welcome to CS Trail Running
This Website is dedicated to long distance running activities
aka 'Ultra running' and Trail Running thru pictures and maps of trails that
I have seen and done. I plan to add my ideas of how to approach running long distances.
I also plan to build a set of maps showing the trails in and around Colorado Springs.
I would like to encourage everyone who visits here to go to the forum and register as a user and
ask all your running, hiking, and biking friends that use the trails to
do so also. The forum will work best when we have lots of
input from people using the trails and reporting on the conditions that they
encounter.
I would also like to build a set of links to the various
trails in our region or runners, hikers, and bikers
that will help them know what the trails offer. I want this information
to be based on actual experience with
the trails and have GPS data, pictures, and their experience. The
webpages tend to be static so I have created a forum and a blog to
provide more dynamic information in a timely fashion.
The Trail maps were developed by using my GPS unit to track my runs
over various local courses and then imported into SportsTracks software
and other software and some conversions done to get it on the webpage.
With the
addition of a new Forerunner 205, the ability to need to import into
Topo5 went away and I am now using SportsTracks to create the data I
put on the webpages.
Free State Marathon was today and I had fun. I will admit, I was not the fastest on the block but enjoyed the run. Coleen finished her first marathon in fine form at the race and makes for a proud poppa....
I would like to acquaint everyone who visits here with a great trail running product. I find that running trails has a big downside...rocks and grit in the shoes. I used gaiters to combat this but typically the gaiters you find at REI and other sports outlets are heavy and big. In hot weather, this can contribute to blisters as it will make your feet sweat and that is one of the prime factors in blisters. Well there is a great inovation to the gaiter world to be found at http://dirtygirlgaiters.com. Chrissy makes gaiters out of "lightweight four-way stretch spandex material and they work great. As an extra bonus, she has some of the wildest patterns and colors...and at $13 each, they are a bargain. Check out her website.
Added a link to the Free State Marathon in Lawrence Kansas. If you want a trail marathon, this is a good choice. I am planning to be there for this one. Hopefully it is not a mud run like the Psycho Wyco run. There are other distances also...40 miles and 100 K if a marathon is too short.
Well this weekend was a race. Traveled to Kansas City to run the PsycoWyco Run Toto Run race. With this race, you can never predict what the conditions will be like. In past years there has been deep snow and icy conditions. This year the weather decided to be nice (at least I think it is nice). Temps were in the 40's and nice sun shine. Just what the course wanted after 6-8 inches of snow a few days ago. Needless to say, mud was the word of the day. Despite that, everyone seemed to have a good time. The course is a good hilly trail run around the resevoir at the park, 90% single track. It is a 10 mile loop and you can choose to run 10, 20 or 50K. I was lazy so chose the 20 mile. The race is well run with good people manning the aid stations. Like most winter races, you will not know the course conditions until a few days before so go out to have a good time and not worry about speed. I recommend it to those who would like a midwinter challenge.
There is a summer version of this race also. Check Bad Ben's link on the side bar to get more information.
I have implemented a forum where you can add comments and condtion information on some of the trails around the area. I will be adding to the trail list as time permits and maybe add topics on training and equipment as time permits. If you run a trail, please note the conditions that you found there. I have setup the forum to purge notes after 14 days since most information concerning trail conditions will change over time. See side link bar for pointer to the forum.
With the winter in full force, I would like to mention that the trail system known as the Greenway trail is generally plowed by the park district within a day or two of a snowfall. I use this as a good way to train without having to dodge cars on the streets and avoid slogging through deep snow on my favorite trails... I would recommend to anyone who is close to the trail to check it out as a place to do your run or walk with a lot of weather related hassle. The trail sections that you should look at that I am familiar with range between Woodmen Road and downtown. There are a number of access points along this trail. If you have questions, email me.