This morning at the suggestion of a fellow runner/triathlete in Fort Collins Co. I took the short drive over to Coyote Ridge in Loveland for my Sunday long run. Wow!! Let me say that again, Wow! What a great run.
The first 2.1 miles of this run start with a rather challenging climb, that develops into a really challenging climb through a series of switch backs. Needless to say my zone 2 Sunday long run quickly changed into a zone 4 hill workout. When I reached the summit of Coyote Ridge I was immediately taken in by the amazing views of the entire Fort Collins/Loveland valley. I’ve been running in Colorado for 16 years and rarely have I seen a view as spectacular as this that didn’t come from the summit of a 14er.
After slowing down just enough to keep my heart from exploding through my chest and taking in the view, I began what I thought would be a series of gradually declining switchbacks into the meadow like valley below. Yea, come again. What I really found was a drop of about 1/2 of mile that is so steep the county has built steps into the trail. After carefully navigating my way down what any Easterner would refer to as a cliff face, I leveled off in the valley. Again I was just amazed at the beauty and serenity. The grass was shoulder high and resembled green shafts of wheat swaying in a light breeze.
I was quickly snapped out of my purple haze like reverie when I discovered that I was again quickly ascending up the other side of the valley. The soft gravel path turned into an amazing single track dirt path that wound up and around another climb of about a mile in distance. When I came around the last bend I was again slapped in the face by the beauty of the great state of Colorado as I was confronted by yet another magnificent view of the two valleys below.
Unfortunately at this point I had to turn around and head back to the park entrance. Down through the valley up the steep steps to the top of Coyote Ridge where gratefully I started the final descent to the parking area. I let myself go and bounded down the trail with a smile on my face that probably had the people passing me going up saying bad things about my intellect and heritage. However, I’m sure that each of them on their return trip had the same smile and feeling of elation that comes with finishing a seriously challenging run, in a magnificently beautiful setting.
Coyote Ridge, try it you’ll go back.
Be Healthy, Train Smart, Have Fun
Jeff