August 13, 2003

Only 4 days left to race day! At this point, all the physical training is done and now much of what remains to do is resting, eating, and making a mental preparation for what lies ahead. In today's entry, I'll provide some background on the race and info about the course. Finally, I'll include some pictures from my hike up the Barr Trail back in 2000.

Pikes Peak Background

Brief History of the Peak

Long, long ago, the mountain was created through some process. It was probably a peaceful place for thousands of years, apart from the occasional hunting party. Then in 1806, Zebulon Pike (the peak's namesake) and a crew of surveyors 'discovered' the peak as they surveyed the western wilds of the continent. Pike estimated the height of the great mountain as 18,007 feet! This is probably not such a bad estimate as it seems today, since sea level is nowhere near Colorado. He and his group tried to climb the peak only to be turned back by a ferocious snow storm (in mid-November). He supposedly declared that the peak might never be climbed and went on to the next area. But in 1820, the first recorded ascent was made (of course, the Ute Indians certainly climbed this peak beforehand, often setting eagle traps at the summit). By 1873, the Signal Corps built a telegraph station on top (to monitor the weather) and the peak had become quite a tourist attraction. In 1887 a carriage road was built all the way to the summit, and four years later, the cog railway opened. For more history on the peak, check out About Pikes Peak, which is the source for some of this material.

History of the Race

The Barr Trail was built by Fred Barr between 1914-1917. The first race up the Barr Trail was held in 1936 in honor of the Pikes Peak Toll Road becoming a free road (it was turned over to the US Forest Service -- alas, it is back to a toll road -- the current Pikes Peak Highway). It turned out to be a challenge between smokers and non-smokers. In 1956, the Pikes Peak Sesquicentennial Marathon was held, 150 years after the discovery by Zebulon Pike. 14 runners started, and 4 finished. The race has been run each year since, and in 1981, the ascent race was moved to a separate day. This make the Pikes Peak Marathon the 4th oldest marathon in the United States.

Course Description

Matt Carpenter (the current holder of the marathon and ascent records) has prepared an excellent description of the race course, which everyone running the race should definitely read. Not only is it informative, but is also quite amusing, as it includes a number of side notes and anecdotes, as well as some very useful race strategy (i.e. where to push, when to go easy, etc.). The link is from his www.skyrunner.com web page, which has an extensive section on the Pikes Peak race, also a must-see for Pikes Peak runners.

Pikes Peak Barr Trail course description

Trip Report from my first hike up the Barr Trail

I've posted a complete trip report of my first hike up Pikes in 2000. Please follow this link to view the report and the pictures. Depending on your connection speed, it may take a while to download all the pictures, but it is well worth the wait (it should take approximately 10 min with a 56 K modem).

Stay tuned -- here are the upcoming entries for my race diary.

August 14, 2003 This entry describes my training, my goals, and what I hope to gain from the experience.

August 15, 2003 Today's entry will be dedicated to some of the people that I'll be running with

August 16, 2003 Today's entry will be a final update on my thoughts -- we'll be heading down to Colorado Springs early in the morning.

August 17, 2003 RACE DAY! Please keep me in your thoughts.

August 18, 2003 The day after . . .

Go to the next day in this diary

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