TransRockies Run
A 6-day, 115-mile ‘summer camp’ for runners
By Heidi Dietrich
As the air grew thin in the high Colorado Rockies, conversation ceased and my breathing grew more labored. I focused on the trail shoes and muscled calves of the runner just ahead of me, mustering strength to pull myself up the last few mountain switchbacks.
Finally, I reached the summit. I let myself catch my breath, gazing down at the conga line of runners still making their way up the steep mountain. I was standing atop 12,500-foot Hope Pass, far above the tree line and higher than I’d ever gone on a trail run before. My running partner, Caroline Ly, took her final few steps to join me at the top. Grinning ear to ear, we gave each other an elated high five.
Welcome to the Rockies.
Some of America’s highest trails
Caroline and I found ourselves running up some of the highest trails in America last August when we signed on for the TransRockies Run. The six-day, 115-mile stage race takes competitors from the high desert country of Buena Vista, Colo. to the ski slopes of Boulder Creek.
Each day, we covered anywhere from 13 to 25 miles. We ran over rocky, technical trails, splashed through creek beds, and endured the blazing hot intensity of mid-day Colorado sun.
We crossed the finish line each day and found our duffel bags waiting, our tents already set up by the TransRockies staff and a heated shower truck to wash away the grime.
Massage therapists and foot doctors helped ease the wounds of the trail. Reclining chairs and coolers of beer and soft drinks invited relaxation. We soaked in local rivers, swapped war stories from the day, and developed friendships with the other endurance athletes along for the trip.
At dinner, caterers served up mountains of food. Meals also often meant a new gift from race sponsors Gore-Tex and Salomon, such as running gloves or a fleece blanket.
As the sun sunk below the horizon, runners gathered around a campfire for s’mores, singing, and guitar playing. I’d heard TransRockies dubbed “summer camp for runners,” and the name fit.
- Heidi and Caroline Ly crossing the finish line. Photo by Kelly Blake
Rules of the trail
When competitors weren’t kicking back at camp, we faced new challenges on the trail.
Unlike most running races, TransRockies introduces a team element. Partners must stay within two minutes of each other at all times on the trail. If one person stumbles, becomes nauseous, or runs out of steam, the other must slow down to accommodate.
For many competitive runners, who are accustomed to pushing themselves at their own pace, waiting for a partner can prove excruciating. Caroline and I witnessed frustrated runners, arguments on the trail and hurt feelings back at camp.
But we also saw true partnership, friendship, and romance. Teammates who’d never met before the race became close friends. Longtime running companions worked through tension and gained new understanding of each other as a result. Husbands and wives saw their love deepen, and new romances kindled.
For Caroline and I, running as a team didn’t represent something entirely new. We’d met on a Seattle Running Company training run some four years ago. We discovered we both were new to trail running and had signed up for the White River 50 Mile run in the Cascade Mountains.
Having never run farther than a marathon, and nothing whatsoever on trails, we both wondered if we were getting in over our heads. Caroline and I agreed to run the entire 50 miles together, and we did. From then on, we have run ultras as a team. Though we are a funny match — I’m 5’11″, and she’s 4’11″ — it works.
Even so, TransRockies represented an entirely new level of teamwork for us and we dubbed ourselves “Team A Foot Apart.” We needed to work together for six days straight, both on the trail and back at camp. Caroline suffered from the heat and altitude alike, so I needed to slow down at moments when she grew ill. I didn’t like waiting, and she didn’t like feeling like she was playing catch-up.
By the end of the week, though, our partnership clicked into place. I’d power up the hills and she’d catch me with her quick, nimble downhill running. We learned to fill her cap with ice and hose her down with water to keep her cool in the hot sun. We never argued, and we crossed every finish line with a smile and a hug.
Heidi and her running partner Caroline Ly are all smiles at the finish line of the TransRockies Run. Photo by Kelly Blake
When Caroline and I finished the final leg in Beaver Creek, we both felt a real sense of accomplishing something together. We celebrated with long, hot showers in our hotel room, clean clothes, and gelato in the upscale ski town’s village.
For all its creature comforts and rewards, TransRockies wasn’t without its rough moments. The temperature often dipped near freezing at night, leaving Caroline and I shivering in our sleeping bags. As the mileage stacked up and the leg aches grew, sleeping on the ground became more and more uncomfortable. The proximity of neighbors in the tent city often meant frequent disruptions in sleep from tent zippers, late evening conversations, and early-morning alarm clocks. I grew weary of bananas, peanut butter, oatmeal, and other runner-friendly food.
But the minor inconveniences of a week of camping and running seemed a small price to pay when compared to the enormity of the TransRockies experience. Caroline and I ran more miles in a single week than we’d ever attempted before, and we did it together.
Heidi Dietrich is a trail runner, rower, and journalist living in Seattle. For more of her writing, check out her Web site at http://www.heidiseattle.com/.
