By Mike Sandrock
In the midst of winter, Colorado races continue to thrive. One of the oldest is the Estes Park Frost Giant 5K and 10K, celebrating its 40th anniversary Jan. 27. (www.estesparkrunning.org). This year, for its anniversary run, the Frost Giant is raising money for Estes Park High School cross country runner Chase Murray (right in photo), a 15-year-old Estes Park High School Cross Country Team runner who was diagnosed in August with acute lymphoblastic leukemia. The funds raised will go towards defraying cost of treatment and care for Chip.
It is one of several events on the Colorado Runner calendar which can keep you racing until the busy spring and summer seasons arrive. A couple of others include the Frosty’s Frozen Five and Ten Mile on Jan, 26th in Littleton (https://www.coloradorunnerevents.com/Frosty); Louisville’s Arctic Prairie Dog Half Marathon on Jan. 20th (www.arcticprairiedoghalf.com); the Super Half Marathon (http://www.pprrun.org/events/SuperHalf) in Colorado Springs or the Super Bowl 5K (http://www.rundenverseries.com) in Denver on Feb. 3rd; the Feb. 10th Old Man Winter Bike Rally and Run in Lyons — the first Bolder Boulder qualifier of the year (www.oldmanwinterrally.com); The Snowman Stampede Half Marathon (https://www.coloradorunnerevents.com/Snowman) in Littleton on Feb. 23rd and the new Feb. 16 Presidents Cup cross country race at Boulder’s Manhattan Middle School (www.teamboco.com).
According to Frost Giant co-founder and Estes carpenter Rick Zuba, “We came up with this race as an incentive to keep people motivated to stay fit in the middle of winter, and all these years later it’s still doing that. It is a challenging and unique course unlike any other out there, and it’s an Estes Park tradition.”
The “challenging and unique” course starts in downtown Estes, heads up Lumpy Ridge, then heads onto single-track trails. Next comes historic MacGregor Ranch, where runners might be moving along alongside horses and, of course, across lumpy frozen cow pies.
Winter races generally draw small fields (the Dec. 6 Colder Boulder with 3000 being an exception), attracting hardy runners who typically come out year after year, as much, or more, for the camaraderie and post-race hot drinks as for racing a fast time. Weather for the Frost Giant has ranged from near zero to “a balmy 60 degrees,” as Pinewood Springs marathoner Marshall described it. The other races on the winter racing schedule could well have a motto similar to what Zuba tells Frost Giant entrants:
“We run whatever the weather.”
Which is how it should be. Get through one of these winter races, and you will be ready for spring — just 11 weeks away!
About Mike Sandrock
Mike Sandrock is an award-winning sport journalist with a quarter-century of running expertise. He currently covers running for the Daily Camera newspaper in Boulder, Colorado, and maintains freelance status with numerous publications, including Running Times, Runner’s World, Marathon & Beyond, and Trail Runner. He is also a member of the Colorado Press Association, where he has won numerous accolades for Best Sports Story of the Year. As a runner, Mike has trained with many elite athletes and Olympic champions, with personal bests of 2:24:00 in the marathon and 30:23 in the 10K. Mike currently resides in Boulder, where he runs, writes, and manages the Shoes for Africa project that he founded. This program donates new and used equipment to underprivileged athletes around the world.