Leadville Training Weekend 1.5

Going up to Leadville this past weekend was not really part of the plan but it just sort of happened that way.  Melissa and Annie wanted to know what I wanted for Father's Day and I told the both of them mid-week to be able to go to Ledville on Sunday, ride as much as I wanted and not have to deal with anyone, be responsible for anyone, anything, etc... just ride and not worry about time or anything else.  They more or less made that happen so I ended up riding in Leadville all day on Sunday on the Silver Rush 50 course.

The plan was to meet up with Kiki, whom I had met the week before while I was running up Sugarloaf and a couple of other Leadman entrants.  We were then to ride from town to Stumptown and then follow the entire Silver Rush 50 course inbound. 

Me running down the Power Lines last weekend. 6/9/13.  Kiki took this shot not long after we met.

The first part of the ride out of town was a steep climb up dirt roads.  The riding was not tough, just super steep.  Four of us took off together but after 30 minutes or so it was just Swamp, Kiki, and myself riding. 

I am not going to go into all of the details of the day.  It was a good ride, I learned a shit ton, and my confidence on the course increased exponentially.  The roughest parts was the weather at times, rain, sleet, hail and cold, but really for the most part it was okay.

The section that I am most concerned about both inbound and outbound is the descent and the ascent to the Ball Mountain Saddle up from Stumptown.  After looking at it first hand yesterday I am sure I can ride it down no problem.  Pushing up was a bear though.  There was a ton of mud yesterday and I mean a ton so it was a mess going up to the saddle but still bearable.  I know it won't kill me.

Elevation profile for Sunday's ride.  Pretty Cool!

Riding back to town down Iowa Gulch was a BLAST!  There was a lot less snow than last weekend though there was more water.  Both Swamp and I commented that our faces hurt from smiling too much.  I would say of my top three to five rides this year this one is in the top five if not top three for certain.  It was just nice to ride with other people with the same goals and ideas and have company all day with other Leadman entrants.

Kiki and Swamp at the top of the Ball Mountain Saddle.  Stumptown is the bottom drainage off to the left.  Note the caked up mud and shit (technical term) on the tires.  It made pushing the bikes up extra challenging.

Finshed the day in Leadville with a trip to High Mountain Pies.  I swear I am getting addicted to that place.

All in all another solid week.  Not high mileages but the mileage and time are invested in the right places.  18:23 total time for the week.  56 miles on the bike, 42 miles running.  10,778 feet in elevation gain on the bike and 12,380 running.  It's those last two sets of numbers that I like seeing the most and also knowing that a lot of that gain for both the riding and running was above 10K.  Nice.

Less than two weeks until the Marathon then it is game on!