26.2 Miles Long and a Mile High: 10 Chilling and Thrilling Memories from my Colfax Denver Marathon Training and Race

On Feb. 15, 2025, I ventured toward the front range of the Rocky Mountains for my weekly long run. The weather after Valentine’s Day was hardly picturesque — cloudy and in the mid-30’s — but the chill was hardly a barrier for a well-bundled runner like myself. A dash of flurries in my first miles inspired me to take a couple pictures along the wooded trail I was testing out, including an amusing selfie with the facial hair on the right side of my face almost entirely covered in snow. As I paced across the rim of the Chatfield Reservoir, the wintertime run was coming along nicely, though I was ready for a hot chocolate and a warm blanket.

As soon as I made my 180-degree turn for my out-and-back run, the winter weather changed from a pleasant snowfall to an all-out snowstorm. An onslaught of snow pelted my face and made a literal uphill section feel like running up the Rockies themselves. I opted to stop every half-mile along the reservoir path to turn my back to the wind and warm up, with my hands balled into fists and tucked into my hoodie sleeves. If I thought I was cold, a runner ran in the opposite direction — further into the park — wearing a long sleeve tee and shorts! My eyelashes were caked with ice, and I found I needed to pull out the chunks every quarter mile to prevent my eyelashes from freezing shut. My phone, at five percent battery, wasn’t doing much better. At least the phone stayed alive through the end of the run; my GPS watch did not.

With snow and wind so fierce that I literally could not see five feet in front of me on the trail, the next three miles were a start-and-stop trudge through the brunt of the Colorado winter. But thankfully, my reliance on the trail, attention to detail and desperate prayers paid off and I did not get lost, and I ultimately made it back to civilization (a Denver train station a mile from my parked car). I arrived at my car, and my first instinct was to capture the moment with a selfie of my ice-covered face that looked straight out of a claymation Christmas cartoon. My second instinct was to turn on my car’s heating system, full blast. Final stats: 10 miles, 100 percent battery used, 15 degrees of temperature drop, a ludicrous amount of snow and one unforgettable run.

My snowy adventure was a memorable part of my marathon training regimen, which culminated a couple weeks ago with my entry in the 2025 Colfax Marathon in downtown Denver. The race, my second marathon after completing the Chicago Marathon in 2021, was quite a ride and way to end the training, with a course featuring a run through a fire station, two stretches from end zone to end zone at the Broncos’ Empower Field, a good bit of hills and picturesque starts and finishes in the luscious City Park. I did not reach my three goals for the race and finished in a tad over four hours, but man, I have never been more relieved to see a finish line and thoroughly enjoyed the support of my cheering section.

Even with the hype around the marathon, the training included many more stories beyond the climactic race. These are 10 of the standout runs and my memories of them from this training cycle.

January 1, 2025 – Road Run, Lone Tree, CO, Distance: 5 miles, Pace: 7:16 per mile

Before heading to a Cheesecake Factory brunch and NBA basketball to start off my 2025, I fit a nice five-miler into my schedule along a route that would become a staple of my training, especially the first portion. The sidewalk path became a go-to because of its close proximity, rolling terrain and mountain views, but the main highlight was a walking bridge over south Denver’s major highway. The run itself was a 30-degree out-and-back for five miles and just over 36 minutes, and at the highest point, I reached 6,004 feet above sea level.

February 15, 2025 – Long Run, Littleton, CO, Distance: 10 miles, Pace: 7:19 through 7 miles

As I chronicled earlier, this run through the snow was a battle against the elements and hopefully just a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Between the fearsome winds pelting my face with snow, the failing batteries of my digital devices, the uphill trails-turned-slippery slopes and the limited visibility, I felt very accomplished to have survived the experience, but also very cold and exhausted. The snowy pictures and possible fitness gains made the experience worth it.

February 17, 2025 – Mile Attempt, Parker, CO, Distance: 4 miles, Pace: 5:04 for the mile

I did not have a single run in which I failed to meet my objective quite like this one. I attempted to run the mile in mid-February to test my fitness, and I certainly learned a lot about my anaerobic fitness, or lack thereof. Setting out to run a mile faster than five minutes, I had to press pause 500 meters in because my body could not acclimate at all to the high speed after the slow but sure longer runs. I resolved to finish the rest of the mile attempt as if I was picking up where I left off, but after stopping again at the halfway mark, I pivoted and changed my workout to four hard laps of roughly 400 meters each. Even then, I finished with a cumulative time of five minutes and four sections, and I rounded out the workout with a couple miles of cooldown jogging around the nearby high school track. After surviving a winter snowstorm two days earlier, I knew the result could always be worse, and I certainly had a better sense of my current fitness levels.

March 1, 2025 – Long Run Attempt, Boulder, CO, Distance: 4 miles, Pace: 7:49 per mile

I take back what I said in the previous run description — my Boulder run was the biggest flop of training. Setting out to run 13 miles on a Boulder trail I’d discovered through a running book, I ended up running just four miles and completely out of breath. Injuries did not come into the picture at all. Instead, I started out the run and just kept going further and further uphill until I realized that the run was essentially taking me up a mountain. I couldn’t even catch my breath when I paused my watch, and after two miles, I turned around and finished the run going all downhill. The positive of the run was magnificent views and pictures, but the all-uphill terrain — plus the altitude and the dusty trail — overwhelmed my system.

March 8, 2025 – Long Run, Littleton, CO, Distance: 14 miles, Pace: 7:07 per mile

I returned to the scene of the winter snowstorm and was pleasantly surprised to learn that the trail looked fantastic when not blanketed by snow. I started off near the same reservoir I’d survived but took off north in the Denver direction on a paved trail along the South Platte River. With the relatively flat trail, inspiring music and sunny, 45-degree weather, I knocked out my first seven miles at just over seven minutes per mile — a full minute faster than I was expecting. Thankfully, I didn’t lose too much steam in the second half and completed the run with a new half-marathon personal best (one hour, 33 minutes) and a huge momentum boost for my marathon training.

March 29, 2025 – Long Run, Denver, CO, Distance: 17 miles, 7:25 pace for first 16 miles

A week off of training in sunny San Diego required me to build up gradually once I resumed my runs, and my long run to cap off March signaled that I was back on track. I started my run where my 14-miler left off, and I reached the Broncos’ Empower Field and downtown Denver by the halfway point. Navigating the complicated traffic intersections and construction in between may have been the biggest obstacle. The last five miles seemed to never end, and I ultimately walked one mile through the rain that I was planning to run. But the mental boost of reaching Denver, the location of the marathon, was a major victory in the monotony of marathon training.

April 10, 2025 – Longest Run, Highlands Ranch, CO, Distance: 22 miles, 7:51 pace for first 17 miles

22 miles turned out to be my longest run of my training cycle, and it certainly gave me respect for runs over 20 miles and let me know the marathon would be no jog in the park. I ran on a running/biking trail along the side of a highway and benefitted from gorgeous views of the Rocky Mountains and the ability to stop on the way out and back at my gym for water and the restroom. A major priority for me was getting used to eating energy chews, which I consumed every four miles. My watch ran out of battery, but my legs did not, thankfully. When the watch gave out with five miles still to go, I had already accumulated almost 2,000 feet of elevation change, and that wasn’t counting the two biggest hills of the route. My legs were absolutely depleted at the end of this run, and I turned into zombie John for the next two hours. Shoutout to my girlfriend Mandy for caring for me and ensuring my survival in my recovery! 

April 13, 2025 – Threshold Workout, Montgomery County, MD, Distance: 10 miles, 6:56 pace

I returned to my home state of Maryland for a week in April, and I was curious about the change in altitude and its effect on my training. The answer was awesome. I breezed through all of my runs, even a 10-miler that was much faster than my usual pace and aimed at sub-7 minute miles. The workout felt like a breeze, one in which I was even holding back a bit from running faster, and confirmed my theory that the elevation change would make a significant difference.

April 24, 2025 – NFL Draft Day Workout, Centennial, CO, Distance: 9 miles, 6:58 total pace

The flipside of the elevation change was the rude awakening of readjusting to Denver after I returned to the Mile High City. A hard workout that lasted nine miles was a great gauge of my progress. In a run split between shining sun and a hailstorm, I hit my goals and ran by the Denver Broncos’ training facility just hours before the NFL Draft. Essentially, the workout was one mile hard, one mile relaxed for nine miles, and my four hard miles came out to be 6:09, 6:15, 6:21 and 6:34 — much faster than I’d be approaching for the race a month later. If I had to revise one aspect of my marathon training aside from the missed time, it would be a greater emphasis on speed work, but this workout gave me confidence that I’d have some speed to work with on race day.

May 3, 2025 – Long Run, Lone Tree, CO, Distance: 16 miles, 7:48 pace

Getting in a solid long run back in the elevation was a key objective before I lowered my weekly mileage in anticipation of the race. The run was a mixed bag. On the positive side, I ran past the Broncos’ facility and through the beautiful Cherry Creek Reservoir trails, but on the negative side, the unrelenting, bright sunshine upped the difficulty level and gave me a sunburn I’m still recovering from a month later (and imparted a valuable lesson I’d utilize on race day). 

May 18, 2025 – Colfax Marathon, Denver, CO, Distance: 26.2 miles, 9:01 pace

I definitely got my money’s worth in my Colfax Marathon enrollment, judging off the views, experience and amount of pain endured. I had three goals: finish under three hours and 30 minutes, run faster than my 3:41 Chicago Marathon and to run the whole race without walking or stopping. Through the first 15 miles, I felt incredible and on pace. I ran close to the 3:30 marathon pacer, with the sole intent of not running the first half of the race too fast and enjoying the views of the fire station, riverside trail and the Broncos’ stadium. I accomplished both of those aims and hit an average pace of seven minutes, 54 seconds for the first 13 miles, on pace for a finish in three hours, 27 minutes.

The next stretch was crucial, and I was well aware that I had walked the 20th and 22nd miles of the Chicago Marathon. I kept constant tabs on how I was feeling, from leg fatigue to hydration to breathing to my mental state. Seeing my cheering section around the 17th mile was a very welcome surprise that took me off guard (but provided a huge morale boost), and I took advantage of the slight downhill portion of Colfax Avenue between seeing them and the second trip through the Broncos’ Empower Field stadium. Around that time, I was well ahead of the 3:30 pacer, but still logging consistent miles around 7:50.

I hit the 20-mile mark just before reaching Empower Field, but the cracks were starting to show. I had consumed energy chews at miles 7 and 14, but the stickiness felt like it was making hydration difficult. Between the emerging sunshine, my desire for water and the obvious fatigue from running 20 miles, I was hitting the proverbial wall, but I wasn’t giving up, either. I knocked out a couple of sub-8-minute miles while keeping my eyes focused ahead for the nearest water or Gatorade station. Going into the last four miles, my estimated time was three hours, 27 minutes.

After hanging on for a couple miles, mile 22 did me in. Running along the South Platte River with the 3:30 pacer by my side, I made the decision to pull off to the side and try to catch my breath. I walked to the water station, about a quarter mile ahead, and downed three small cups of water. My systems faltered — I could barely breathe, felt lightheaded and my legs were drained. The visual of the 3:30 pacer passing me stuck a dagger into my first two goals. But I knew from the previous marathon that I was capable of finishing the race, no matter my physical state.

For the next two and a half miles, I walked through downtown Denver as hordes of runners passed me. I sat on random curbs two or three times, and the water and Gatorade I’d indulged in did not stay down for long. I had to turn off my competitive urges because the sight of so many runners breezing by was so crushing. The 2.5 mile stretch, which I completed at a 20-minute-per-mile pace, was deeply disappointing and took my third goal out of reach, but my main goal was to finish and potentially finish under four hours. After throwing up just after the 25-mile mark, I lurched forward into my running stride and blasted my most inspirational music through my headphones. 

I ran the last 1.2 miles in my feeblest physical condition, but it was my favorite stretch of the race. I saw my dad, who flew in from Maryland, at the start of City Park and got such a boost when he ran alongside me for about 100 meters or so, and about a half-mile later I saw Mandy, her parents and her roommate Lauren with their signs cheering behind a barrier. I opened up my stride and gave the last bit through City Park my absolute best, weaving through traffic and accelerating as the finish line came into view. I crossed the line in four hours, one minute and eight seconds, stopped my watch and careened off into a grassy area in the shade to recover.

As a long-distance runner and very competitive person, the result was disappointing. The first 80 percent of the race was perfect from a pacing perspective, and drafting off the pacer alleviated the mental burden in the first half of the race. I definitely didn’t run the first half too fast — it was just a matter of if I could ramp it up in the last four miles. That’s when the tactical side, the race strategy, and speed work would come into play and when I could let it loose and give it my all. And I had plenty of margin to reach my goals — I would hit all three goals if I could just run faster than nine minutes per mile to finish. 

That result did not come to fruition, and the next hour of walking, stopping and watching runners race by was brutal. A marathon is a one-shot endeavor, and I’ve found it impossible to pinpoint a reason why my breathing, hydration and overall fatigue proved to be such an obstacle. 

Still, the marathon training cycle and race was a success, regardless of the 2.5-mile stretch. The support of those at the race and outside of Denver was an absolute highlight, and crossing the finish line and completing a six-month endeavor was a terrific feeling. The training cycle itself lasted around half a year and 750 miles, and I came away from those runs with a better understanding of Denver’s geography, improved fitness and plenty of good trail memories (and some cold ones, too). I sought out the Colfax Marathon specifically because of the challenges of training in the winter at altitude with a hilly course, and the “challenge” aspect of training was true from my first ugly three-mile run to the final race. 

But like the shirtless shoplifter who was sprinting away from the police and got immobilized by a taser in the parking lot next to me on my first road run, I’m done running for a while.