For so many weekends this summer, Ian, Juniper and I have traveled all over Colorado and the West for training and races. It was terrific to spend this past weekend at home and it gave us an opportunity to do two of the Roaring Fork Valley’s best epic adventures.
Ian got up early on Saturday morning and met some friends to ride from the town of Marble to Crested Butte and back. They took the jeep road past the ghost town of Crystal, past Devil’s Punchbowl and over Scofield Pass. From there, they rode the classic singletrack on the 401 trail outside Gothic and then slogged up the 403 trail to Paradise Pass and then back to Scofield and back down to Marble.
The total trip was about 40 miles with over 8,000 feet of climbing. It took them about 8.5 hours.
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| From Marble to CB … |
On Sunday morning, I woke up at 4:30 am to run up Mt. Sopris, the 12,965 peak that dominates the view from our house. I skied up Sopris this past winter in about 2 hours and 40 minutes but this was my first summer trip up the mountain.
It was a beautiful summer morning and I was the only one on the trail at that hour. I reached the peak at 7am and had the sunrise all to myself. I’ve had some issues with a weak ankle so I was a little concerned about running down the steep talus slope on the way back. But, I wore this new brace I found online, the Stromgren Ankle Support, and my ankle felt great. Round trip it took me about 3 hours and 40 minutes from trailhead to trailhead.
Here’s a photo from the Sopris Summit and a link to an album with photos from Ian’s ride and my run.
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| Marble to CB Bike & Sopris Run |
Hey that’s our backyard too!! Nice site just getting into it (way better than ours!) Let me know the next time your over on “our side of the mtns!” Sounds like you found the goods! 401/403! CB Classic this weekend (100 mile mtn bike race, no entry fee…CB style! Everything is free here, right? OK maybe not but this race is. Come on over! Lance is doing it! OK maybe not! See ya on the snow!
Wick