Incline Friends Membership Meeting
Incline Friends will hold its first General Membership meeting at 6 PM, Thursday, May 3. It will be held at the Colorado Springs Parks and Recreation offices, 1401 Recreation Way. Everyone is invited to attend.
They will discuss the Incline Friends organizational status, provide updated information about the legalizing the Incline and discuss 13 crucial steps that will lead to opening day! There will also be information about the May 12 volunteer work day.
Representatives from Incline Friends partner cities and organizations will be available to answer questions and take your input. Incline Friends is also interested in your ideas about the direction of the friends group.
Inclinathon – Manitou Incline 13 Times in a Row
Think it’s hard to hike the Manitou Incline once? How about 2 times in a row? Back in January, Brandon Stapanowich proposed the brutal Inclinathon consisting of 13 Incline round trips.
It wasn’t until a few days ago that Ed Baxter read the post on Pikes Peak Sports. Ed and his twin brother Fred climb the Incline often. Ed thought why not give the Inclinathon a try.
He started his Inclinathon attempt at 3 AM on Saturday. Although he struggled on lap 9 and took a nap, he finished 13 Incline round trips in 13 hours and 15 minutes. Ed’s the first to do the Inclinathon but some others a planning on attempting it next week.
Read more about Ed’s Inclinathon on Pikes Peak Sports.
Bicycle Dreams Movie Fundraiser
The Race Across America (RAAM) has been called the world’s toughest bike race. It is approximately 1.5 times the distance of the Tour de France but has a time limit of 12 days instead of the 3 weeks that the Tour de France takes. That makes for a minimum of 250 miles a day. RAAM racers are on the bikes 20+ hours a day and ride alone instead of in a pack.
You might wonder what it has to do with the Manitou Incline. A movie about RAAM is being used as a fundraiser for the Incline Friends. Bicycle Dreams is a feature-length documentary about the 2005 RAAM. It was won awards at many film festivals over the last few years.
The Bicycle Dreams fundraiser is on Wednesday, March 28 at 7 PM at the Stargazers Theatre. Tickets cost $11 in advance online at imATHLETE or $15 at the door. Tickets are also available at the Colorado Running Company, 833 N. Tejon, and 9275 N. Union, Suite 120; Carmichael Training Systems, 600 S. 21st; Criterium Bicycles, 6150 Corporate Center Dr., and Team Telecycle at 615 S. Baldwin St. in Woodland Park.
There will be 2 RAAM finishers at the movie showing to tell about their personal experiences. Fred Boethling set a new record in 2006 for the 60+ age category. He is now the organizer for RAAM.
You can read a Bicycle Dreams review here. If you want to more about RAAM, you can read a Race Across America FAQ here.
Critical Incline Votes
Update 2/28/12: Both Colorado Springs and Manitou Springs city councils unanimously approved the IGA for the Incline. That’s 2 more big steps climbed but there are many more including an act of Congress before the Incline can be legallly opened.
Tomorrow is a critical day in the legalization of the Manitou Incline for hiking or running for those that can. Both Colorado Springs and Manitou Springs will be voting on the inter-governmental agreement for managing the Incline. It is far from certain that the agreement will be approved by Manitou at this time. Keep reading to learn what you can do to help.
Manitou residents are unhappy with the traffic and parking issues. Some on the Manitou Springs City Council feel they are being forced into allowing Incline hikers because it would be difficult to stop people at this point. They also want to find a way to make Incline users to pay to use it.
If the process hadn’t been stretched out so far, they might remember that the majority of people were against paying to use the Incline. It creates liability issues for Colorado Springs if money is charged. Charging requires some way to enforce it and collect it which could become a hassle for hikers.
The Manitou Springs Council special packet has the inter-governmental agreement that spells out who will be responsible for what. In general Colorado Springs is responsible for the trailhead creation and maintenance. They also are responsible for much of the maintenance of the Incline itself. They also work with the Incline Friends to raise money and apply for grants. Manitou is responsible for parking and traffic control.
There’s an interesting poll on Pikes Peak Sports about paying to park and/or hike the Incline. Out There Colorado also has a pay for the Incline poll.
From the Incline Friends
Thank you for taking an interest in the Incline. The Incline Friends now need your help!
The Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA) is scheduled to be reviewed February 28 by both Colorado Springs and Manitou Springs City Councils. This is a very important document. Both city councils must approve the IGA before the Incline can be made legal and open to the public.
Here is what we need from you:
If you live in Manitou Springs – Please contact your local City Council member and encourage them to approve the agreement on February 28. Here is the message you can send (copy and paste into an e-mail):
“In order to make the Incline sustainable and legal and address the ongoing parking and traffic impacts to Manitou Springs , we will need all parties working together to make the Incline an asset for our community, Colorado Springs and the Pikes Peak region.
A key component noted in the Intergovernmental Agreement is parking regulations and a residential parking plan for Ruxton Ave. and the surrounding neighborhoods, to manage the parking and traffic.
Other components include establishing a trailhead at the base of the Incline, addressing the unsafe conditions on the Incline, fixing and maintaining the surrounding and interconnected trail system including the Barr Trail and managing the overall use of the Incline.
Please consider signing the IGA on Feb. 28. As a resident of Manitou Springs, I understand that the alternative to not moving forward with the Incline is the status quo which is not acceptable. People in large numbers (350,000 – 500,000 trips per year) will continue to use the Incline and the City of Manitou Springs can benefit from these visitors visiting our businesses and contributing to our sales and tax base.
To do nothing is not an option! Nobody likes the situation as it Is, so collaboration and cooperation with other key stakeholders is critical. If we don’t’ do anything now, it will only get worse!”
Manitou Springs City Council contacts:
Mayor Marc Snyder – msnyder@comsgov.com
Donna Ford, At large – dford@comsgov.com
Randy Hodges, At large – rhodges@comsgov.com
Gary Smith, At large – gsmith@comsgov.com
Michael Gerbig, Ward 1 – mgerbig@comsgov.com
Coreen Toll, Ward 2 – ctoll@comsgov.com
Matt Carpenter, Mayor Pro-Tem, Ward 3 – mcarpenter@comsgov.com
All members can be reached @ 719-385-5481
__________________________________________________________________________________If you live in Colorado Springs – Please contact your local City Council member and encourage them to approve the agreement on February 28th. Here is the message you can send (copy and paste into an e-mail):
“In order to make the Incline sustainable and legal and address the ongoing parking and traffic impacts to Manitou Springs, we will need all parties working together to make the Incline an asset for Colorado Springs, Manitou Springs and the Pikes Peak region.
The Intergovernmental Agreement will address Incline parking and traffic issues, establishing a trailhead at the base of the Incline, addressing the unsafe conditions on the Incline, fixing and maintaining the surrounding and interconnected trail system including the Barr Trail and managing the overall use of the Incline.
Please consider signing the IGA on Feb. 28. As a resident of Colorado Springs, I understand that the alternative to not moving forward with the Incline is the status quo which is not acceptable. People in large numbers (350,000 – 500,000 trips per year) will continue to do the incline and our entire community can benefit from having this unique treasure available to locals and visitors.
Please don’t lose this opportunity to move this process forward.”
Colorado Springs City Council contacts:
Merv Bennett, At-Large – mbennett@springsgov.com
(719) 385-5469
Lisa Czelatdko, District 3 – lczelatdko@springsgov.com
(719) 385-5470
Angela Dougan, District 2 – adougan@springsgov.com
(719) 385-5493
Scott Hente, President – shente@springsgov.com
(719) 385-5487
Bernie Herpin, District 4 – bherpin@springsgov.com
(719) 385-5492
Tim Leigh, At-Large – tleigh@springsgov.com
(719) 385-5483
Jan Martin, President Pro-Tem – jmartin@springsgov.com
(719) 385-5486
Val Snider, At-Large – vsnider@springsgov.com
(719) 385-5485
Brandy Williams, At-Large – bwilliams@springsgov.com
(719) 385-5491
Thank you for helping move this process forward for the benefit of all.
Act of Congress Needed to Legalize Hiking the Incline
Yes, you read the title correctly. It looks like it’s literally going to take an act of the US Congress to legalize hiking the Manitou Incline although it’ll take even more than that.
The Incline Friends found out last summer that the federal government has to declare railroads abandoned before the land can be used for something else. There was confusion about whether it applied to the Incline since it was only a mile long and didn’t connect to another tracks. At the Incline Friends Membership Drive in January, one of the board members said that they didn’t have final word but thought it wouldn’t be a problem.
Now it’s become clear it’ll take an act of Congress to allow the U.S. Forest Service to accept the Manitou and Pike’s Peak Railway’s relinquishment of their right-of-way. A couple weeks ago Congressman Doug Lamborn (CO-05) introduced H.R. 4073 to address the Incline right-of-way.
“This is just one of many necessary steps needed to hopefully open the Manitou Incline. I want to recognize and thank all those in Manitou Springs and Colorado Springs who have been working on resolving this issue for years. This Act of Congress addresses an obscure territorial-era law on the federal books related to railways. I have every expectation that this bill will move quickly through the House and could become law as early as this Spring, pending passage in the Senate. This bill does not resolve all the issues necessary for legal access to the Incline, but does solve the critical federal roadblock.” — Doug Lamborn (CO-05)
Two more big steps for legalizing the Incline take place on February 28, 2012 when both Colorado Springs and Manitou Springs city councils are to vote on the inter-governmental agreement for managing the Incline.
Incline Conditions Mid February 2012
The trail conditions on the Manitou Incline haven’t changed much in the last few weeks since there hasn’t been much new snow. There has been a bit more snow for a day or 2 after newsnow and then it melts.
There still is ice left from older snows just below the track split about half way and then above the false summit. There isn’t much ice on the lower section but above the false summit is quite icy in spots.
The photos on this page were taken in the afternoon on Sunday, February 12th. There wasn’t quite as much snow on the upper section on Thursday but it was still quite icy and required caution to keep from slipping without traction devices. Carrying Kahtoola MicroSpikes, YakTrax, or Stabilicers Lite would still be a good idea if you aren’t comfortable on ice.
The social short cut down to Barr Trail is mostly clear. Barr trail has a few short, icy sections but it is also mostly clear.
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Foggy Incline Sunrise
Jeff Gallup got this awesome shot (click to enlarge) from the top of the Manitou Incline early Thursday morning, February 16. Fog blanketed most of Colorado Springs and Manitou Springs but the top of the Incline was above the clouds. You can see the lights of Manitou Avenue peeking through in the lower left of the picture.
Many thanks to Jeff for providing this photo to us. You can follow Jeff’s adventures in minimalistic shoes on his Barefoot Inclined blog.
Manitou City Council Discussing Incline IGA Tonight
Manitou Springs city council is discussing the Inter-Governmental Agreement with Colorado Springs for the Manitou Incline in a work session tonight at 7 PM. They could move it to a February 28 vote or scuttle it for now. The work session is open to the public.
Colorado Springs city council considered it yesterday and moved it to a February 28th vote without much discussion. It isn’t expected to be such clear sailing tonight in Manitou. Last month Manitou’s Parking Authority Board voted to ask council to wait to approve the IGA until there’s a parking plan in place. Council member Matt Carpenter who started the Incline Club and had a part in popularizing it doesn’t seem to want it legalized at all since he thinks it has gotten to be too popular of a hike.
A packet including the IGA and supporting documents is posted on the Manitou Incline website if you want to see the details.
D’Vine Wine Supports the Incline Friends
D’Vine Wines in Manitou Springs is supporting the nonprofit Incline Friends with 2 of their wines. The Incline Friends is the group working toward legalization of the popular Incline and its maintenance.
If you love hiking the Manitou Incline and enjoy a nice bottle of wine, check out D’Vine Wine’s selection. D’Vine Wines will contribute $3 for every bottle of Manitou Incline Malbec and white Manitou Incline Viognier
D’Vine Wines is in the historic old Spa Building within sight of the Manitou Incline at 934 W. Manitou Ave. It is on the side of the building toward the park behind Adam’s Mountain Cafe.
Colorado Springs at Night from Incline Summit
Ever wonder what the Manitou and Colorado Springs lights look like at night from the summit of the Incline? The photo above is from the top of the Incline on February 2, 2012 as light snow fell. The photo below is from December 11th, 2008 on a moonlit evening.
Unfortunately once the Manitou Incline becomes legal to hike, the management plan has a rule for it only to be open from dawn to dusk.
