Mountain Mayhem: Staying in Shape
Mountain Mayhem
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The ever cheerful - with outfits that are always colorful - Dana Laughren.
Courtesy photo
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Caroline Tory and Tess Strokes on Hummingbird Trail in Hunter Creek.
Dana Laughren photo
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Tailgating like pros after a group ride – Rachel Hadley, Annie Gonzalez and Ann Driggers.
Dana Laughren photo
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Tara Nelson riding in style.
Dana Laughren photo
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A Tuesday night ride with the DBs.
Dana Laughren photo
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Mountain biker Colleen Irvin rounds a corner on Seven Star trail in Snowmass.
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Friends Peter Grenney and Charlie Lucarelli on a hike up to Hope Pass about a year after they both ran this route in the grueling Leadville 100 ultramarathon.
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Noemi Kiss-Baldwin snaps a selfie after running a virtual marathon since the one she planned to do was cancelled.
Courtesy photo
Taking advantage of the longer lingering light and Aspen’s seemingly boundless trails, summer in these parts is the perfect time to perfect one’s fitness. Groups of friends keep each other motivated with weekly activities all season long. One such troupe of women who goes by the nickname “the DBs” has had a standing Tuesday night tradition for seven years of mountain biking in the evening on various trails around the valley, often with a gourmet tailgate session at the end. According to DB member Dana Laughren, “We have a Facebook page called Outside Girls, which is a public group with 750 members and we post the Tuesday night ride every Sunday night” for those who may be interested in joining them.
Summer also serves as an ideal time to train for running races. With races now canceled for the foreseeable future and runners still needing goals as motivation, many have turned their focus to virtual competitions. After a marathon she planned to run this summer was canceled, Noemi Kiss-Baldwin of Basalt ran her own virtual race on the Rio Grande Trail on July 18, serving as her sixth marathon. She tracked her miles on her Apple watch, snapped a selfie at the end and shared her accomplishment on social media, earning well-deserved praise from friends and family.
Now that both the Boston Marathon and New York City Marathon have both announced they’re canceled in person, quite a few locals who had planned to run one or the other have registered for the virtual versions as a way to train this summer and take part in this new format in the fall. To keep things interesting, the Boston Athletic Association laid out the guidelines for their registered runners. During the week of Sept. 7-14, they’ll offer exclusive panel discussions and champions’ interviews online. They’ll provide race bibs to all runners who can also download a Boston Marathon toolkit with a printable finish line, winner’s breaktape and more. Runners are required to cover the 26.2-mile distance within a six-hour time period anytime that week then provide proof of timing to receive an official race program, participant t-shirt and medal.
Staying in shape during COVID times has taken on a whole new approach, but clearly isn’t holding everyone back.
