Into Thin Air

Group Run At Lake Dillon

The decreased pressure at altitude means that less oxygen is delivered  to your cells with each breath. This added stress can be beneficial when training for endurance events. It’s also tough to beat the mountain scenery. For these reasons a few members of Team In Training met this morning in Dillon, a hub of condominiums and shops anchoring the well-known ski resorts of Summit County. Breckenridge, Keystone, Arapahoe Basin and Copper Mountain ski areas are all nearby. I met Coach Rick, Courtney (who lives in Keystone), and Cathie (a staff member at the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society) at the coffee shop and crossed the highway to access the Lake Dillon Recreation Trail. The paved trail leads west across the Dillon Dam and follows the undulating shores of the lake. We discovered the popularity of the trail among cyclists, runners, and walkers as dozens of folks rushed by in every direction. The Dillon Reservoir is one of seven large water repositories managed by Denver Water to provide for the needs of its thirsty residents. It is the city’s single largest water source, holding approximately 40% of the water that makes its way to Denver taps. The man-made lake holds over 83 billion gallons of water when full! It is on the Western Slope of the Rockies and when water leaves the lake it flows through a tunnel over 23 miles long that carries it under the Continental Divide. From the eastern opening of the tunnel, it spills into the South Platte River already making its way to Denver. The city has been actively encouraging citizens to conserve water since a drought began in 2002. To learn what you can do to reduce your own water use visit their site at: http://useonlywhatyouneed.org/. Happy 4th of July!