50th Anniversary of the Pikes Peak Ascent and Marathon Steve McDermett smiling his way through Barr Camp. Leroy in yellow baseball hat and Robin Satterwhite coming through Barr Camp on Ascent day! 16
Being a Barr Camp Caretaker for 2 Days Diane Cahalan Oh, what a good time I had at Barr Camp on race weekend! I lost count of all the dishes and pots and pans and silverware and coffee cups I washed by hand. I finally had to ask for gloves because my hands were getting sooooo dry. Every time I would dry and apply hand lotion to my hands, I was turning around and washing some newly dirty item. Dave and I hiked to camp on Friday and started working after being greeted by Neal and Teresa Taylor and stowing our sleeping bags and clothes. Neal and Teresa took over as caretakers on May 1 of this year. We had agreed to help them out on the Ascent and Marathon weekend at Christmas-time 2004. Oh, my, if I had known then how many dishes I was going to wash and dry I might not have been so quick to jump out of my chair and yell, Yes! Dave and I will help you that weekend! That way I don t have to do the Ascent! Because you see I had agreed to my friends strategy of running the Ascent Steve McDermett and John Mills run it every 5 years. And to my way of thinking that was a very good strategy in the off years I could go race something new or bicycle. Yet, on that fateful evening of sitting around the table and eating some very fine food and sipping some very fine wine, my mouth got in front of me! So along with Neal and Teresa, Dave and I helped cook 6 meals for Sharon s group of 30 volunteers, and, anywhere from 6-15 Search and Rescue folks who rode their horses or mountain bikes into camp each day. Now mind you, we did not feed the horses, only the horse handlers! On Saturday while runners and volunteers were encountering nasty conditions on the summit, I was grilling 60 hamburgers and I can t tell you how many hotdogs. Along with the adults we had numerous teenage boys to feed! We all ate well. Thanks to all who support this weekend of races volunteers cover the entire mountain. El Paso County Search and Rescue--3 horses came to Barr Camp each day of race weekend. On Saturday, after the race course was shut down due to 6 of hail on the summit, 3 runners were assisted in their descent on these fine partners of the EPCSR. 17
50th Anniversary of the Pikes Peak Ascent and Marathon One way to deliver water to a runnerand... Picking up the cups! Runners coming through Barr Camp 18
2005 Leadville 100 Did we have a showing from Colorado Springs or what? The running community at the ultra level is alive and well: 1 Matt Carpenter 15:42:59 2 Dan Vega 19:03:01 10 Harry Harcrow 21:07:54 33 Eric Seremet 23:49:50 48 Keith Grimes 24:32:50 68 Paul Smith 26:10:29 104 Larry DeWitt 27:54:28 114 Eric Gabe 28:10:19 126 Jim Kelleher 28:30:59 168 Stephen Yackley, Jr. 29:19:40 Congrats to all! You may or may not know the events leading up to Matt s finishing in record time. In 2004 Matt was in the lead for 67 miles. Leg pain set in and the San Juan Solstice 50 which he ran in June (just weeks before Leadville) and placed first was now causing him to walk instead of run into the finish line. So what s a runner to do?... redemption as he told Dave Philipps (The Gazette reporter as reported on the August 27th). Leadville is the highest ultramarathon in the United States with an average elevation of over 11,000 feet. So this year, in 2005, he races without pacers from the 50+ mile marker; stays in an aid station for no more than 30 seconds; learned how to stay hydrated; memorized landmarks on the race trail and how long it took the previous record holder to reach each; and, visualizing each part of the race now what? A Matt Carpenter at mile 52 getting ready to hand off his now-empty water bottle for a CamelBak and begin the run up Hope Pass to the finish! Thanks to all the volunteers working the Ascent, Marathon, Leadville, and American Discovery Trail races our racing community appreciates the work you do for us! 19