March Madness 2015 Results

photo by Marie

It was a beautiful day in Fort Collins for the 5th annual March Mileage Madness Run. A good crew came out from FoCo, Denver, Boulder and Golden to run anywhere from 6-37 miles on the trails around Horsetooth Reservoir. We finished back at the house and more joined for a BBQ in the backyard. Thanks to all for coming out. Spring running season has come to the front range.

7:00 am start

The 8:00 am Start

Pete on the Foothills Trail photo by Marie

the official results

March Mileage Madness 2015

The 5th edition of the big kick-off run of spring is coming on March 21.  The plan will be as in years past to meet at my house on Saturday morning and take off on a run around the reservoir and regroup back at the house for BBQ, potluck, trampoline and stories of other big runs planned for the spring and summer.

There are three designated route options:

>the Classic 23 mile Reservoir Circumnav. route- map and description
>Pete's Route- 36 miles with lots of climbing map and description
>9 mile Reservoir overlook route- map and description (scroll past Pete's route)



You can also make up your own variations on any of these routes,  Just plan to start with a group at my house at 7:00 or 8:00 am (I'm doing away with the 9:00 start after an absence of starters at that time last year) and be back by noon or so enjoy the BBQ and share stories of your time on the trail.

 There are a couple places to fill water at trail heads and park entrances, but there will be no aid stations, so carry what you'll need.

Bring whatever you like for the post run festivities- food, drinks, something to BBQ.  .  . We'll fire up the BBQ around 1:00 and hang out and eat and drink and enjoy the afternoon until about 4:00.

Send me an email if you have questions or leave a comment below.  Feel free to leave a comment with your start time and planned distance too.

Lots of other pictures, results and info from previous year's events here.

March Mileage Madness #4 is happening Sunday!

We're on for Sunday and it looks like the weather and trail conditions are on our side.  We'll have starts at 7:00, 8:00 and 9:00 depending on your pace and distance.  Plan to be back at the house for BBQ/potluck around 1:00 pm.  There might be a few course markings out there, but check out the route descriptions and map (23 mile map and description, 36 mile map and description) and print and bring them with you if you're not familiar with the trails.  There are a couple places to fill water at trail heads and park entrances, but there will be no aid stations, so carry what you'll need.

Bring whatever you like for the post run festivities- food, drinks, something to BBQ.  .  . We'll fire up the BBQ around 1:00 and hang out and eat and drink and enjoy the afternoon until about 4:00.

Send me an email if you have questions or leave a comment below.  Feel free to leave a comment with your start time and planned distance too.

Lots of other pictures and stuff here.

See you Sunday!

March Mileage Madness is on! **Date Change

The 4th annual MMM run around the reservoir will be happening on Sunday March 23.  Spring is coming and it is time to start putting in some longer training miles.  Look here and here for event info, course descriptions and stories and pictures from past years, and some reports from others.
Check back for more details soon.

March Madness Updates -- Route Changes

Never fear, the March Madenss run is on for this Sunday, 3/24, as planned.  Due to the Galena Fire in Lory last week and the closure of the state park, we'll have to make some adjustrments to the route.  The run will start and finish at my house and we can still run up County Rd 38E to Horsetooth Mountain Park and then there are lots of options.  My plan is to run to Soderberg and up Towers to Stout, Falls, Rock trail to the Summit, Westridge, Spring Creek, Stout, Towers back to Soderberg then back out 38E to Centennial and out to the top of the "A" Trail, down through Maxwell, Pineridge and then home.  I have no idea how many miles or the vertical, but it will be a good run and if you're looking for more, there are all kinds of possibilities in Horsetooth or down Blue Sky or out on the Foothills Trail or whatever else you can come up with.  Just make sure you're back at my place in the afternoon in time to enjoy some BBQ and beer.  The weather for Sunday looks cold, which is hard to imagine as I sit here in Tucson where it is 90 degrees, so dress accordingly.  There will not be any support on the trail, so carry the water and food that you need.  Send me an email if you have any questions or post comments here to let others know your route and start time plans.  And remember fires and cold weather can't stop the Madness or trail running in the spring.  See you on Sunday!

March Madness 2013

The 3rd Annual March Madness run, potluck and celebration of Spring will be held this year on Sunday March 24.  Course options (9, 23 and 34 miles), start times (7:00, 8:00, and 9:00am) and food/BBQ plans (bring something to BBQ or a sidedish or drinks to share) will be the same as last year.  Check out much of that info here.  There is one minor (or maybe major) change and that is the start/finish line and BBQ/potluck location.  All of that has moved to my house which is across the street and two houses down from the previous location.  Send me an email if you need directions.  I will post some more info in the coming weeks.  I hope to see many of you there.  Invite your friends, challenge yourself, come out and enjoy a spring day of running the trails and sharing good food with some of the best people around.

March Madness Run Report

It was a great day yesterday on the roads, trails and in the backyard with great runners from the Front Range and beyond.  Sixteen brave, tough and determined souls started before 8:00 am to run 34+ miles around the reservoir and up and down all the big hills along the way.  They were out there for 6-9 hours and they all finished well and mostly worn out.  Another 17 runners started at 8:00 and 9:00 am to run a slightly shorter version of the loop around the lake getting anywhere from 22-26 miles running for 3.5-6.5 hours and another 5 runners ran some other variation of the course to get 9-16 miles on the trails and roads along the reservoir.  The weather cooperated mostly proving pleasant temps and some cloud cover throughout the morning and then just to throw in a little challenge, we got a good strong headwind for the final 7 southward miles to the finish.  The finish line back in the driveway was full of cheers, hugs, congratulations, and photos. The party then moved quickly to food, drink and relaxation on the back deck.  Stories were told about trails taken and turns missed, triumphs and struggles along the way and of course plans were made for future adventures.  This has got to be the best way to finish spring break and begin the spring running season.  I am very fortunate to be able to spend the day running, laughing and enjoying the outdoors with so many friends old and new.  Thanks again to everyone that came out and made the 2nd Annual March Madness Run such a great day.

The 7:00 am group all heading out for a big loop around the reservoir

TNC and crew line up for their 7:45 start

The 8:00 am starters at the line and ready to go

and they're off

The 9:00 am start heading in different directions for runs from 9 to 23 miles
photo by Maddie May

Ed, Kyle and Sarah start picking up the pace on the first hill.

Kyle pushes hard to beat Sarah up the hill in Reservoir Ridge

NMP wins the sprint for the finish.

The Big Boys discuss their run.  Read Burch's story here.

Rob had a great day of running.  Read his report here.

Marie, Brian and Ean finish their marathon loop around the reservoir with some
bonus climbs and off trail treks thrown in

The Honey Badger himself throws down a big finishing kick up the driveway . . .

. . . and collapses, but he don't care.

Cat and Katie finish strong and smiling

Pete is looking a little tired.  Could it be the 41 miles he ran today or is it the 410 miles he has run so far this month?

Scott and Pete won the most miles on the day award with 41.66 miles each and Steph was right there with them with 36.8 

Ning brings it in with a smile after 35+ miles

There was plenty of good food and drink and lots of laughs throughout the afternoon 

Maddie gave us a demonstration of her slackline skills

Katie - looking like a pro

Scotty's got balance

Rob has some skills getting in at least 3 or 4 good steps

I'm not really sure what this guy is doing    photo by R. Erskine

then Ean showed off a bit

March Madness 2012 Results

Great day with the finest runners around.  Thanks to all who came and ran, brought wonderful food, hung out and made the 2nd Annual MM Horsetooth Circumnavigation Run a great success.

Here are the official results from the day:

Pictures and stories coming soon.

March Madness Start List

Here is the OFFICIAL Start list for tomorrow's big event.  Well, actually it is not very official at all, but it is the best I can do based on comments, rumors, conversations, emails, suggestions, guesses and some that I might have made up altogether.  If you are on this list and want to run a different route at a different time, go for it.  If you are not on this list, it is just because I forgot or I wasn't sure you were coming, but please come anyway and start when ever you want and run whatever you want.  If you have questions, comments or complaints, just send me an email or comment right here.

7:00 am


Long Course- 34 miles+
Pete (+some extra miles)
Slush (starting from his house at 6:00)
Cat (starting from her house at 6:50)
Steph
Brian W.
Rob "Honey Badger"
Ning
Nick D. (new guy)
Katie
Eric
Rob E.

Special "Elite without the Elite Attitude" 
7:30 am  Start

Long Course- 34 miles +
The Nick Clark
Ryan B.
Zeke
Nick P.

8:00 am

The Classic Course- 23 miles 

Ean
Celeste
Mary
David
Bill
Marie


9:00 am

The Classic Course- 23 miles
Alex
Kyle
Sarah
Alec
Josh
Ed
Glenn


shorter routes 9-16 miles
Mindy
Ginny
Chris H.
Rachel E.
Brian E.

I know I missed a bunch of people and if you send me an email, I'll be happy to add your name.

Many have been asking what to bring for the pot luck and here's the best I can tell you.  We have some burgers and hot dogs and veggie burgers, some buns, tomatoes, lettuce, and cheese and plenty of fuel for the BBQ.  Anything else that sounds good too you or that you'd like would be great.  Rob has promised to bring Cobra Cakes and Pete will probably bring something with quinoa.  Beyond that I don't really know.  We'll see what shows up and I'm sure it will be wonderful.

Weather looks good for tomorrow and the latest trail updates sound pretty good.  There is mention of a cooler with water marked FCTR being placed somewhere on the east side of the reservoir near the Foothills Trail section.

I will be out to mark the first and final miles of the course with chalk later today, but if you are not familiar with the trail, be sure to print and bring the map and directions that can be found here (23 mile description and map) (34 mile and 9 mile course descriptions and maps).

March Madness updates

Things are shaping up nicely for Sunday's run.  Long range forecast is calling for 73 degrees with sunshine.  Runners are coming from Fort Collins, Boulder, Golden and everywhere in between.  And, new this year, the wonderful Kerri and Kim will be set up to provide massage after your run.  They will be there from noon to about 3:00 with sign-ups available for 15-20, 30 minute massages at $1/minute.  They are skilled in sports massage and my wife is certain that a couple of sessions with Kerri completely solved her IT band issues.

We'll have the slackline set up in the back-yard for those needing some additional challenge after the run too.  My daughter is quite good at it and is a very patient instructor.

There have been some questions about start times and and routes to be run.  Here's what I know:  Pete, Scott, Ning, Rob and some others plan to start at 7:00 and run the full 34+ mile, 6500'+ route.  Mary, Ean, Celeste and more are starting at 8:00 to run the 23 mile reservoir loop.  Sarah H. and I and hopefully a few more will be starting at 9:00 to run the 23 mile route.  Send me an email or comment here with your plans, to help others decide when to start and where to run.  Send me an email if you have any questions.  I look farward to seeing you all in a few days.

2nd Annual March Madness Run Coming on March 18

One week from Sunday, runners will gather in the driveway of a blue house on the west-side of Fort Collins to run the full circumnavigation of Horsetooth Reservoir via various routes on roads and trails and return hours later for food and drink and tales of the run.  This run is free and all are welcome.

There are three established routes to choose from with distances of 9, 23 and 34 miles.  There are three start times to choose from as well: 7:00 am, 8:00 am and 9:00 am with the goal of returning sometime between 12:00 and 2:00 for food and festivities.

The classic route is 23 miles with a little over 2000 feet of climbing.  You can find some general March Madness info and the course map for the 23 mile route here.  There is a turn by turn course description here.  And here is the GPS data of my run of this course last year.

If you are looking for more miles (34+) and lots more climbing (6500'), Pete's route is about as challenging as as you can get around here and there is a course map and turn by turn directions here.  Further down on that same post, is the course map and directions for a 9-mile route which doesn't make the full reservoir loop, but does have a couple good climbs, runs alongside the reservoir for awhile and starts and finishes with the same miles as the longer routes.

There are pictures, finish times and stories of last year's event here.

Post a comment or send me an email if you have questions.  RSVP is not necessary, just show up for a start time and bring something to BBQ and some food or drink to share.  The courses will be only minimally marked, so print the map and description for the route you plan to run.  There are places to fill water on the circumnav. routes, but there will be no aid stations, so plan to carry whatever you will need.

See you next Sunday.  Happy Spring!

March Madness - Race Day

It was a great day to be a trail runner in Fort Collins yesterday. 31 runners came out and ran the 9 mile, 23 mile, 34 mile or some other route along or around the Reservoir. Many spouses and children came to support their runners and celebrate at the post run BBQ. I am so glad to be part of such a wonderful group of people who find great joy in spending time outside, pushing themselves and supporting others, laughing and having fun. Here are some of the photo highlights of the day.

The 7:15 start group who all took on marathon+ distances around the reservoir and up in to Horsetooth and Lory

The 7:15 am group heads up the road towards the reservoir

Mr. October has a solo 7:55 am start on his 34 mile 6339' run

The 8:00 am start group was the largest and liveliest group of the day. They all headed out on some version of the 23 mile route.

Maddie helps pace the 8:00 group through the first 1/4 mile of their run

The 8:00 groups heads up the hill

The 9:00 am group was the best dressed and speediest group of the day. I was glad they let me tag along

Sarah and Kyle fly up the hill at the south end of the of the reservoir

Mindy looking very strong heading up towards Reservoir Ridge 14.4 miles in to the run

Bill, Jen and Karah crest the hill in Reservoir Ridge

Chris, Joselyne, Lindsey and Mindy coming in to the finish

Celebrating a good run -- double Chris' longest run ever. and 30+ minute improvement for Lindsey and Joselyne over their Moab times on a longer and hillier course

Jen, Cat, Celeste and Cherilyn finishing as a team.

Karah with an awesome finish to her longest run ever

Greg also finishing well

Sam comes in from a 35+ mile run to stay on track with his 200+ day streak and getting it done before dinner time.

Jennifer and Mary finishing their marathon+ run around the reservoir

Pete looking pretty fresh after 36.5 miles and 6460' of vertical. Of course this wasn't enough vertical for Pete so he went down to Boulder on Sunday for another 8000+ feet.

Brian, Marie and Ross ran more than 30 miles after some negotiating for the most "scenic" route

Official Race Results- numbers are a mix of finish times (clock and time of day), run distances and vertical ascents