The Incline... Again

K and I did the Incline again today. It is fairly hot here (low 90s) and we didn't start until almost 1:00 this afternoon. To add to the challenge, we ended up having to park a 1/2 mile downhill from the entry point. This meant we had to walk uphill all the way to the bottom of the Incline and then climb our way up from there. I wasn't looking to set any new record today, because with the heat I knew that going up the Incline would be challenge enough. K wasn't overly honest with me as we worked our way up the thousands of steps. He kept telling me that we wouldn't make our previous time - but as long as we kept it under our first time, that's a win. Snot. We beat the last time by just over two minutes. I am beat and I know K is too (but he did a 25 mile bike ride before we did the Incline. He's an overachiever.). I feel good about my new time, though! It's a new challenge to beat.

Incline... Second Attempt

Today K and I went and did the Incline again. I was determined to get to the top faster than I did last week (a very slow 1:25:49). Today we had the mentality of 'slow and steady wins the race'. It was amazing how much farther I was able to climb when we moved at a slow and steady pace rather than trying to move quickly. It also helped that we've done it once now so we know what to expect (like when we reach the false summit we only have about a 1/3 of a mile left to go - that's a good thing!). We started off at about the same time as many other people, but we were able to leave them behind fairly quickly.

Before we even start the Incline, we have about an 8 - 10 minute climb from the parking lot to the beginning. As I started that initial climb, I kept asking myself why in the world I was doing this again. Why would I want my thighs and rear end to burn and me t0 gasp for air as I scrambled (yes, scrambled) up several different parts of the Incline? But let me tell you, I felt so good as I progressed up that mountainside - I was accomplishing something that's fairly difficult and I was doing it better than last week. Today we did the Incline in 1:08:30! We shaved 17 minutes off our time (I know K could go up so much faster - he's just being nice and staying at my pace) and I'm really happy with that time improvement! Now my goal is to shave off 9 more minutes, but I know that's going to take a few more trips up in order to do that.

Next climb? Next Wednesday! Look for a mention of my new time next week.

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On a sad note... all of the neighbors that we loved when we moved into our house here in Colorado Springs have moved away. We live in a cul-de-sac of just five houses. Last summer, two of the families moved away. This week, two days apart from one another, the other two families moved away as well. One family moved elsewhere in the Springs, so we'll see them on occasion (very often this summer as their daughter is CEDs closest friend here). The other family is moving all the way to Florida (MED bawled last night for a good 20 minutes saying goodbye to her friend M). Now we are all alone with only one set of neighbors we sort of talk to, two brand new sets of neighbors that we don't even know yet, and the crazy people next door. Yay. Here's hoping we'll like our new next door neighbors.

A-Hiking We Will Go

Today we decided to take the kids on a hike. We love Cheyenne Canon Park which is only 10 minutes (at most) from our house. Cheyenne Canon Park is home to Seven Falls (a very popular tourist attraction that charges you big bucks to go see it) as well as many wonderful hiking trails. Mt. Cutler trail is a very beautiful, fairly easy trail that takes you a mile into the mountains and gives you a nice view of (duh, duh, duh...) Seven Falls. This is a trail that we take friends and family on when they come visit us. Today, however, we decided to go on the Mid-Columbine trail. We have hiked this trail before (and were hailed on - BIG hail - the last time we traversed it) and it's a very nice trail. However, we forgot how the first mile of the trail goes - UP. Let me remind you that K and I just went on the Incline yesterday and we have parts of our bodies sore in places we didn't realize we had muscles (well, at least I do). We powered through it, though, and we hiked out two miles before turning around (we had soccer practice and a game to get to!). The little girls did a fantastic job keeping up with the family and, in fact, MED led us the whole way out and back. I'm amazed at how well my 4 and 5 year olds do hiking up hills and coming back down them. The Mid-Columbine trail climbs a little over 1,000 feet and most of that is in the first mile. You get gorgeous views of nature and the mountains, though, which makes it so worth the work.



I don't want to live anywhere else, when I have views like this just a few miles from home.

The Incline

If anyone is an avid hiker, exercise enthusiast, or crazy person and you have been in Colorado Springs for any amount of time, you've probably heard of the Incline. And, yes, I am capitalizing it for reasons you will soon understand. The incline is NOT for the weak of heart. In short, you climb about 2,000 feet in one mile. People, that's a 200 story building in 5,280 feet. It's a workout. Here's what one website says:


Notice that last line? Stair-master on a mountain. This is exactly what it is. I went through most of the water in my 2 quart Camelbak in the time it took to get up. My legs were burning and I thought my quadriceps were going to give out, but once I got up there I felt on top of the world. I had accomplished something that many people haven't. If you had asked me halfway up if I would do this again, my answer would have been a resounding NO. But, I'm planning on next Wednesday making the hike again! I've compared it to childbirth - you hate it every minute you're going through it, but once it's over you forget the pain and you want to do it again.

Here are some pictures that we took while on the Incline.

Looking UP

A view looking down from just about halfway up

Looking down from the (almost) top

My favorite picture of K and me in recent times. This picture was taken as we were coming down Barr Trail.

Happy climbing!