ManiTHREE: 3rd Adventure up the Manitou Incline
I completed my 3rd trip to the summit of Rocky Mountain via the Manitou Incline. (Yeah, there is actually a mountain in the Rocky Mountains called Rocky Mountain. Go figure). You must climb 2,744 steps to get to the top of this bad boy, starting at 6,600 feet altitude. The Empire State Building has 1,576 steps to the top, so basically do that twice…at altitude.
Trip 1 in June: Finish in under one hour.
Trip 2 in August: Finish in under 40 minutes. Stretch goal: finish under 35 minutes like Terence Crawford.
Wait? Who is Terence Crawford and why must you finish close to his time?
Terence Crawford is the current WBO welterweight boxing champion. The Manitou Incline isn’t an organized sporting event, so learning of his time helped me benchmark my goal. I figure the guy has to be in amazing physical condition to be the champion of the world and have a 35-0 record. My first attempt was complete in 48:29. Although I wasn’t able to achieve 35 minutes in August, I did shave off 10 minutes when finishing at 38:23.
I’ve had 35 minutes on my mind for the past 3 months. I knew I could do it with just one more shot. I do have to tell you, it wasn’t easy. It was easier to run 10 miles last weekend in 1 hour, 16 minutes than it would be to climb this trail in 35 minutes. I embraced the struggle. Doing something like this is hard and challenging…you know, the kind of thing that fires me up.
Friday came around and it was time to head to the incline. I notice a text from my wife right before I took my first step. It said, “ go get it”. Thanks babe, extra motivation. Oh but here is some bad news…. I’m an idiot at preparation sometimes and this would be one of those times. The trail was covered with snow. I assumed the trail and steps would be clear like all sidewalks and streets, despite snow earlier in the week. Spikes were attached to the shoes of each person making the hike today, except for me. Half of the climbers went up with poles. Not me, I don’t own any. Suck it up buttercup—go get that 35 minutes the hard way!!
So I did… I paced myself a bit slower in the beginning than my previous tries and it paid off. Sure, I got tired and gasped for oxygen in the thin air. It took what felt like forever to get to step 1,700 but my confidence grew. I continued to move at a decent pace, but the steps were a bit slippery. I intentionally avoided my Apple Watch…I wanted the surprise of not knowing until reaching the summit.
Result: 34 minutes, 31 seconds. This would not have been possible 1 year ago. My injury comeback continues. Climbing this thing three times in less than six months may seem a bit silly. To me, I see the challenge. I knew how I would feel the moment I did break 35 minutes. It was sweet and euphoric. Doing rehab every day sucks. Fitting in cryotherapy 4-5 days a week can be difficult to juggle on a busy week. There are days I don’t want to get up at 4:30am to complete a DDP Yoga workout. I find challenges like 10 mile runs and the Manitou Incline as motivation catalysts. I remember what my goals are on days that rehab work absolutely sucks. Goals and future accomplishments get me through the tedious day-to-day. It pushes me on days where the voice in my head tells me 90% is ok. I plan to qualify for the Boston Marathon within 5 years and race in a 50 mile ultra-marathon at some point down the road. Those types of goals are the reason that my injury recovery continues.
For the bonus: The scenery was amazing. The snow completed a beautiful visual that I would enjoy on my 3 mile hike down the mountain via Barr Trail.
This would be my path down for 3 miles 
Oh, my new goal is 30 minutes…must do this down the road in 30 minutes.
Go get it.
Prior Manitou Incline posts:
