Dirt Roads ~ High Heels: Me, Myself, Friends, and the Rockies

From a night out in Denver to running at 10,000 feet to hiking a one-mile, 2000 foot elevation increase at Manitou Springs...I have to say, my last trip to the lovely and always amazing Colorado was one to be remembered. I decided to take a solo venture across the state of Kansas to visit friends, run my second half-marathon, and take on the incline...just 8 hrs of driving by myself. Stopping whenever I wanted too, although there just happen to be a Starbucks at every stop, listening to any genre of music or even just listening to silence...this journey alone was something I had never done. What it turned out to be was something more than expected.

I arrived in Denver during rush-hour, I planned that perfectly...driving through what seemed like never-ending traffic to get to my destination. I was meeting a friend for dinner and arrived early so I decided to scope out the spot but then venture into downtown Denver to hit up a favorite of mine, The View House. I also timed that perfectly...the Rockies were playing and as drove into the area, I realized getting a seat let alone a parking spot wasn't going to happen. So back to the Highlands area. I scored a close parking spot and decided I was going to tackle my fear of going into a bar alone, having one hour to waste, I really didn't want to sit in my car.

As I walked into Ale House a Amato's, I felt instantly comfortable. I marched to the bar like I'd been there before, hopped into a seat on the end which meant I wouldn't have to worry about anyone sitting next to me and started looking at the beer menu. The bartenders, both male and female were informative and gave me info about the local beers and offered up samples. I sat there for an entire hour, drinking a beer...ok beers...and watched the Rockies game. My friend Katie joined me later and we had an awesome time catching up and enjoying some wonderful food!

The next 4 days were amazing too! I spent my time with one of my besties Alec and her family... I hadn't seen her since last August. We visited the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo, my favorite mainly because of the giraffe exhibit, ate lots of food and I was able to get plenty of Baby Cohen time. We dined at Amanda's Fonda, The Loop (a must), and Narai Thai for carb-loading!

I planned this journey around the Slacker Half-Marathon, which I ran last year as a relay, running 9 out of the 13.1 miles. This run starts at Loveland Ski Basin and ends in the cutest little town of Georgetown; 10500 feet elevation at the start and ending around 8500 feet. I decided this year, I was doing it all and I was going to run it faster than last year. My goal was to be under 2:30 and I hit 2:26...the damn bathroom spot wasted about 7 minutes, but there was no way I was going it make it the last 7 miles without stopping...too much water! Breathing at 10K feet is much different than in Kansas, but this year, breathing wasn't my issue. I started having left knee pain about 3 weeks before the race, so I started wearing a knee brace to help. The race went well, I beat my goal, I felt good, but I did have issues with my knee...I often wonder if I didn't, what would my time had been? That night, after carb-loading at the Thai restaurant, I soaked in the hot tub...with a view of the Rockies.

The next day, Alec and I decided to tackle the Manitou incline. I did not know what I was getting in to. I figured I would go for it, who cares that I just ran 13.1 miles...let's beat another goal of getting to the top! I.almost.died. A little over half-way, she asked me.."How do you feel?", my reply "I'd rather be running another 13.1!" It was tough and I know I was worn out from running, but one mile straight up, even being in shape, was hard as hell! But guess what, we did it; 1:20 later and we made it to the top. The only thing left to do was go back down. 3.5 miles down a winding trail and we managed that in about an hour...that tells you how hard going UP is! I could admit that old, "older" age was the reason for part of my pain...at this point both knees and my left hip was aching, but I refuse! Now, where is my margarita at The Loop?

The next day, I awoke early to get a head start back to Kansas and back to reality. Another 8 hours of driving by myself meant more time to let the last 4 days really sink in. I realized I had conquered fears, beat goals, and spent time with people who are very important to me. You never know what life will throw at you, but I have decided to make the most of mine. I am 35 years old and in the last year and a half allowed myself to take risks...and what I realized is that those risks have paid off. Live your life...no one else can do it for you.