 5, but the Volunteers get a 5 out of 5!
Swag wasn't too bad, but nothing special, just a plain medal with the race logo (same medal for 25 and 50 milers), and a long sleeve tee(soft triblend type). Swag gets a 2 out of 5, but swag isn't what makes us want to run 50 plus miles in the mountains, so who cares.
This was my first 50, and I know I picked a tough one, but I honestly didn't know what I was in for until the second loop, when you turn around and go back counter-clockwise and get to enjoy an 8 mile climb back to the highest point of the race! THAT SUCKED SO BAD! I knew it would be tough, but I did some some soul searching just to finish this race! I was extremely proud to just finish, though, considering how many drops there were, and the high temps. There were several runners that elected for the 25 mile finish, instead of going out for that second loop. One guy on the way back out told me, "Great job man, it takes guts to go out for another loop!" That stuck with me for the entire loop, knowing that when I finished, I could do so knowing that I dug deep, and did something I never thought I could do. My nutrition apparently was not dialed in for this race at all like I thought it was. My stomach couldn't take anything in for the last 4 hours without getting severe cramps. So to say I completed this thing severely dehydrated and starving is pretty amazing...I seriously don't know how I kept putting one foot in front of the other. It's like I switched off my brain and went into cruise control, blocking the pain out and thinking how awesome I was going to feel when I crossed that finish line.
The biggest takeaway for me after completing this run, was that no matter how bad you feel, you ALWAYS have more in the tank, and I broke into tears about two hours after the finish because the magnitude of what I had accomplished hit me like a brick. I've never been so determined in my whole life to finish something like I was that day. In that last 15 mile or so stretch, I had never felt more emotions in my life...from complete and utter despair and embarrassment thinking I wasn't going to finish, to a running high I'll likely never experience again in my life knowing I was less than a mile away and knew without a shadow of a doubt I was going to make it! The mix of emotions was the hardest part of the race, battling demons and fighting back tears of joy minute after minute. I passed 3 people in those last miles, and each one of them looked awful, and they weren't going to make the cutoff time, but all of them gave me strength to persevere with their kind words saying that I looked determined and was gonna make it if I kept pushing forward. It was the greatest feeling in the world coming around that last corner into the parking lot, and seeing my family cheering me on! The event had already packed up, and most runners were already gone, but the few who stuck around for this final finisher were much appreciated, and one of them even grabbed me a beer as I collapsed onto the grass, lol! So to that guy, I say thanks, and hopefully I'll see you next year!
Gear used for this race:
The North Face BTN Long Haul Shorts
Nike Tech Shirt
Injinji Compression Socks (AMAZING!!!!!!)
Altra Lone Peak 3.0 Shoes
BOCO Trucker Hat
Nathan VaporKrar Waist Pack
Training:
16 week block, averaging around 50 miles per week overall, with a peak week of 70 miles. I ran 6 times of 20 mi or longer, the most of any training block I've ever done, and focused a lot on time on feet and much more climbing than usual (total of around 32,000 ft for the 16 weeks with a peak vertical week of 6,001 ft) In hindsight, the mileage I did was enough, but I needed more climbing and time on trails to seriously get ready for a race like this one. So for next time I tackle a mountain ultra, more vert, and more trails!
The race is held at a pretty high altitude, starting out at 8,000ft and climbs up to 9,400ft twice. Just the altitude makes it difficult, but the sneaky hard 6,350 ft of climbing and descending makes it even harder...don't believe the elevation chart, it's full of tough climbs, rarely is it flat enough to sustain a good pace (for mortals). Being from Fort Worth, TX, I thought the altitude and elevation change would bother me, but it didn't effect me as much as I was expecting it to. The altitude could have had something to do with my stomach and digestion, but we'll get into that in a minute. Sticking with the course description, when I said it was a beautiful mountain ultra, it truly is one of the prettiest places I've ever ran. The constant view of the Collegiate Peaks keeps you in high spirits the entire race, just knowing you're out there on the trails with a beautiful view is enough to keep you moving, even when you are experiencing the lows of a 50 mile trail run. The trail is mostly Jeep roads, relatively smooth, but relentless up and down, while there is also a little bit of single track where you do need to watch your footing, and a very small amount of road at the beginning and end. The trickiest part of the whole race is the Sand Box...a wonderful mile plus stretch of deep sand on an uphill (or downhill on the way back) that made for a pretty tough section of the race. There are some rock faces along the route that are gorgeous, lots of cool looking bonsai trees, and some desert type plants like cactus in the lower section of the trail. There were two water crossings, neither one very big, but my feet got wet in both because I didn't feel like going around them like some runners decided to do. The course, for me, was as nice a trail run as I've ever been on, and I can't believe this race isn't more popular than it is. Given this courses altitude, and elevation change, I'll give it 3 out of 5 for challenge, and for beauty and trails, I give the course a 4 out of 5.
Aid stations were a little lacking in my opinion, but I think that's because most people carry their own stuff for the most part, so really all that's needed is water and electrolytes. But I would like to see more watermelon (my favorite race snack) and colder water. The first loop started with temps in the 30's, but quickly got into the 70's by noon and cold water would've been really nice, instead it was more like room temp tap water. I overheat a lot though, and like to complain about all things hot...so it was probably fine, I'm just a baby. The volunteers were AWESOME, and they don't know it but their cool and calm demeanor when I was up against the cutoffs were extremely helpful to my confidence, knowing that if I just kept moving forward I was gonna make it. Everyone was super nice, and looked like they were enjoying taking care of all the runners. Course aid gets a 2 out of 5, but the Volunteers get a 5 out of 5!
Swag wasn't too bad, but nothing special, just a plain medal with the race logo (same medal for 25 and 50 milers), and a long sleeve tee(soft triblend type). Swag gets a 2 out of 5, but swag isn't what makes us want to run 50 plus miles in the mountains, so who cares.
This was my first 50, and I know I picked a tough one, but I honestly didn't know what I was in for until the second loop, when you turn around and go back counter-clockwise and get to enjoy an 8 mile climb back to the highest point of the race! THAT SUCKED SO BAD! I knew it would be tough, but I did some some soul searching just to finish this race! I was extremely proud to just finish, though, considering how many drops there were, and the high temps. There were several runners that elected for the 25 mile finish, instead of going out for that second loop. One guy on the way back out told me, "Great job man, it takes guts to go out for another loop!" That stuck with me for the entire loop, knowing that when I finished, I could do so knowing that I dug deep, and did something I never thought I could do. My nutrition apparently was not dialed in for this race at all like I thought it was. My stomach couldn't take anything in for the last 4 hours without getting severe cramps. So to say I completed this thing severely dehydrated and starving is pretty amazing...I seriously don't know how I kept putting one foot in front of the other. It's like I switched off my brain and went into cruise control, blocking the pain out and thinking how awesome I was going to feel when I crossed that finish line.
The biggest takeaway for me after completing this run, was that no matter how bad you feel, you ALWAYS have more in the tank, and I broke into tears about two hours after the finish because the magnitude of what I had accomplished hit me like a brick. I've never been so determined in my whole life to finish something like I was that day. In that last 15 mile or so stretch, I had never felt more emotions in my life...from complete and utter despair and embarrassment thinking I wasn't going to finish, to a running high I'll likely never experience again in my life knowing I was less than a mile away and knew without a shadow of a doubt I was going to make it! The mix of emotions was the hardest part of the race, battling demons and fighting back tears of joy minute after minute. I passed 3 people in those last miles, and each one of them looked awful, and they weren't going to make the cutoff time, but all of them gave me strength to persevere with their kind words saying that I looked determined and was gonna make it if I kept pushing forward. It was the greatest feeling in the world coming around that last corner into the parking lot, and seeing my family cheering me on! The event had already packed up, and most runners were already gone, but the few who stuck around for this final finisher were much appreciated, and one of them even grabbed me a beer as I collapsed onto the grass, lol! So to that guy, I say thanks, and hopefully I'll see you next year!
Gear used for this race:
The North Face BTN Long Haul Shorts
Nike Tech Shirt
Injinji Compression Socks (AMAZING!!!!!!)
Altra Lone Peak 3.0 Shoes
BOCO Trucker Hat
Nathan VaporKrar Waist Pack
Training:
16 week block, averaging around 50 miles per week overall, with a peak week of 70 miles. I ran 6 times of 20 mi or longer, the most of any training block I've ever done, and focused a lot on time on feet and much more climbing than usual (total of around 32,000 ft for the 16 weeks with a peak vertical week of 6,001 ft) In hindsight, the mileage I did was enough, but I needed more climbing and time on trails to seriously get ready for a race like this one. So for next time I tackle a mountain ultra, more vert, and more trails!
