Race Across the Sky: My Leadville MTB 100 Story

I won’t lie — the trepidation going into this race was real. Real enough that I threw out every expectation I had and gave myself exactly one job: see if I could actually enjoy the day. That’s it. Low bar. Very achievable, I thought.

Here’s the level of dread we’re talking about: I went into this race half-convinced I’d cross the finish line, hand someone my number plate, and put my mountain bike up for sale by Monday.

Reader, it did not go that way. I loved this race from start to finish. I am — and I say this with zero shame — slightly obsessed. I’m already plotting my return next year, and this time I want the full course. Powerline included. Apparently I didn’t suffer enough the first time.

The Start

We rolled out of the white corral in the back, which is a polite way of saying I spent the first stretch playing bumper cars with several hundred of my closest friends. So I did what any reasonable person does in a crowd: I passed people. All day. Constantly. It became something of a hobby.

And then the scenery just... showed off. They call this “Race Across the Sky,” and I get it — I get it now. Up top you genuinely feel like you’re pedaling through the clouds, which is a nice distraction from the fact that your legs are on fire.

Early Miles

Fast rolling downhill to kick things off — great, love that, more of that please — then St Kevins Climb, which was a little rowdy, rocky, and a lot crowded. I kept it chill anyway. My mantra for the day, on loop, was: don’t freak out, don’t get pissed, you are here to finish and enjoy every minute. There was some walking I probably could’ve ridden, but I let it go — turns out my ego survived. From there it opened into fast road and some genuinely gorgeous rolling gravel, and I was cruising, feeling like maybe I actually knew what I was doing out here.

Columbine

This was the big one. I cruised up Columbine, took my time, settled in, didn’t burn a single match. But the higher I got, the more the two-way traffic started messing with my head. Rocky, sketchy, narrow sections with riders coming down as I was going up, and a running internal pep talk that basically boiled down to: I can do this. Don’t freak out. Just get to the top. You will not be the one sliding down on your butt.

The turnaround at the summit was long, and mercifully a bunch of people stopped there, and I kept rolling, which handed me a nice little head start on the descent. Small wins. I was terrified of holding up a large group,

And then: 14% grade, loose rock, and absolutely none of my comfort zone in sight. Genuinely terrifying. I want that on the record. The rest of the descent was fine, but I got passed by what felt like the entire field on that section. Descending is officially my weak spot, and it’s the thing I’m most excited to fix before I come back and do this to myself again. It’s hard, since I am the one passing everyone on road descents and often gravel, so this is my weak spot here.

The Back Half

Felt great at the bottom of Columbine and started working my way home. Somewhere around there I got it into my head that I might actually have a shot at the big belt buckle — the kind of thought that gets you into trouble — so I put in a hard effort for about 20 miles and completely buried myself. No one to work with for most of it, so I towed a small parade of strangers before finally finding one person willing to take a pull. We worked together for a bit, which felt like a small miracle.

Then I remembered there was another big climb I had somehow forgotten existed, did the math, and accepted that the cutoff was no longer happening. So I let the buckle dream go, settled in, and just survived — cramping, feeling every single one of those miles — until that finish line finally showed up. Every bit as magical as people say it is. Eyes flooded with tears, I was genuinely shocked I actually did it and LOVED it.

The Verdict

8 hours, 35 minutes. I was hoping to go under 10. I am currently floating somewhere above the clouds about this. I genuinely didn’t see that coming, and I’m still a little in disbelief writing it down.

And the age group results: 6th. In a 10-year age group. When you’re 59. I’ll just leave that math right there for you to do yourselves — if the bracket had been sized like a normal human decade instead of whatever that was, we’re talking a very different podium conversation. But that’s how they run it, and I respect the system even while quietly plotting my revenge. Next year I age up into a new bracket, and I will be there, fresh legs, ready to be the young one in the room for once. At Twin Lakes I was 74th female, and worked my way to 48th for the finish. The plan was to finish strong, and I did

I went in with rock-bottom expectations and came out with one of my favorite race days ever. The people, the support, that absurd scenery — all of it. I loved every single minute, even the 14% grade minutes that tried to end me.

2027 is already on the calendar. Another road trip to Colorado, another crack at this course — full route, powerline included, because apparently I have not learned my lesson.

Crew, once again the team of my hubs John with a bonus of Alison + Michael and his new company Macare Group, we were dialed in. With John at Pipeline, I saw he and Alison at 25 and 73, and then Michael at Lost Canyon at 41 and 58. I used my USWE with 210G Cho, but did not get through all 4 packs, so was supplementing with real food- 2x PBJ, 2x large York Peppermit Patties, 3 handfuls of candy Pumkins, 2x Starbucks Double shot, + 1 NeverSecond Ice Gel. That got me close to 90g per hour and I felt grea. With cooler temps, I was plenty hydrated. These were the perfect spots.

On the prep side: the altitude acclimation plan worked. My Garmin had me fully acclimated to 9,200 feet by race day, and everything about how I felt out there backed that up. That’s officially a formula I’m keeping. Along with stored ferritin at 91, the only other add will be heat acclimation prior to heading to altitude.

Next up: teaching myself to descend as I mean it. Stay tuned.