Between now and race day, we will continue to update participants with important news and reminders.

Pre-Race Dinner

We’ve just confirmed plans to host a pre-race dinner and packet pickup at Avagadro’s Number on Saturday, October 2nd from 5pm to 7pm.

More details are online here.

Avagadro’s will provide a buffet dinner for $7 per person. We need to give them an estimate of attendees to prepare for so please email us back at info@blueskymarathon.com to RSVP. Let us know if you will be attending for the buffet and if you will bring any additional family or friends.

Registration Updates

Now through the end of day Sunday, September 12th we will accept requests to transfer entries to other runners, downgrades from the Marathon to the Half Marathon, or upgrades from the Half Marathon to the Marathon.

Instructions are available on our registration page.

Please note that a transfer is not complete until we recieve the new runner’s transfer registration form. If we do not have this by September 12th, the transfer will not be completed.

We will publish a final confirmed registration list on Monday, September 13th and will not accept any additional change requests.

The most current list of confirmed entrants is published on our registration page. Please double check your entry and email us with any corrections or questions.

Thank you!

The Blue Sky Events committee is happy to have SmartWool on board as both a supplier of an eco-friendly product and as a local Colorado business.

Based in Steamboat Springs, CO, SmartWool is a year-round apparel brand whose products are inspired by living and playing in the mountains. SmartWool products are created to get the most out of the inherent benefits of Merino wool while delivering extraordinary comfort through intelligent and thoughtful products, allowing mountain athletes to do what they love to do longer.

For information on the full range of SmartWool® products or to find a dealer near you, please log onto SmartWool’s website: www.SmartWool.com or visit us on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/smartwool or twitter: http://twitter.com/smartwooligans.

Final registration lists have been updated along with additional information about our registration change and transfer policy.

Active at Altitude is a magnificent mountain lodge in Estes Park, CO, specializing in running camps and running vacations, Groups from 1 to 15 can be accommodated in beautiful spacious rooms with a variety of room options. The lodge is situated at 8,200 feet, close to a myriad of trails in Estes and Rocky Mountain National Park. Camps and vacations can be created to match your specific needs and gives you an opportunity to run, train, and live in one of the most beautiful, challenging and inspiring training terrains anywhere in the USA. For more details see www.activeataltitude.com.

There are still spots left open for the Marathon.

Confirmed entrants lists have been posted on the Registration page.

In addition to providing a generous donation to help make this event possible, Colorado Physical Therapy Specialists will donate 3 certificates for either a running video analysis or free PT session to include in the post-race raffle.

Colorado Physical Therapy Specialists is your primary care provider for all your orthopaedic needs. Specialists in sports injuries, neck and back pain, chronic pain, and women’s health. Providing expert care including spinal manipulation, trigger point dry needling, and the only clinic in Colorado certified to provide ASTYM (www.astym.com), a revolutionary treatment for chronic tendon pain including plantar fasciitis.

For more information about Colorado Physical Therapy Specialists, please visit www.colpts.com.

SUCCEED! Sportsdrink is a locally owned and operated sports nutrition company in Windsor, Colorado.  All SUCCEED! products have been designed by Karl King, president of SUCCEED! Sportsdrink and a veteran ultra runner.

SUCCEED! Ultra will be offered as the energy drink at the Blue Sky Marathon aid stations. SUCCEED! Ultra has a very mild orange flavor and is a basic mix of maltodextrin carbohydrate, a small amount of sucrose for flavor, electrolytes with sodium and potassium chloride, and vitamin C and E. SUCCEED! Ultra is intended for training and racing events up to 6 hours.

SUCCEED! S! Caps will also be stocked at all aid stations on the Blue Sky Marathon course. S! Caps are 100% electrolytes with sodium, potassium, chloride, bicarbonate, and phosphate. S! Caps can be used in addition to SUCCEED! Ultra to alleviate cramping and help stabilize the stomach.

For more information about SUCCEED! Sportsdrink products or to order samples to try during your training for the Blue Sky Marathon or Half Marathon, please visit www.succeedscaps.com.

The largest beneficiary of the races is our race host, Larimer County Parks and Open Spaces. The county will use the donation to protect and maintain the trails in Horsetooth Mountain Park, the Blue Sky Trail and the trails in Devils Backbone that the race is run on. The county has been a great host to the race over the past two years, providing race parking and the support from county rangers. We are glad to be able to work with the county to continue to put on these races and provide money to maintain the wonderful trails.

A second beneficiary was Larimer County Search and Rescue. LCSAR is a volunteer nonprofit organization that provides search and rescue services to the county free of charge. NCSR provides volunteers and medical support at the Indian summer aid stations in the races. They are the wonderful people in the orange shirts that are passing out water and helping injured runners with immediate first aid.

Our third beneficiary was the Northern Colorado Running Foundation. This donation was used to support the Fort Collins Middle School Cross Country program in its second year. NCRF along with the Runner’s Roost purchased and screened racing singlets for all of the middle school cross country teams in the Poudre School District to compete in throughout the fall racing season. Sixth, seventh and eighth graders will race in these singlets for years to come.

The race doubled in size with 191 runners competing in three events: a 50k, full marathon (closer to 27 miles) and a half marathon run on the Blue Sky Trail that connects Horsetooth Mountain Open Space and the Devils Backbone Open Space Park. Precipitation fell towards the end of the event for a portion of the runners enabling many to enjoy fast times as shown by the results. Enthusiastic volunteers motivated runners throughout the 50k, full marathon and the half marathon courses. Hot chili and a wide variety of food greeted the runners at the finish along with post race massages and consultations with Colorado Physical Therapy Specialists.

Ryan Burch of Greeley, Colorado won the inaugural 50k trail race in a time of 4:05:48 averaging 7:55/mile. Victoria Funk of Fort Collins took the overall women’s 50k race in a time of 5:33:30.

Eric Gustafson ran his first 50k and spoke of his fondness for the event "…I ran in the rain and the mud and had a blast. I met a lot of great people on the course… and the aid station staffs were fantastic."

The overall marathon winner was local Fort Collins runner Steve Folkerts who also ran his first trail marathon in a time of 3:13:47 lowering the course record by ten minutes. Nick Clark, a avid trail runner in Fort Collins, came in second in 3:22:01. For the women, Kelli Picon of Greeley, Colorado took first overall for the women in 4:52:33. Second and third place for the women was separated by a mere eleven seconds between Kendra Emery of Boulder and Molly Holemberg of Nederland.

The majority of half marathon runners were able to capitalize on ideal cool running conditions before the rain started. Suzan Nuzum of Boulder repeated as the returning women’s champion in a time of 1:41:44 lowering her course record by over a minute and a half. For the men Andy Ames, also of Boulder, smoked the course in a time of 1:24:39 lowering the record by almost seven minutes.

Cocona, Inc was this year’s presenting sponsor of the event providing race hats and visors for race participants. Cocona fabrics provide a natural solution utilizing the shells of coconuts to provide evaporative cooling, odor management and UV protection. Colorado Physical Therapy Specialists (Premiere Sponsor), The Runners Roost (Supporting Sponsor) both returned this year to contribute to the organized and appreciated event.

Proceeds from the event benefit The Northern Colorado Running Foundation, Larimer County Search and Rescue and Larimer County Parks and Open Lands Areas.

The inaugural Blue Sky Marathon and Half Marathon Races, presented by Colorado Physical Therapy Specialists, will be held at Horsetooth Mountain Park in Fort Collins, Colorado on October 5th, 2008. The Blue Sky Marathon will be the first all-trail marathon event in Northern Colorado.

Fort Collins, CO – [09/12/08] – Blue Sky Events is proud to announce the inaugural Blue Sky Marathon and Half Marathon Races in Fort Collins, Colorado on Sunday October 5th. Both races will start and finish at the Horsetooth Mountain Park Soderberg Trailhead. The marathon will start at 7am and the half marathon will start at 9am.

The Blue Sky Marathon will be the first all-trail marathon of its kind in Northern Colorado. The course will combine trails from Horsetooth Mountain Park and the Devil’s Backbone Open Space along the Blue Sky Trail. This course incorporates some of the best trails that our area has to offer and covers a variety of fun and challenging terrain with incredible views of Horsetooth rock, Devil’s Backbone, Longs Peak, and the eastern plains.

Blue Sky Events was founded by local Fort Collins Trail Runners as a non-profit organization. All proceeds from the Blue Sky Marathon and Half Marathon Races will be donated to Larimer County Parks and Open Spaces and Larimer Search and Rescue. As funds are available, additional donations may be distributed to other Northern Colorado sports and outdoor organizations.

The inaugural 2008 races are made possible by donations and contributions from our generous sponsors, volunteer members, and race participants. In addition to their generous donation, presenting sponsor Colorado Physical Therapy Specialists will provide water bottles for all participants as well as five free therapy sessions for our post race raffle. The overall male and female marathon winners will each receive a free VO2 Max physiology test from Boulder Performance Lab. We would also like to thank Runners Roost Fort Collins and SUCCEED! SportsDrink for their product contributions as well as Dan and Carol Turk for their generous donation to help start our organization.
“Colorado Physical Therapy Specialists is excited to be the presenting sponsor for the inaugural Blue Sky Marathon and Half Marathon,” says Terry Gebhardt, certified Orthopedic Physical Therapist and ultra marathon enthusiast. “We share the race committee’s passion for having quality running events showcasing the beautiful trails of Northern Colorado while giving back to the community. Because the Blue Sky Marathon is the only race of its kind in Northern Colorado, we think it will quickly develop into one of the premiere races on the Front Range.”