When my friend asked my husband and I to fly out to Colorado for Memorial Day Weekend we were thrilled to add the BolderBoulder 10k to the list of our activities. Who doesn’t love running in a new place? I forgot about that whole altitude thing and just said YES! We woke up bright and early on Memorial Day Monday to drive the 1hr plus it takes to get from Denver to Boulder. We hit a bit of traffic on the way and parked on the UC Denver Campus. Our friends are veterans of this race so they knew the layout already.

Despite leaving super early and parking efficiently and a crazy quick bathroom break we missed our coral by 5 minutes. But no worries, there’s a million corals at this race! They seem to start at 7am and go every 2-3 minutes until 9:30am. Turns out there are like 50,000 people who run this race. (Who would have known…?)

My hubby and I are on the left and Mrs & Mrs. RockyMtnPearls are on the right.

The race was set up very well and it was pretty easy to walk around. There wasn’t anyone really checking bibs, but everyone was so polite and courteous that it didn’t matter.

Oh Well here we go…

We started a little before 8am. The weather was gorgeous and there was plenty of space. The BolderBoulder had a mile marker and km marker at each point during the race. We saw miles 1-6 and km 1-10. This was amusing the first few and last few. Here’s where it gets real. I don’t run at high altitude. Fun fact: If you’re not use to running at high altitude it’s not easy.

So many bands!

So we took out time and people watched. We checked out costumes, stopped for Doritos and enjoyed the sites all while I struggled to breath. There were tons of great race signs on the course including my favorite race sign ever. 2 people had written 6 mile mark at mile 1. Then they cheered people on by telling them they were winning the race. I found this to be hilarious! I could not stop laughing (which didn’t help breathing). Our running buddies eventually pulled away and my hubby and I ran the rest just the 2 of us.

Who doesn’t love to run at 5,391 ft!

We passed 2 slip n slides, a tutu station, a sausage station, belly dancers, and so many other great race-tertainers! Everyone was so welcoming and friendly. There was plenty of water/Gatorade and lots of stops. This made the race more comfortable for fans of sea level running like myself.

The course was well done but, the finish was definitely my favorite part. You run into the Stadium! I must admit that at that point my hubby and I started sprinting to the finish. Overall, despite the altitude I had a fantastic time. The course support is amazing, the entertainment is top-notch, and it’s so well-organized!

For 90secs I felt like a pro!

Post Race Selfie with the hubby

After the race we met back up with RockyMtnPearls and her husband and headed back to Denver. That afternoon was spent sipping delicious cocktails, dining of Rob’s Fatburgers (Amazing!), and just relaxing. That evening we played Monopoly and I kicked everyone’s butt! Spoiler alert: I am ruthless when it comes to board games.

The next day we ate at Snooze again, and went back home to DC. Unfortunately our 4ish hr flight turned into a 15 hr airport saga! We spent some time at the Columbus, OH airport! In the end Southwest, was kind enough to give us vouchers that paid for most of our flights for the next Race-Cation in Walt Disney World!!

Do you run at High Altitude? When you’re having a tough time do you let the pack breakup? Do you ever people watch at races? What’s your favorite race sign? Are you also horrible when it comes to board games? Do you race-cation?