On the trail up the hill through the woods to Barr Camp we go
Pikes Peak – Manitou Springs, Colorado
|
Letters from the High Schools
2007 Barr Trail Mountain Race
Barr Mountain Trail Race Organizers, Participants and Sponsors: The experience that our team gained at the BTMR aid station challenge was exceptional. Some athletic teams do a variety of things (like ropes courses) for team building, but we use the BTMR as one of our team builders. Planning, organizing and carrying out our mission takes team work at it’s best. Our team contribution to the race is exactly as it sounds. Our athletes must plan, communicate, organize and execute how they are going to assist the athletes at the BTMR. We do not expect coaches, captains or parents to organize everything for the aid station themselves and slap something together the night before. To be the best at anything takes planning, preparation and foresight, and by emphasizing these principals (mid summer) we are highlighting the skills that will hopefully elevate our “team” to become stronger. The fact that there is prize money for the best station only makes the process that much more exciting for our team. Truly, we should thank you for helping us come together and realize our team strengths and weaknesses. The prize money will provide our team with a financial cushion and allow us the luxury of focusing more on our training this season and less on the need to raise money for trips, uniforms, food and other team needs. The budget that we are given to outfit our team typically is insufficient to buy the whole team a uniform. This year, we will be combining our tri-annual uniform budget with the generous $2,250 award for winning the aid station challenge and ALL (JV/Varsity) athletes will be wearing the same uniform. Typically, JV athletes get hand me downs, but this year everyone will be decked out the same! Go maroon and white. Additionally, we will be using the money to subsidize our trips to race in Ouray and Breckenridge. Both trips are huge team builders for Cheyenne Mountain and the cost to travel can be fairly expensive. Thank you for the boost to our program.
Stanley Lambros, M.Ed.
Dear BTMR Sponsors and Race Organizers, We would like to thank you for the opportunity to be involved with the start/finish aid station at the 2007 Barr Trail Mountain Race! We had a great time providing support for the runners and we really appreciate the $1,000 we won in the aid station challenge. Without your generosity, fund-raising would be very difficult. You make it easy and fun and helping out the local running scene is always a good thing! We were very impressed with the manner in which the race was run. The race management is organized and efficient and very committed to providing a great experience for everyone. We hope to see many more Barr Trail Mountain Races and hopefully we get another chance to participate in the aid station challenge in the near future. We plan to use our $1,000 to purchase new warm-ups for our teams. Our boy’s team is in desperate need of a complete uniform overhaul and our girl’s team needs more inventory. Our programs continue to grow year after year and the 2007 DHS Cross Country team will probably have over 50 runners. It is hard to equip everyone with nice warm-ups, but your generosity will help make it possible. Thanks again for a great time and a great contribution! Sincerely,
Chuck Schwartz
Dear BTMR Committee and Sponsors: The Woodland Park High School Cross Country team would like to thank you so very much for this tremendous opportunity! In addition to the generous amount of money ($1,000), our team gained unity and respect for each other, got to see and encourage a whole different class of runners, and just had an amazing time together. The team worked hard organizing our station and had a lot of fun until the wee hours the night before, planning last-minute details!! It was great to see them grow as a team. In addition to replacing some old uniforms and warm-ups, we plan to venture to the great state of Nebraska for an out-of-state meet. This will again be a great team-building opportunity; there is nothing like a road trip! We are looking forward to a fun-filled weekend, and there is no way we would be able to even think about this without you. Thanks again to the BTMR Committee and Sponsors... This is a very well-organized event, and we all enjoyed it so very much. We hope we will be able to participate in this event again next year!
Sincerely,
Dear BTMR Organizers, Sponsors, and Runners, Thank you for allowing Mesa Ridge High School the opportunity to help with the Barr Trail Mountain Race. This was a great experience for our team. We were able to help the running community and be a part of a great running event. Mesa Ridge had been selected to participate in the Aid Station Challenge in the past, however this was the first time most of our current runners had helped with the race. We enjoyed developing our theme, which involved using a grizzly suit and other “bear” apparel. Four-wheeling up Bobs Road with El Paso County Search and Rescue was also fun. Ultimately, the kids worked very hard at supporting the runners as they hurried to get them cups of water and Gatorade and even filled the runners water bottles and other containers. Mesa Ridge was awarded $750 for their efforts that day. The money will go far in supplying the team with things that are not funded by the school. It will be used to purchase team t-shirts and will cover the cost of the end of season awards banquet. Any additional money will be used to purchase items as needed during the season. We are very thankful for the opportunity to raise money for our team and at the same time give back to the running community. Thank you, Carl Burgess and the Mesa Ridge High School Cross Country Team
Dear BTMR organizers and sponsors, The Sierra Stallions would like to take this time to thank the BTMR organizers and sponsors for the opportunity of aiding in what must be one of the premier trail races in the country. The competition and enthusiasm of such a demanding race was incredible to witness first hand. Six of our ten athletes had never camped out before and used this opportunity to see the fantastic Pikes Peak from a bird’s eye view. The hike into our camp site was demanding but very rewarding as a team boding experience. The athletes are working on a slogan for next year’s team t-shirt as they all accomplished something that seemed very overwhelming in getting involved in this race. The $500 will be used to purchase some training devices that are used during the speed cycle of our training. The devices are called spring resistor and speed builder. These two forms of training were implemented last season and athletes experienced great results. Our athletic budgets do not allow for this “extra” equipment so these will be great additions to a strong program. It is very important for our team to let the sponsors of this race know that there are few opportunities to team build, raise money for the school’s program and the witness elite runners all in the same day. This provides for unmatched results. Thank you to the sponsors and please continue your assistance to high school programs in the Pikes Peak region!!! Thank you so much,
The Sierra Stallions
2006 Barr Trail Mountain Race
Dear BTMR sponsors, Manitou Springs High School would like to thank all of the sponsors of the 2006 Barr Trail Mountain Race. For us it was a great experience. We had the pleasure of providing an aid station for the first race back in 2000 and unfortunately I was unable to help with that race, so this was my first experience. The girls had a great time, not only did we have the opportunity to raise some money ($500) for the team but it brought our small team very close together. We spent the previous 3 days prior to the race in Leadville for training and team building and the participation on Sunday brought an end to a busy but very valuable week. Manitou, like all schools, has a very limited budget for athletics. The cross country program must share with the track team for funds for equipment and uniforms. Last year we were able to purchase uniforms, but with our limited funds we were only able to supply the team with tops and warm-up bottoms. We have to wait another 5 years before we would have the money available for uniforms again. As you can see it becomes very difficult to out fit our team completely. With the money earned this year hopefully we will purchase matching shorts for the tops we purchased last year. I would also like to purchase something individually for the girls that participated to say thanks for all of their hard work. Running socks for all the girls is the plan. Again thanks for allowing us to participate and hopefully we will be a part of the race for next year.
Greg Lang
Dear BTMR committee and Sponsors, The Palmer High School Cross Country program expresses great appreciation for the opportunity to participate in the 2006 Aid Station Challenge. Nearly twenty runners had a tremendous experience learning to man an aid station, participate in a community event, and witness elite runners in a mountain race. This event truly brings the community together, from participants and volunteers to the generous sponsors assisting high school programs. It is difficult to fully express how much our programs will benefit from your wonderful contributions. We intend to replace old warm-up gear and devote some of the funds to covering the costs of out of town races. Once again, we are grateful not only for the financial contribution to our program ($1,500), but for the opportunity to be a part of such a positive community event. Our student athletes benefit both as runners, and as people. We hope to be a part of this event again. Sincerely,
Rob Gilliam
Sponsors of the Aid Station Challenge and Organizers of the Barr Trail Mountain Race: I’d like to take this opportunity to extend a big “thanks” for your investment in a great race and in local high school cross country programs. This was our first opportunity to take on an aid station in the Barr Trail Mountain Race and we enjoyed taking on the challenges it presented. I’d also like to extend a word of thanks to the staff at Barr Camp who helped so much with getting us ready to do all that needed to be done and went out of their way to make our stay an enjoyable one. For the 19 of us who stayed at Barr Camp, it was a great experience of bonding and working hard together. We plan to take the $750 awarded for the Aid Station Challenge and apply it toward expenses to compete in a Rocky Mountain regional cross country race at the end of this upcoming cross country season. We hope to be running at the Rocky Mountain Border War meet in Pocatello, ID, on November 4, and the money from this will significantly help in our efforts to get to Idaho. Thank you for investing in your community and in the sport of running.
Alan Versaw
Dear BTMR and sponsors, As always the athletes had fun working the aid station and it was a good experience. They will be using this year’s Challenge award money ($1,000) to fund a trip to the “Rocky Mountain Border Clash” in Idaho on November 4th. A top team at that race will have a great chance to qualify for the Nike Team Nationals held in Oregon in December. We want to thank all the sponsors of the race who donate money to help make the Aid Station Challenge possible. The money we received over the years has made many of the extra things we do for kids possible during our seasons. If it helps promote the enjoyment of running and the running experience for younger runners so they keep running, then it is all worth it. Thanks again to all associated with the race for all you do. Coach Weston — Liberty H.S.
Dear BTMR organizers and Sponsors, Thank you for putting this race on and having it so well organized. It is such a great idea that so much of the funds go to organizations that need it. The Woodland Park kids are thrilled that they won the Aid Station Challenge and the $2,250. We plan to use the money to buy team shirts for a hill climb event that we are going to do this year. We also plan to replace uniforms that we have been running in for 10 years and possibly buy a team canopy. This was just a great experience for our team. They worked until 1 a.m. chipping ice for the slushies. It was a real team effort. Last year’s race was a real maturing time for them. We gave water to the search and rescue people when they brought the bodybag by us on the way down and then we finished last in the Aid Station Challenge even though they had worked very hard. As you can imagine we were pretty pumped with this year’s results. I know the other high school teams really like participating in the Challenge and I want the RACE SPONSORS to know that their help is greatly appreciated. Thank You,
Ron Payton
2005 Barr Trail Mountain Race
Carl Olson July 17, 2005 Barr Mountain Trail Race Organizers, Participants and Sponsors: We all would like to express our appreciation for being allowed to participate in the 2005 Aid Station Challenge. This is the first time Mesa Ridge has been involved in anything like the BTMR. As a new school, we are in the process of building a quality Cross Country program and the funds raised through the Aid Station Challenge will help us greatly to that end. Not only were we fortunate enough to gain a spot in the Challenge, we got the chance to man the Barr Camp. We hiked six miles in to Barr Camp on Saturday morning and spent most of the rest of the day hiking, talking, gemstone hunting and just hanging out. It was a fantastic team building experience that we got paid for! The Barr Camp caretakers helped us out in every way they could to make our station successful. Many of our athletes at Mesa Ridge have not had the type of experience that the Challenge afforded. Hiking, camping out, serving others, and seeing premier distance runners perform in the BTMR was a great experience for all of us. We hope we will have the opportunity of helping out again next year. We will use the $750 award money to purchase new uniforms for our varsity boys and girls teams. We are also establishing a “shoe fund” to help needy runners afford quality training and racing shoes. Thank you again to all the race organizers, sponsors and especially the runners for giving Mesa Ridge this experience. We can’t wait for next year! Sincerely,
Carl R. Olson
Dear BTMR Sponsors: On behalf of the Coronado High School Cross Country Team I would like to thank you for you generous contributions to the high schools in financially helping our programs through the high school aid station challenge. Our cross country team earned $1500 for their efforts this past race. This money is greatly needed. Last year our money earned helped supplement the costs for 120 new warmups. We finished last season with 104 runners, and since our running program is growing, the costs are ever increasing. We also sent 2 of our girls to the Foot Locker Regional Meet in Kenosha, WI, one of whom was completely subsidized by our program and generous outside contributors. This season we plan on sending several of our athletes to National competitions, and this money will, in part, go to finance these efforts. Additionally, there are many other costs associated with running a cross country program, and you help towards embettering our sport in this manner is greatly appreciated. Thank you so much. Sincerely,
Douglas L. Hugill
BTMR, We want to thank you, the committee, and your sponsors for the opportunity to participate in the BTMR Aid Station Challenge. This is a unique and wonderful opportunity for the high school running programs. Woodland Park is going to use our $500 winnings to help buy some new varsity uniforms. It has been at least six years since we have had new uniforms. The fundraising and give away aspect of the BTMR is such a great concept. Keep up the good work. Thank You! Sincerely,
Ron Payton
2004 Barr Trail Mountain Race
BTMR Committee and sponsors: It is with great appreciation that I contact you in the aftermath of last week’s thrilling BTMR event to acknowledge that Cheyenne Mountain High School was the top-voted aid station by race competitors and recipients of a remarkable $2,250 cash prize. On behalf of the eight athletes of the CMHS XC program and Coach Jim Brady, I wish to extend gratitude to all of the race sponsors and race organizers. The team enjoyed its journey to Barr Camp and the friendly accommodations at the camp. We had a fun time developing and administering the horror movie theme and hope that it provided some comical motivation to the competitors at a point in the race where it is perhaps most needed. The prize money that will supplement (and approximate) the existing team budget will be used to enhance the quality of the team experience in 2004. Specifically, this financial support will allow the team to travel to out of town meets. Plans are underway to travel to Kansas and to compete on the historical Rim Rock Farm course, home to legends that include Jim Ryan and Coach Timmons. An October trip to Aspen is also in the works, to compete on a true cross country course at the Severy Classic, named after the Aspen H.S. harrier record holder and former CU Buffalo runner who died tragically when struck on his bicycle after XC practice. In conclusion, thank you again for assisting the Cheyenne Mountain High School cross country program specifically, but more importantly the sport of cross country itself. From the $3K available to programs in 2000 to the $6K available just four years later, there is no doubt where the true motive lies with the BTMR committee and sponsors.
Best in running,
To the Sponsors and Organizers of the Barr Trail Mountain Race: This was our third opportunity to work an aid station and raise money for our Colorado Springs Christian School Cross Country Team. Let me say right off the bat that I am so impressed with the use of the money given by sponsors and the runners, alike! As I stood at the awards after the race was over, and heard the money distribution to so many needy subjects, and multiplied that by the number of years the race has existed, I thought of how many people this race has impacted!! And what a great venue to use! Our team is up in the rotation for new uniforms and sweats this year. We do get a budget for this. But when you add up screening fees along with the cost of the uniform and sweats, it becomes so difficult to stay within budget. We will use the money we received from the BTMR to help cover the cost of this expense. In the past, we have had uniforms that rarely fit well on our smaller and our largest athletes. It is my goal this year to accommodate all sizes through custom design. This is a little more expensive, but I believe every kid should be able to have a uniform that fits- doesn’t fall off the shoulders- when they are competing. If I can accomplish this with some of our aid station money left over, I plan to use the rest to replace some old stopwatches, and have some wrist watches available for kids to borrow on our runs. Most kids have no concept of a timed run:) Thank you again, sponsors and organizers, for your very generous contributions of time and money on our behalf!! It has been a joy serving with you and benefiting from you!
Rhoda Heeney
Date: August 5, 2004 From: Coronado High School Cross Country Team/Coach Doug Hugill To: The Sponsors and Committee Members of the Barr Trail Mountain Race On behalf of the parents, athletes, and coaches of Coronado High School’s Cross Country team we would like to thank all of the sponsors, committee members and workers of the Barr Trail Mountain Race for the $1000 donated to our program. This money greatly helps our team’s limited resources. Our team is growing each year and hence we buy uniforms almost every year at a cost of over $125 per athlete. The money earned will go to outfitting our runners. Every little bit helps, and with our other fundraising endeavors can now outfit our communities’ up and coming runners. So for your generosity we deeply thank you. We received many compliments from the runners for our support of them. This really made our kids feel good, and an integral part of the race. The entire event was very well organized and executed. I personally have not seen a race organized this well, so good job in that respect. Our station was at the Incline overlook, and we had ample water but were short on cups by about 50. We had no choice but to recycle these, which is not ideal, but seemed to be the best alternative at the time.
Once again thanks for the donated monies.
Doug Hugill
BTMR, Once again the kids all enjoyed the Aid Station challenge. We are thankful for the opportunity to participate again. This years prize money will go to several items. We have added a new race to our schedule and it will be an overnight event. This will allow us to do some team building. We will help defray the cost of that. Our numbers on the girls team is expected to be up so we will purchase new uniforms. And, like in the past, we will take a group of athletes to the Foot Locker regional Championship in Wisc. in November. This is one of the biggest incentives for athletes to do well during the season. We again want to thank all of you who put on the race and all of the many generous sponsors who make the event possible as well as make it possible for us to improve our programs with the prize money. Sincerely Coach Gary Weston — Liberty H.S.
Dear BTMR, Thank you for the opportunity to participate in this year’s challenge. We will use the money that we earn for many things in our program. Our entire XC budget for both boys and girls is $400 so we are always having to fundraise. We use our fundraising monies for state qualifier tee shirts, banquet supplies and extra awards for our athletes, printing of our record book which is updated annually. Extras for out of town trips such as fruit and drinks.
Dana Anstey
Sierra High School
2003 Barr Trail Mountain Race
To all those involved in directing, organizing, helping with, and sponsoring the 2003 Barr Trail Mountain Race, Thanks again for such a well run and really class event. Anytime you can get that many people to participate in such a challenging event you have to be doing a lot of things right. As last year, all of us who participated in the Aid Station Challenge had a wonderful experience. We want to especially thank those sponsors who generously contributed time and money to not only bring in top runners form everywhere but to help some very worthwhile programs in our area. The fact that it also helps local high schools whose programs never seem to have the funds to do the things they would like is a real bonus. Distance running across the country would be healthier if there were more races with organizers and sponsors like this community. This race would serve as a model for others. I again was able to witness a group of high school runners very involved in making their aid station one that would be helpful to those who welcomed anything that would make such a challenge a good experience. It went beyond the fact that they might pick up an award in addition to the generous contributions already made to the programs who were fortunate enough to be selected to participate in this challenge. When one of our aid station helpers, who will be a freshman this fall, asked “What makes so many people want to come to run such a tough race?,” I had to answer “Because it is such a challenge!” Isn’t that what distance running is all about? She will understand that much better by the end of our season. I hope the many participants and helpers will look at the list of sponsors and give something in return to show their appreciation. They make it possible and something this great needs to continue. The Liberty High School cross country program plans to use our award money in several ways. Last year we were able to replace warm-ups we were using since the school opened in 1987! This year we will finally do the same for the boys team. We will help defray the cost of an overnight race we take the teams to in Leadville. They will get a small taste of how challenging the Barr Trail Race must be when they compete on a hill course at 10,300 ft. altitude. And finally we will again help send our qualified athletes to the Foot Locker Regional X-Country in Wisconsin late November. Last years money helped make it possible for Alex Clayton to finish 16th overall in a very prestigious race in which he was the first Colorado finisher. Again, thanks for making all this possible. Thanks again from coach Gary Weston and the Liberty Cross Country teams. We look forward again to next year.
To the Barr Trail Mountain Race Committee, We would like to enthusiastically thank you for the Aid Station Challenge. If there is another race in the ENTIRE WORLD that donates $7000 to local high school running programs, nobody has heard of it. Last year was our first experience working the BTMR. We had pretty good team participation. This year, we had twice as many of our athletes show up. This was solely the result of word-of-mouth between the kids. Some comments we heard were “This is so much fun!” and “You can’t believe how fast some of these runners can get up to Barr Camp and back!” Anytime fun and respect for the endeavor are connected to distance running by young runners, the future of the sport is enhanced. The money so generously donated by the BTMR will be put to good use in our cross-country program. We like to provide fruit after high intensity workouts for the team as a reward and also to begin replenishing their fuel stores in a healthy way. With an eleven week season, two hard workouts a week, and seventy-five kids on the team, this adds up to a rather large expense. This season, we intend to purchase a good digital camera. We intend to post pictures we take on a team web site we are developing. This can serve as a recruiting tool as well as a way for current team members and alumni of the program to stay in touch. The BTMR money will make this a reality sooner than would have been possible otherwise. The BTMR has already taken its place as one of the premier mountain races in the country. The Aid Station Challenge will have positive repercussions in the local runner community for years to come. We offer our profound thanks for the astounding generosity of the race organizers. Sincerely,
Steve Rischling
Dear BTMR, The Wasson cross country team would like to thank you and the Barr Trail Mountain Race committee for inviting us to participate in the high school aid station challenge. For the second year, we spent the night at Barr Camp and had a great time. The cross country team will use a portion of the money toward the Sason Sharify scholarship fund, which was set up after Coach Sherify died two years ago. Since that time, we have had several coaches and feel that as a team, we would like to use some of the money toward a team-building day, which helps us to get to know each other and to unify as a team. Our team definitely needs new uniforms so hopefully some of the money can help towards this. As you can see, we have a definite need for money, as do all district eleven sports teams, and this was a great way for us to raise money. Once again, we would just like to thank you for inviting us. We are hoping to be invited back next year.
Sincerely,
Dear race committee, volunteers and sponsors of the Barr Trail Mountain Race: I am writing this letter to thank you so much for putting on a great event and for including the area high schools in the aid station challenge. We, Sand Creek, have been fortunate to be involved in this worthwhile endeavor since its inception in 2000. With this year’s $1,000 check we will have received $3,500! Over the years we have used this money to purchase a team tent, team bags, team t-shirts, post season awards, and help us take our annual team trip to the Bolder Boulder. This year we will use the money to purchase the necessary items to put on our first ever cross country race! We are extremely excited and feel we would not be able to put on this event without your financial assistance. Thanks so much again for creating and sustaining such a fine event. We are greatly indebted to you .
Sincerely,
To the Directors and Sponsors of the Barr Trail Mountain Race: The Cross Country Team would like to give a sincere thanks to everyone involved with the Barr Trail Mountain Race! We had a great time 4-wheelin’ in and setting up our aid-station! It was a great team building event and it is always nice to give something back to the running community. Watching a mountain race was exciting for the athletes and I think they learned what a true “pain face” looks like!!! The team is really excited this year because we plan to use a big chunk of our winnings to purchase 10 Polar Heart Rate Monitors to assist us in our training. We hope that by utilizing science in our program, we can educate our athletes to train smart and achieve maximum results. We also plan to buy a video camera to document our season and to assist us with coaching feedback! As a competitive runner of 20+ years, I am very impressed with the Barr Trail Mountain Race. It is coordinated in an amazing way! It is one thing to put together a road race, but adding the difficulty factor of Pikes Peak is an awesome challenge to organize and put together. I would like give a big thumbs-up to Rob and Matt and the race committee for another job well done. Thanks for the huge boost for our program and we were glad to help! Thanks to Search and Rescue for hauling us in early on race day! The “wheelin’” made it fun! I would like to also thank the sponsors of the race for your extreme generosity. Without you, none of this would be possible. As cross country coaches it is really tough to raise funds. This made fund raising easy and very, very fun! To everyone else who made this possible, thank you. To everyone who ran the race... you are all awesome! Sincerely,
Chuck Schwartz
Dear BTMR sponsors, On behalf of Harrison High School and the women’s and men’s cross country programs, I want to extend my gratitude to you for you involvement and sponsorship in this year’s BARR TRAIL MOUNTIAN RACE. This race provided an opportunity for our high school athletes to witness another level of athletics. A number of our athletes were motivated by the experience and hopefully the dedication and passion witnessed will enhance their own dedication and passion to the sport of running. The money raised will allow us to upgrade our women’s program. They will soon feel the pride of matching uniforms and new sweats. As the recently named coach of the women’s cross country program, I eagerly look forward to the challenges of reviving the program. These changes will be accelerated and strengthened as a result of your financial support. Gratefully,
Teenan Anderson
2002 Barr Trail Mountain Race
To The Barr Trail Mountain Race Organizers, Let me begin by reiterating something I said at the meeting held at the Carpenter’s house when the participating schools and aid station locations were drawn. I can’t imagine there are too many other races, if any, in the country/world that set aside $7,000 to give to the high school cross-country programs that are allowed to work the aid stations. This is truly remarkable generosity. Our Air Academy High School runners had a blast working the starting line aid station. Many had never seen a race in which they were not participating. They expressed a lot of admiration for the runners, and more than a few expressed a desire to participate in this world-class race next year. Many runners graciously expressed appreciation for our efforts on their behalf. This left our kids beaming with pride. To summarize, our high school runners were inspired to run, got to associate with some national and world class runners, experienced the satisfaction and camaraderie of a job well done, and our cross-country program received $1,000 for these privileges! If this situation is not described beside the word “bargain” in the dictionary, it should be. This money will certainly be put to good use. We generally have about 75 runners out for cross-country each Fall at Air Academy. Co-curricular budgets are tight and the amount of money we receive each year is inadequate to run the kind of program these kids deserve. Among the things the BTMR money will be used for are new uniforms, fruit and Gatorade to replenish the calories expended during twice-weekly high intensity training sessions, and photographic film and developing that allows us to keep a visual record of every single runner’s accomplishments during the course of the season. We want to express our heartfelt thanks to the race committee and the supporting cast they have assembled. Without countless hours of selfless effort, the Barr Trail Mountain Race would simply not exist. This race is rapidly gaining attention as one of the premier mountain races in the world... for good reason. The generosity to the cross-country programs in the Colorado Springs area is amazing and truly appreciated. Sincerely,
Steve Rischling
To All involved in the 2002 Barr Mountain Trail Race, Let me begin by saying what a great location for a trail race. This year’s race was so gorgeous — and made more enjoyable by knowing we were “one of the few” enjoying Pikes Peak during the ban on its trails. I am the cross country coach for Colorado Springs Christian High School and we were very fortunate to enjoy the benefits of the Aid Station Challenge for two years in a row. We worked the No Name Creek station this year and it was beautiful! What an incredible way to do a fundraiser. Actually — all we did was serve the 350ish runners who were so passionate about running that they chose to run up a mountain. The funds were already there for us prior to this race. I can’t thank Larry, Matt, Yvonne and all the others involved in this fundraising concept enough!! Had we not had the fortune to be a part of this race — we would instead be working concession stands to raise money for the CSCS Cross Country Team! To me it makes much more sense to expose high school athletes to a world of running that can extend well past their years in high school! And I think it is important to give back to the running community that so often is giving to us. Again, I thank you on behalf of my team for the opportunity we were given to give back. $1,000 is an incredible gift in my mind. So when the challenge becomes to win the EXTRA $1,000 for the most enthusiastic aid station, it really is just “icing on the cake” to be competing for it! But speaking strictly for myself, I hope that runners and coaches can be just as enthusiastic without that carrot being dangled before them!! We are so thankful for our $1,000 this year. Since we were able to be a part of this fundraiser for two years — we didn’t have to worry this year about the basic necessities. Some of the money has already been devoted to partial scholarships to send some of our runners to a running camp. The Jim Ryun Running Camp is here in the Springs this week and it is very costly. Offering the assistance has been the only way to get any of our kids there. Some of the money you have given us will be used to purchase some heart rate monitors. And with any remaining money after this purchase, we will be starting a “Running Library.” My hope is that we can put this in our school library so it can be shared by all — but my primary focus is to have monthly magazines and inspirational and informative books available to all my athletes. I’m not sure how far I will get this year with this idea, but your financial contributions will help get this started. I like this idea because it will benefit athletes for years to come!! So again I thank you on behalf of the whole Colorado Springs Christian School Cross Country program. Obviously, we have been able to be more creative in our use of this gift — but I hope the choices we have made will be honoring to all the sponsors who have made this possible!! Thank you all so much! And as a side note — we ask that you remove our name from this coming year’s drawing. We have benefited from your kindness and financial contributions for two years now and we feel it is time to step aside for a year to give other schools the same opportunity! But we will certainly be interested again in two years!! And I am confident this program will still be around two years from now because it is such an incredible way to earn money for cross country!!
Thank You!!
Date: July 28, 2002 To: The Generous Sponsors of the Barr Trail Mountain Race On behalf of the entire Coronado High School Cross Country Team, I would like to thank each and every sponsor of the Barr Trail Mountain Race for their generous contributions to the high school challenge. It was a pleasure to help at an aid station this year. The kids had a nice time volunteering their time and effort at this event. It is always good for them to give a little back to the sport that they are now newly involved with. This will hopefully instill in them the desire to participate in volunteer work in the years to come. It is also very good for them to see elite athletes performing at this high level of racing, and to appreciate the work involved in making a large event like this run successfully. Coronado’s cross country program does not have much money and is always in need of funds for equipment, uniforms, travel money, and financial support for those students who can not afford to participate on the team. This year we are in need of a new timing system, and will attempt to purchase one if enough money is available. Therefore, earning this $1,000 was a big help in meeting these needs. Our team is extremely grateful for your support and investment in the running youth of Colorado Springs. They are the future of our sport. With Sincere Appreciation:
Doug Hugill & The Coronado High School Cross Country Team
8/10/02 To the organization and sponsors of the Barr Trail Mountain Race, Thanks to everyone who made it possible for us and the other schools to be involved in a truly class event. We are extremely excited to receive such a generous donation to help our program. In all my 30 years of running and racing I’ve never seen a race able to make those kinds of contributions to the local running community. In this case — future running community. It’s a great investment in the future of running. Money that allows schools to do things to improve their programs will ultimately make running a positive experience and insure its future with these athletes. The sponsors who made these contributions possible deserve a special thanks. Not only were there sponsors who directly benefit by promoting running, such as Boulder Running Company, Colorado Running Company, Action Potential and Fitness Systems, but others who aren’t even associated with running. That’s remarkable. Liberty High School was fortunate enough to win the $1,000 bonus for winning the aid station challenge. It was a very exciting experience for all involved. The kids had fun dressing up, selecting the music they would play for the runners and being able to witness and be involved in such a challenging, class event. We were very fortunate that our last minute “McGyver” we did on a travel trailer pump and a bunch of hoses and adapters worked to make a nice water mister machine to aid the runners. Knowing that they were helping the runners was very rewarding. The $2,000 will help us do a number of things this season. We can help with the cost of some overnight trips to races, buy extra items like fluid replacement drinks and energy bars for after races or hard workouts, replace some warm-ups we’ve been using since the school opened in 1987, and help send qualified runners to the Foot Locker Regional meet in Wisconsin in November. We look forward to the experience again next year. Thanks again for the very generous contributions. Sincerely, Coach Gary Weston and the Liberty H.S. Cross Country Teams
August 5, 2002 Dear Barr Trail Mountain Race organizers and sponsors: As head cross country coach at Sand Creek High School, I would like to take this opportunity to thank you for allowing us to participate in the high school challenge competition at the third annual Barr Trail Mountain Race on July 14, 2002. This competition has been the highlight of our summer program for the last three summers. The kids really have taken some ownership in running the aid station to make it enjoyable for the runners. Additionally, it seems to be a great team-building experience for us. During the last two years, we have used the proceeds from this race to help fund the following things: purchasing team bags for our cross country and track teams, purchase of a carrying case for our team tent, funding our kick-off parent meeting and season-ending banquet, purchased materials for our season yearbook, rented a van for our annual Bolder Boulder trip, and paid entry fees for the PPRR Winter Series. This year, our main expenditure will be to buy heart rate monitors to be used in our team training and to buy a new team tent and banner. The extra money will come in handy and is certainly appreciated. Again, thanks so much for including us in your great race and for supporting youth distance running in the Pikes Peak region. We certainly hope that we will be considered for future Barr Trail Mountain Races. Sincerely,
Joe Davis
July 18, 2002 Dear Barr Trail Mountain Race Sponsors: Thank you for the opportunity to participate in this year’s aid station challenge. We worked very hard and had a lot of fun. Barr Camp brought us together as a more cohesive team. We appreciate your contributions to high school cross country running programs. Some of our ideas for using the $1,000 we receive include:
We hope to have the same opportunity next year and again appreciate your support of these programs.
Sincerely,
2001 Barr Trail Mountain Race
Dear BTMR committee, As head cross country coach at Sand Creek high school, I would like to take this opportunity to thank you and your fine organization for allowing us to participate in the High School Challenge competition at the second annual Barr Trail Run on July 15, 2001. This competition has been the highlight of our summer program for the last two summers. The kids really have taken some ownership in running the aid station to make it enjoyable for the runners. It has also been a great team builder for us. Last year, we used the $500 to help buy team travel bags that are used by both our track and cross country programs. This year, the $1,000 we receive will be used for the following items: new carrying case for EZup tent, our season kick-off parent dinner, our season ending banquet (awards, prizes, building rental, etc) season yearbook, and off-season entries to the Bolder Boulder and PPRR Winter Series. Again, thanks so much for including us in your great race and supporting youth distance running in the Pikes Peak region. We certainly hope that we will be considered for future Barr Trail races.
Sincerely, Joe Davis
Barr Trail Mountain Race, Thanks for giving us the opportunity to participate in this year’s High School Aid Station Challenge. Mesa Ridge dressed up like a poor cross country team, because that is what we are. The $1000 is greatly appreciated and will be used to by the team their own uniforms and sweats. At present, we use the same uniforms from the track team. I can’t begin to tell you how impressed we were by the event. It was a class act, with outstanding organization and great team work. From our vantage point everything went off perfectly, with only minor glitches (six of our kids oversleeping). Give our thanks to the Summit Missions group, they were a Godsend. I was truly impressed by you, Matt and Larry. You’re a great team and the main reason the event was such a huge success. Bravo Zulu — you did an outstanding job. We hope we will have a chance to participate in the future and definitely plan on signing up again for next year. Now that we have a race under our belt, we plan on being more creative with our costumes next time around. Please give Matt our congratulations and let him know he made quite an impact on our cross country team. Does he do motivational talks for High Schools? We would sure love to have him talk to our students. Also please convey our sincere thanks and appreciation to the sponsors. Let them know the money will be going to buy new uniforms. And if there is any left over, we will also by one of those E-Z UP tents with our school name on it. Once again, thank you for such a rewarding experience. It was an extreme pleasure working with you. If you need help in the future, I would be honored to help in anyway I can. I’m not a world class runner like Matt, but I enjoy running and planning running events.
Sincerely
Roger, Matt, Larry, other BTMR committeemen and women and race sponsors: I mirror the sentiments of the CSCS program when I say that assisting in and being one of the beneficiaries of yesterday’s very successful race up America’s mountain was a wonderful experience. Fundraising has been not an extracurricular, but rather a mandatory element of the coaching regime in recent years. To supplement the monies provided by the school district makes possible many of the aspects of a cross country program that remain most vivid and often most sentimental within the student athletes’ memories. Some aspects include journeys to distant locations to compete against formidable competition and further bond as a team. It includes owning the proper equipment to elevate the levels of performance. It also includes being able to look like a quality program by being able to supply the athletes with proper uniforms that they can be proud to wear. Though Cheyenne Mountain High School is situated in a wealthy part of the city, the money allotted to the boys and girls cross country program is consistent with that of other public schools. Your generosity will help make it possible for our athletes to enjoy the following in the Fall 2001 season:
There were 17 members of the Cheyenne Mountain High School boys and girls teams who participated in yesterday’s event. The race participants and organizers treated all of us very well while simultaneously doubling as very positive role models. Thank you again for including us in this event and for your generous contribution of $1000. We welcome the chance to be a part of the 2002 BTMR race if the chance should present itself. Regards,
Brian Kates
BTMR committee, Thanks for allowing us to participate in the high school aid station challenge at the starting and finish lines. Colorado Springs Christian School had seven athletes and five adults participating by dressing up like a start/finish line with cone hats, timing clock people-boards, checkered flags, with multi-colored flags completing the ensemble! We had a great time helping out. One athlete commented that she felt like a wimp now running 5K cross country after witnessing the BTMR. I felt it was a great experience for my cross country team. Thank you also for the $1000 award. That nearly doubles our budget for the entire year. We plan to use the money to purchase another EZ-UP tent like we set up by the finish line since our old tents are wearing out, buy new flags for our home cross country meet, buy a new coach’s stopwatch, reimburse our assistant coach for materials used to make our race costumes, buy more girls uniforms, and rent motel rooms for the team before a Saturday morning race in Leadville so they don’t have to leave the school at 5:30 am. The tent is very helpful in dealing with Colorado weather: sometimes it protects us from heat, other times from the cold by hanging side panels, sometimes both at the same meet! If the money stretches far enough, we will also purchase more side panels since we only have enough to enclose one tent. We also need to buy a carrying bag for the tent. We were very impressed with the race organization and philosophy. Using sponsors to help area high school teams and entry fees to support organizations like the Search and Rescue Unit is an honorable way of hosting a meet. We hope we will have a chance at participating again. We definitely will sign up for next year. We know we had a very easy station to put on; we look forward to the challenge of serving at a higher location in the future. Once again, thank you. Please forward our thanks to the sponsors and runners.
Sincerely,
Dear BTMR committee; Thank you all again for the opportunity to be involved once again in the BTMR. It was a great experience for all of the team members involved; it allowed them to get to know more about the running world outside of high school. Not only did the event provide money ($2000) for our program, but it was a great way to improve team unity. We plan on using our prize money for many things we have been hoping to get over the past few years. First, we will buy more warm-ups for our boys and girls teams. Over the past few years, tops and bottoms have disappeared, its getting hard to find a full outfit. Next, we will purchase gear bags for the varsity teams, pieces of equipment that are long over due. Like CSCS and Mesa Ridge, we will also purchase a new EZ-UP tent with our school name on it. Our current tents are unusable. The remainder of our prize money will be combined with the small amount of funds allocated to the Cross-Country program, to pay for things like travel and meet entry fees (approx. $2180), and the state meet costs (approx.$500). Please thank all of the sponsors again for their commitment to improving running by getting the kids involved and supporting their programs. Thank you all for hosting such a great event, we were all impressed, and would love to be a part of it again. The prize money will ease the immense pressure placed on athletes to raise funds for their programs. Congrats again to Matt, for an outstanding race; to Larry, for helping put on such a successful event; and to Roger “the Rhino", for helping with the event and for great announcing.
Sincerely,
BTMR committee; The Coaching Staff and athletes of Palmer high school’s cross country team would like to say thank you for the money and wonderful experience we had working the 2001 Barr Trail Mountain Race. I know that the experience of staying at Barr Camp and working this race was one of the highlights of the summer for both myself and the 18 athletes that worked the race. The $1000 that we earned from this fundraiser is both greatly appreciated and desperately needed. Our team keeps growing in numbers and this year we should have between 90 and 100 runners. This money will be used to buy new uniforms and warm-up gear to outfit our growing numbers. A portion of the money will also be used to help augment the expenses of traveling to out of town meets. Everyone associated with Palmer cross country is extremely grateful for this opportunity and hopes to participate in this event again next year. Thank you for helping to support high school cross country.
Tracy Barber
2000 Barr Trail Mountain Race
Dear Race Directors and Sponsors, I wanted to take a moment, now that our cross country season is over, and thank the Barr Trail Mountain Race Committee and the corporate sponsors for their generous donation of $500 to the Coronado High School Cross Country Team. This money was greatly needed, and helped us to purchase 30 new uniforms. Over the last three seasons, our numbers have grown form 17 to 37 to 65 high school runners. With extremely tight District #11 budget constraints we had no way of outfitting our team. It would be a shame to deny a young runner a uniform, or the opportunity to participate in our fine sport of running, due to a lack of funds. Your contribution was very welcomed and timely. We would be honored to help out with next year’s race if the opportunity arises. Once again, thank you for your investment in the future of our sport.
Sincerely, Home | Back to the Challenge |