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Blog Entry 3 of 9 The Walking Blues
Castle Rock, Colorado is a collision of many strange cultures in the twilit crossroads of the American dream turned nightmare and the old west. At first glance, this quaint little town-gone-city may seem harmless or mundane. Its landscape of wind-born mesas and ridges rises above the western end of the Great Plains like a prologue to the Rocky Mountains, which loom in the west as a reminder of earth's true power over humankind. But we glorified apes make a run at mother nature anyway--like a suburban soccer mom in an SUV heading on a crash course toward a drugstore cowboy driving a diesel pickup the other way (which neither notices because they're on their cell phones). Imagine a guy walking past one of the neon-green pedestrian signs they put in the middle of the crosswalks around town while the scenario written above takes place. He looks past contemporary life's tragedies because he's found something wonderful and beatific in putting one foot in front of the other. He's dressed in hiking boots, shorts, and a T-shirt colored with earth tones. At the last second, this guy sees this head-on collision of cars and cultures coming his way. Will he be crushed between the bumpers of the rich suburbanites, ranchers, and townees of Castle Rock? Or can he jump out of the way in time to experience all the sights, smells, and sounds the underbelly of this town has to offer? That guy is me. This is my blog.

Blog Url: http://denver.yourhub.com/~TheWalkingBlues

The Rock around the walk
Contributed by: James Freeman   on 7/3/2008

Everyone knows about the Castle Rock. It's one of the most recognizable features in Colorado.

Authors and historians have featured it in their works. Rising out of the landscape like a gnawed-on carrot cake atop a mound of broccoli, hungry highway travelers look at it with longing. Very few people know that you can walk to the top of this sleeping monolith and catch a great view of the Front Range.

Those, who have heard about hiking The Rock go trudging up the summit trail with little or no stamina. They stumble up the hillside, smelling of dusty sweat and snagging their clothes on the scrub oaks, which line the path. But I've found you can use the whole town, and eventually The Rock itself, as a training ground.

Gym's can be great for training. I used to live in them when I was an overweight power lifter. After I slimmed down, I used the recreation center's treadmills and elliptical machines to build my endurance. Now, the gym just doesn't quite do it for me anymore.

Driving to the gym to pedal or run on an immobile piece of equipment in a musty, sweat warehouse every day is absurd. Walking to different places and experiencing the town in all its myriad forms is a great way to stay healthy. You can use Castle Rock as your fee-free gym.

Start out walking around your block every day. After a while, go a mile. Health experts recommend a minimum of thirty minutes of moderate exercise daily. So try to build up to about three miles by going a little farther every day.

Pedometers work great to measure your steps, but they're not necessary. Later, as you become more fit and see results in your waste line and overall endurance, start tromping up some of the hills around town.

The area east of downtown between 6th Street and Valley Road has great hills. South street to Crystal Valley Parkway can be an awesome up and down workout too. I see people walking them all the time. Once your endurance increases, you can take some of the local trails. This is where The Rock comes in.

Try Memmen Ridge's trail and the concrete path that goes north from the Recreation Center for the next level of training. Both these ways have a lot of trees, flowers, and wildlife to enjoy.

You'll catch a great view of the front range on western down slopes too. Once you can cruise up those inclines with relative ease, take the perimeter trail on The Castle Rock. Later on, try the summit trail on The Rock and the new mesa path at Rhyolite Park.

If you monitor how many calories your consuming and get a lot of vitamins, you will lose weight and improve your health--just by using your legs. You will find that, as the fat comes off and your muscles grow stronger over time, you'll have more energy to travel farther, faster.

Keep doing a little more every day, and you'll be surprised at what your body can accomplish. Castle Rock's natural training facility can be your springboard to ever-more-rigorous hiking and running. All you have to do is give yourself half and hour or so to work out every day.


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Showing 1-2 of 2 comments
Submitted By: Joseph Kirchmer
posted on 7/9/2008 @ 12:12:39 PM
Rated Blog Entry
Mick, I think I would prefer the latter. Drinking wine and watching trains go by? That sounds awesome!
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Submitted By: Michael Rule
posted on 7/4/2008 @ 7:47:37 AM
Rated Blog Entry
Hey, great blog. I hope you get some people motivated. Back when I lived in castle Rock I used to run the trails up to "The Rock 2-3 times a week. Then there was the time 2 buddies and I climbed to the top with a jug of wine and counted train cars going by all day....
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Showing 1-2 of 2 comments
CONTRIBUTOR INFORMATION

James Freeman

Castle Rock , CO

James Freeman has posted 9 blog entries and 7 comments since joining on 6/12/2008. James Freeman 's average blog rating is 5.
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