Ram Party Trail Runs take place out of Colorado Springs, Colorado in May and includes distances from 5K to 50 Mile. The races are split between Saturday and Sunday with the 50 Mile starting from Buffalo Lodge Bicycle Resort on Saturday. The “shorter distances” begin at Rainbow Gulch Trailhead and run around Rampart Reservoir before returning to the finish line, where the real RamPart[y] begins.
Anyway, last year around April I was coming off a string of 50K races and was looking to jump up in distance so I decided to sign-up for the Inaugural Ram Party 54 Mile race.
This was putting myself out of my comfort zone for a few reasons. 1) This was my first time running 50+ miles in a single push. 2) I hadn’t spent much time in Colorado and I was not accustom to the higher elevation.
But after roping my wonderful girlfriend, Summer, into committing to crewing for me I pulled the trigger and registered.
We drove up from Phoenix over a couple days a few days before the event and broke up the driving with a quick shakeout run at Petrified National Forest. Definitely worth a visit.
When we made it into Colorado Springs we went straight to the Buffalo Lodge for Packet pick-up and to check-in for our room. If you’re running this event and coming from out of town I’d definitely recommend staying at the lodge. The commute from my room to the start line was about 100 feet.
For this race I went pretty minimal with gear. I took only my Naked Running Band with a single 600ML soft-flask, my inhaler, some salt tabs, a few Spring gels and an ice bandana.
The temperature at the start of the race was ideal at about 50 degrees. As soon as the race started a pack of 5-6 folks jetted out to the front and formed a front pack. With this being a new distance for me I decided I wasn’t going to make any moves in the first half of the race.
After a couple short miles on asphalt we quickly found ourselves on the Rampart Range Forest Road, which we would get to know quite well over the next 40+ miles. The course is basically a giant lollipop route. The course begins at just over 6,000 feet and climbs to 9,500 feet before taking you on a 14ish mile loop around Rampart Reservoir before making your way back to Rampart Range Forest Road and bombing back down to the finish line at Buffalo Lodge.
The big climb felt relatively easy. It seemed less aggressive than Crown King Scramble, which I had run a couple months before. By mile 5-8 I had passed a few runners, including Devin Yanko, who was conservatively making her way up the climb. There was still a group of 4-5 runners, including Nick Coury, who I could see a considerable ways up the trail from me. The most difficult part of this section was trying not to constantly stare at the snow capped Pikes Peak which looms over you throughout the course.
When I hit the top of the climb I was thrilled to have almost all of the climbing behind me. Next stop: Rainbow Gulch Aid, where I’d see Summer for the first time. Still on the forest road, I began to speed up through the gentle rolling hills hitting a few sub 8 Min miles. I was still feeling good although my legs were beginning to feel a bit heavy.
After rolling through Rainbow Gulch I quickly began my descent into the reservoir. On paper the middle section of this race looks FLAT! It certainly is not. The trail around the reservoir is constantly up and down and you go in and out of every little inlet as you circumnavigate the lake. I had planned on slowly increasing my pace through this section but it was not to be. My heart rate began to rise and I quickly realized I had to pull back to a more sustainable pace if I wanted to avoid blowing up completely.
Although I was running the slowest I had the entire race I ended up passing the runner who was in 3rd place just before exiting the reservoir and passing through Rainbow Gulch for the second time.
When I made it to the Aid-station I knew the next runner was only a couple mins back so I quickly swapped shoes from my Salomon Pulsars into my Salomon Ultra 3s for some extra cushion while Summer filled my flask and handed me gels. I firmly believe in the rabbit effect, so my goal was to be off and running before he had made it to the Aid-station.
In hindsight I would have taken an extra 10 seconds to gulp down as much water as possible here because about 3-4 miles down the trail I was nearly through all my water and was desperately pouring the salty ice from my ice bandana into my soft flask. Gross.
Ultra-brain is a real condition and I almost had a completly meltdown as I couldn’t get my damed bandana untied while running. My coping mechanisms had completely disappeared and my singular focus was to make it down the mountain so I could stop running.
My goal of running sub 8 minute pace down the mountain was out of reach at this point so I settled in at a sustainable pace around 8:30-8:50 minute miles and kept grinding.
As I was approaching the Water Tank Aid, the final aid-station before the finish line, I heard footsteps rapidly approaching behind me. I turned to see Devin Yanko screaming down the trail past me. Her stride looked fresh and I tried to match her pace into the aid station for a few moments before she was quickly out of sight. I remember thinking “now that’s how you finish a race”, but a sprint finish was not in the cards for me.
After filling my bottle for the final time I looked at my watch and saw a total distance of 48 miles. This was a brutal sight knowing that the finish line was still 6 Miles away but I had come much too far to let up now. I managed to pick up my pace for the final few miles on the dirt road but once I hit pavement I could pretty much taste the finish line.
On the final stretch I recognized Summer and Assistant Aravaipa Colorado RD, Brian Pilger standing at the final turn back into the Buffalo Lodge. I remember saying something to the extent of “I’m ready to stop running now I think” as I turned the corner, made it through the finish line and collapsed into a lawn chair next to Nick Coury who took 2nd.
While painful, this was one of the most enjoyable experiences I’ve had running an Ultra. Waking up in my room and walking to the start line a few feet away made it feel like I was running a training route out of my backyard. The support from the volunteers and Summer kept me going and the scenery was absolutely beautiful, especially around the reservoir. I’m also now a life-long fan of the Buffalo Lodge Bicycle Resort.