Breckenridge Imperial Challenge - Breckenridge, Colorado

Summit County, CO  >  Breckenridge, Colorado  >  Local  >  Breckenridge Imperial Challenge
Breckenridge Imperial Challenge As I peak out the window all I see is a cold windy day with a few inches of snow on the ground. I think to myself, am I really going to get on my bike and hike today? Right then, my friend calls and gets me excited about the event. There is no backing out now. Then however, I realize that the tire that I had pumped up the night before had become flat. I quickly call on my friend and ask if he has a replacement. He arrives and we repair the wilted tire, pack our stuff in the car, and head out to Breckenridge for the Imperial Challenge. At the top of Peak 8, at the Bergenhof Restaurant, we leave our snowboard, boots, snowshoes, warm hat and gloves. I also left out a few homemade cookies to munch on before the big assent. We jumped on our bikes, descended in the cold air and met up with the rest of the anxious competitors at the Breckenridge Recreation Center. As the time ticked away, I met old friends whom I had not seen for quite awhile and quickly chatted until the announcer rallied everyone to the start area. The riders began in a large pack. There were the team category, the citizen short course, and then the rest of us pushing to the top of Imperial Bowl. At exactly 10 am we left. One overzealous biker took a tumble about a mile into the ride. My self and others remained in the pack which kept the momentum moving. The road wound back and forth up and over switchbacks to reach the base of Peak eight. I felt strong at this point but was happy to be off my bike and beginning the climb. Transition was fast with a quick change into my snowboard boots, snowshoes and placed my snowboard on my back. The first section of the climb, to the base of the T-bar, was quite easy. This was the point where the real difficult hiking began. The most complicated part of the race for me was the last 100 feet to the top of the T-bar. One of my snowshoes had fallen off yet I kept going. It seems that I would go one foot forward and two steps sliding back. The ski patrollers stood at the top cheering us on but in my mind I felt them chuckling at the comical charade. I used the snowshoe that I held in my hand as a brace to assist me up the hill. Finally, after quite a struggle, I progressed past the vertical horizon. I took a breath, and for a moment felt the delirium kick in. I still had another 25+ minutes of climbing up to Imperial Bowl. When I was younger, it seems that I could do this climb in no time at all. The more you practiced the easier it became, but every time I did this hike, I remember was rested. All I kept thinking in my head was to keep one foot in front of the other. This worked until I heard someone say they were hungry. My body said food and I had to take a bite of one of the cookies I brought. A man next to me asked for a bite for our bodies were departing into shut down mode. The sugar was just enough to motivate me to keep going even though a few people passed me in the meanwhile. Step……Step…..Step……Step. The end was near, yet the wind continued to persist. In one moment I felt the gusts nearly push me off the side of the mountain. I think I sped up to avoid getting thrashed by the wind and snow particles. The last stretch was as step as a ladder but I did not care. Upon cresting the mountain top, in normal situations I would have admired the view, relaxed, eaten something, and reflected on the accomplishment; instead my hands were so frozen that I needed help unclipping my snowboard from my backpack and my bike helmet from my head. My hands and ears were so cold that I needed to put on warmer clothes for the decent. I knew time was ticking away so I strapped on my snowboard and departed the mountain top. Making turns on the steep terrain became challenging because of my fatigued legs. At the end of the steep area, I pointed my board straight and without stopping focused on the finish line. I crossed the finish line at mock speed and was elated to conclude the adventure and began planning what I will improve on next year.

Summit County Vacation Rentals | Breckenridge Real Estate | Breckenridge Resort Lodging | Keystone Real Estate | Keystone Lodging | Frisco Real Estate | Frisco Lodging | Dillon Real Estate | Silverthorne Real Estate | Breckenridge Ski Rentals | Colorado Mountain Real Estate | Summit County Real Estate | Colorado Mortgage

Breckenridge Summit County Mountain Lodging Real Estate Skiing Restaurants Rentals.

SummitColorado.com is a Colorado Directory for Breckenridge, Keystone, Frisco, Dillon, Copper Mountain, Silverthorne / Summit County Colorado Real Estate. * Legal Summit Colorado . com


Summit County Information: SummitColorado.com ©2008
info@summitcolorado.com
106 N. French Street
Breckenridge, Colorado 80424