Summer Outdoor Experiences Expand in Aspen with Marathons, Mountain Races,  Sporting Events, and Adventure Programs

ASPEN, Colo. (April 20, 2018) – Throughout the summer and fall, Aspen, Colorado hosts numerous outdoor races and events from cycling to high-altitude trail running, as well as sporting events in rugby and volleyball. In addition to the outdoor races and sporting events, there are numerous experiences offered by local guiding services to tailor an Aspen experience completely to visitors’ interests and skill-level, from beginning to expert.

Summer Races:

• Power of Four Trail 10K, 25K & 50K Run, July 28 – The Power of Four Trail Race Series offers three different races in Aspen Snowmass including the 10K, 25K, and the challenging 50K Ultra that covers the four Aspen Snowmass mountains.
• Power of Four Mountain Bike Race, July 29 – This unique mountain bike race combines single and double track trails across the four ski areas of Aspen Snowmass into one challenging course.
• Aspen Backcountry Marathon, Aug. 11 – The Aspen Backcountry Marathon route is exclusively on high country dirt trails in the beautiful backcountry with views of the Elk Mountains and the city of Aspen.
• Grand Traverse Mountain Run & Bike, Sept. 1-2 – The annual Grand Traverse Mountain Run & Bike will take place on a fully supported trail from Crested Butte to Aspen, a 40-mile course. Participants may choose to do the race solo or as a team of two. The races will start in downtown Crested Butte on Elk Avenue and finish at the base of Aspen Mountain.
• Golden Leaf Half Marathon, Sept. 22 – Named by Trail Runner as one of “America’s 14 most scenic races”, the Golden Leaf Half Marathon on Sept. 22 is a race like no other. It gains 970 feet in elevation on a narrow, winding single-track before peaking out at 9,400 feet above sea level.

Sporting Events:

• Motherlode Volleyball Classic Aug. 29- Sept. 3 – Nearly 700 teams from all over the country come to Aspen to compete in the 46^th annual Motherlode Volleyball Classic, one of North America’s largest and most popular beach volleyball events.
• Aspen Ruggerfest Sept. 13-16 – The 51^st annual Aspen Ruggerfest returns to town in September. This is the only all-ages, full-contact rugby tournament in the world, with teams from around the country competing for the championship title.

Adventure Programs:

Hiring a professional guide from a naturalist to a mountaineer is a great way to quickly and safely gain new skills for outdoor adventures and explore the Aspen area from a new perspective. Aspen has many professional guiding services including the following:

• Aspen Center for Environmental Studies (ACES) offers a variety of daily programs including free daily tours at the Maroon Bells, on Aspen Mountain and at Snowmass with an ACES naturalist guide. ACES naturalist guides are also available to hire at a price of $50 per hour for guided, personalized adventures that can be tailored to the groups athletic ability and interests, including geology, fauna and flora and more. ACES can provide transportation as well as snacks and lunch.
• Professional guiding service Aspen Alpine Guides offers a full roster of year-round mountain guiding adventures as well as technical mountaineering instruction. Their most popular adventures include the “Leave the Boys Behind,” guided 14’er (a peak higher than 14,000 feet) peak climbs, and backcountry overnight hut trips.
• Aspen Expeditions offers private and group lessons and courses in mountaineering and rock climbing. Aspen Expeditions is the only slope slide Dynafit Test Center in the Roaring Fork Valley, and they operate a full backcountry shop at Aspen Highlands.
• Water lovers take to the rivers on a variety of equipment including whitewater rafts, kayaks and stand up paddleboard with Aspen Kayak and SUP Academy, Aspen Whitewater Rafting, Blazing Adventures and other local outfitters.
• Guided cycling can be enjoyed with a number of outfitters including Aspen Cycling Tours, Blazing Adventures, and Sun Dog Athletics. Bike Butlers is a local bike rental delivery that also provides shuttle service pick-up.

For additional event listings for the summer season, check out the online summer events calendar.

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