First of all, I'm moving to Boulder. Second of all, rest days are never rest days. Yesterday's ride was definitely the most beautiful one yet. I really enjoyed about 90% of it, I hit a wall from mile 90-110 but as soon as we got right outside of Boulder I was pumped. Yesterday's total was 118, second longest ride yet. Today was a rest day for us, well planned that it was in Boulder but I wish we had more time here. One thing on my bucket list ever since reading Running With the Buffaloes has been to run on Magnolia Road. It's a long, rolling dirt path at about 8,000ft elevation. The book was mainly about the UC Boulder cross country team training there, but the road is famous for a great out and back training run for Olympians, pro athletes, and anyone who would enjoy the challenge. This morning we drove over to the bottom of the road and began driving up the 14% grade switchback road that the van barely made. Once the paved road turned to dirt, we parked the van. We only did a short run, but I definitely noticed the altitude. I believe Boulder sits at about 5,300 or so feet and we drove up 3,000 more for our run. The view was amazing! We drove back down and picked up a crew to go hike at the flat irons and the flagstaff trail. It was definitely harder hiking than running or biking, but totally worth it. Draper, Jeff, and I broke off from the group and towards the end of the trail we did some legitimate rock climbing and eventually reached the flagpole at the very top. We hiked about 6 miles total and climbed about 1,100 feet. I don't think my explanation can do our run and hike justice, so I'll leave a lot of pictures for you. The rest of the day we did some laundry, checked out the downtown mall, and signed up to skydive at sunrise in Moab...pretty casual. This evening we're getting a brewery tasting and tour with team Portland which should be pretty cool. Tomorrow we're off to Estes Park! Trail Ridge Road starts soooo soon.
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