This story has been archived from the Thursday, March 2, 2006

Ascent fills up in record time

By MARK FITZHENRY
THE GAZETTE

A handful of 16-year-olds, two 72-yearold women from Arkansas and an 80-year old man from Evergreen had something in common Wednesday.

They signed up for the Pikes Peak Ascent, and they did so quickly.

They had no choice.

When Roger Pumphrey, a 58-year-old from Colorado Springs, registered late Wednesday afternoon, the 1,800-runner Ascent field was filled in record time. It took less than 10 hours, which destroyed the previous record of 60 hours set for last year’s 50th running.

The race’s official Web site declared the Ascent full at 5:53 p.m. Registration, which could be done only online, began at 8 a.m.

The Marathon, which can have 800 runners, was 95 percent filled as of 10:30 p.m., according to the site.

The 13.32-mile Ascent is Aug. 19. The Marathon is the next day. Both races reach the 14,115-foot summit of Pikes Peak.

Copyright 2006, The Gazette, a division of Freedom Colorado Information. All rights reserved. Used with permission.