Vertical Colorado - Red Rocks to Mountain Roads Part 1
Part 1 — Morrison to Red Rocks & The Road to Deer Creek | 1hr 18min
The ride opens in Morrison — a small Colorado mountain town tucked into the red rock foothills west of Denver. The warmup doesn’t last long. Within minutes the road pitches upward and the real work begins.
The centerpiece of Part 1 is the climb into Red Rocks Amphitheater — one of Colorado’s most recognizable landmarks, carved from 300-foot sandstone formations laid down when dinosaurs ruled this landscape. The ascent is sustained and demanding, pushing heart rate into the anaerobic zone and testing your ability to find a rhythm under real pressure. At 92% max heart rate, this is not a sightseeing ride.
What comes next isn’t rest — it’s the rolling residential roads of Morrison, a series of punchy climbing intervals that spike effort and force recovery on the fly. No long breaks. No coasting. Just natural terrain doing what Colorado terrain does.
The back half transitions to the C470 trail corridor — a brief moment to breathe before Part 2 drops you into Deer Creek Canyon.
Targeted Workout Elements
Avg Heart Rate: ~78% max | Peak Effort: ~92% max Workout Type: Aerobic base with anaerobic climbing intervals Terrain: Rolling hills, sustained climb, suburban roads, paved trail
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