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Kristina Mascarenas - Pre Pikes Peak Marathon Interview
Every summer, thousands of runners journey to Manitou Springs for America's Ultimate Challenge – the legendary Pikes Peak Marathon. For three-time champion Kristina Mascarenas, this race represents something far deeper than just another mountain to conquer.
"It's just you're constantly wondering if you're going too hard and if you're going to die," Kristina candidly shares, capturing the essence of what draws elite athletes back to this grueling event year after year. "You know this is a test against yourself. Everybody that's out here is doing it and everybody's testing themselves."
In this revealing conversation, Kristina opens up about her 2024 racing season, including a difficult DNF at Black Canyon 100K that prompted her to refocus on events that bring joy rather than pressure. She discusses her strategic approach to shorter races like the Broken Arrow 23K and her triumphant win at the Barr Trail Mountain Race – perfect preparation for her upcoming attempt at a historic fourth Pikes Peak Marathon victory.
The personal connection to Pikes Peak runs deep for Kristina, who's planning a multi-generational family participation for next year's race. Her intimate knowledge of every section of the mountain, from equipment choices to weather considerations, reveals why she's become synonymous with this iconic event. Yet she remains humble, joking about being labeled a "backyard betty" despite achievements that place her among the all-time greats of mountain running.
Whether you're fascinated by the mental aspects of endurance sports, curious about elite training approaches, or simply drawn to stories of human potential, Christina's journey reminds us why we challenge mountains – not just to reach their summits, but to discover what lies within ourselves when pushed to the edge of possibility.
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Going up. It's just you're constantly wondering if you're going too hard and if you're going to die. So, like they say, it's an ultimate mental battle.
Speaker 2:Is that what keeps bringing you back, year after year, the ultimate?
Speaker 1:mental battle. Yeah, I don't care what racers show up, even if somebody shows up better than me. You know this is a test against yourself. Everybody that's out here is doing it and everybody's testing themselves, and it's great.
Speaker 2:It's called America's Ultimate Challenge. Each year, over 2,500 runners flock to Manitou Springs to challenge themselves against the mountain known as Pike's Peak. This year, runners from 46 different states and eight foreign countries have come.
Speaker 3:They all start here and make their way towards the clouds. It's time. Thank you, Ladies and gentlemen. We are live it's been probably about a year, a little bit over that so excited to catch up and see what you've been up to this summer. It looks like quite a lot and chat about Pike's Peak as well. How many times have you run this race? I mean I know how many times you've won it. It's three times the marathon, Am I correct on that? That's what the stats said on Ultra Sign Up.
Speaker 4:Yeah, so I've done it a total of eight times. Yeah, so I've done it a total of eight times. But okay, yeah, two of them were ascents, because the first time I ran it was just the ascent and then I had a broken foot all summer and I just got the boot off and I didn't want to miss out, so I just kind of power hiked the ascent, just uh just for fun.
Speaker 3:Was this one also about to prove it to your brother as well, or no?
Speaker 4:no, I wait. But he's like like well, if there's no harm, it's like zero impact. You might as well, or no, no, I would. But he's like well, if there's no harm, it's like zero impact, you might as well go have fun earn some cookies. I was like all right, we'll do it.
Speaker 3:Fair enough, I got to ask you I think this is probably the most important question of this conversation what does this race mean to you? I mean, it's got to be so important no-transcript.
Speaker 4:sad to miss it yeah.
Speaker 3:No, it's so special. I mean, one of the things Kathy and I had talked about so many times when we did board meetings and stuff like that was just you got brought up a lot and also just the generational stuff, with so many of your family members being involved with the race and stuff like that, it's just very special. It's very cool that it's such a cool hometown race for you.
Speaker 4:Yeah, at our last family gathering I told everyone that they need to start training today because next year we're all going to do it. So I'm trying to get my mom to do it, and then my middle niece to do it, and then me and my stepdad wants to do it, and then my uncle, who lives in Seattle, might come out and do it. So I was like we need to get as many family members on the peak as humanly possible. So I planted the seat early so that way they can train for it.
Speaker 3:All right, 2026. That'll be, I think that's. Is that the 70th anniversary of the ascent? So it'd be 71st for the marathon, 74th ascent, that would be. Yeah, you got to do it. That'd be amazing.
Speaker 4:It's like three generations on the on the mountain, I was missing the anniversary, but now we can just do the ascent. They'll be happy. They only have to go up.
Speaker 3:There you go. Yeah, they don't have to run down, let's uh, all right, so let's get into it. Obviously it it's been a really busy season for you. You've had a fantastic finish at the Broken Arrow 23K. You've been racing a decent like, not a crazy amount, but you've been getting out there and winning races, like you won BTMR. How has the season overall felt for you? Like, does it seem like one block after another and you're feeling really healthy? Do you feel tired? Like how has things kind of played out?
Speaker 4:I still feel like I'm a little bit tired. 2024 kind of beat me up, flying internationally so many times. I feel like I just needed to stay local and catch up on sleep and let the body heal a little bit. And then I had a DNF at Black Canyon so I was just pretty sad. So I pulled back from racing a little bit and I've just kind of tried to race anything that sounds fun to me. So I'm habitually rehabbing a left foot that just like won't get better. So hopefully this winter I can take some time off and really get that fully healed. But with what I have and what I was coming off of, I feel like I've done pretty good. So it's amazing, yeah. And race is another one where you just can't miss it. Those aid stations are so funny, they're worth just going just to view.
Speaker 3:Absolutely, absolutely. Let's talk. I do. I don't want to get too deep into Black Canyon because we moved on. I want to move on quick from that one. We don't want to talk about DNS. I'm just curious, like what the hell made you want to run like 100k? Was it just like curiosity or like what was this?
Speaker 4:Yeah, I think it was curiosity, and a lot of people have just told me, like you have a forever gear that you can just sit in forever, like you should just try it out, see how it goes. Like my fatigue resistance is pretty high and I'm not saying it's not, it just wasn't my day. I mean, even the first mile felt way too hard for the pace. It was just one of those days where you wake up and the body's like no, thank you, and I just kept tripping over stuff and once the golden ticket was like so far out of reach, I was just like why, why am I going to go keep falling on my face in the desert? So I did end up calling it like mile 50, 52 or something like that, because it just seems not the best idea to continue.
Speaker 3:I can't help, but ask you said. You said the word golden ticket Like if you would have gotten it, you would have gone to Western.
Speaker 4:Oh hell, no, no, no. But it's something that, like, you want to just see, you know, because it's a really it's something that's highly coveted, obviously, and so I don't, I definitely wouldn't run 100 miles, not definitely I probably wouldn't run 100 miles and I just, I don't know, it's just something to shoot for. It's like an Olympic, like qualifier for the marathon. Like you're probably not going to go to the Olympics but you want to hit that trial time right. It's just like a thing.
Speaker 3:Yeah, no, fair enough. Fair enough, what? Um? So what did you think after that? Do you think you'll ever go back and try it again, or no?
Speaker 4:Uh, I strongly disliked, so I don't know that I would try that one. But if there's a more mountainous one, that was 100k, that would definitely call to me more. So maybe I'll look at canyons or something like that. I'll definitely have to finish 100k at some point, just so 80 year old Tina can look back and not have to wonder if I could. You know so, but we'll see. I would like to do something more in the mountains, but I'm not a desert girl.
Speaker 3:Fair enough, fair enough. Now listen, you know I got to commend you for taking the swing. You know a lot of people will probably wonder, you know, if they don't wind up doing it like. You know what would have been like if I didn't give it a crack. So good on you for giving it a try. And lunch I don't want to miss lunch, I don't want to miss.
Speaker 4:I for sure don't want to miss dinner, that's true. I don't want to run that long.
Speaker 3:Let's get into Broken Arrow. So I got to ask you the question, especially having made a Worlds team in the past. I'm just out of curiosity why not the Broken Arrow 46k this year? Why were you? Why the 23k?
Speaker 4:Man. I asked myself that a bunch of times and I still do and I honestly I think it comes back to that DNF and I was like I just need to run shorter, like I need to like pull it back and go somewhere I'm comfortable and just like run hard. And I was like I can for sure run hard for 13 miles. I was like I don't know if I can run hard for, you know, 26 miles right now. So I think, unfortunately, I did it from a place of not trusting my racing, like, yeah, I look back I'm like, oh, it would have been so fun to do it and it was the year to do it. Right, there was no snow, it wasn't crazy, it was fast, it was runnable, which is my jam. But yeah, I was just not a good mental space to run that distance and I love the Golden Trail Series and the whole weekend out there, so fun. So I didn't want to fully miss out. So I was like, okay, we'll just do the 23k and go enjoy the weekend and cheer everybody on.
Speaker 3:It's amazing. It's crazy that we were in a year where the 46k was almost as like. The 23k and 46k were both the most competitive races on the day, same with the ascent. It was all insanely competitive. Usually, the 23k on the weekend is usually the most competitive, which is wild, but this time around it seemed like every distance was just bananas with the Golden Trail. What did you take away from it? Coming back to Golden Trail and racing, was it just as exciting as it had been in previous years? What were the emotions like for you as exciting as it had been in previous years.
Speaker 4:Like, what were the emotions like for you? Yeah, um, it was exciting and I love seeing everybody there, like all the fun and it's just such good energy. But yeah, I was, I was kicking myself for not doing the 46 K, so a little bit of regret for sure, cause um I why I don't want to run all day, I am a little better, a little longer. So it just kind of makes you wonder like, oh, what could I have done? But I will say flying down that dirt road on fresh legs was amazing, like you could just cook into that finish. So that was, that was really a good ego boost for me, because with my foot being all messed up, I was like maybe I just can't run downhill anymore. But I was like, oh no, your last K was like a 450. Like you're fine, that's insane.
Speaker 3:Oh man, so it had to have been a good feeling Top 15 result in such a stacked group. It was an amazing group of women that were out there throwing down, yeah. But what were your thoughts on that? Were you happy with the result?
Speaker 4:on. Yeah, but what were your thoughts on that? Were you happy with the result? No, you know it's well. It's so hard to say because, no matter how stacked the field is like, to place outside the top 10 is just kind of a hard pill to swallow, even if you know it's a good place, like. My logical brain is like you did well, you ran fast, like I was trying to like really latch on to the positives but at the end of the day, that like 14th place is just kind of like well, it's a big number.
Speaker 3:So still amazing, still amazing. We're all hard, listen. We're all hard on ourselves. I get it.
Speaker 4:I get it. Well, we wouldn't be here if we were satisfied with anything other than like a podium for real, Like you would just get one and then be like all done and move on.
Speaker 3:It's true, they keep coming back for for more. Let's, let's get into pikes. Let's talk pikes and BTMR. You came out to BTMR, absolutely demolished that course at an amazing day. I got the dub um, obviously probably a nice little tune up for a race like pikes, peak, um, especially being on the same trail and things like that. How did BTMR feel for you? Was that just a nice day out, like good workout? How did you treat it Like? Was it more race effort for you or or a workout?
Speaker 4:Yeah, so it was a bit more of a workout for me. So I didn't taper in. Um, and I've got some good friends that I uh have a friendly competition with and they they specifically told me they wanted to beat me. So I was like, all right, well, it's going to be a really hard workout then. And so I went in and I felt pretty dead on the climb.
Speaker 4:That was probably one of my worst climbs I've had in a long time. I got up probably a minute and a half or two slower and but I felt great. I just like wasn't snappy because I wasn't tapered, and so I just turned around and everybody was so fun I just remember saying hi to everyone and just flying down and then all of a sudden I was like on hydro and I was like, oh my gosh, I think I just blanked out that whole descent and I wasn't able to actually get like a 30 second PR. So that's really good, considering how bad my climb was. So it was a big ego goose for me. I was like, okay, like your fueling is going well, like you can still turn the legs over if you need to. So it was so much fun.
Speaker 3:Whoa, so 30 second PR, especially for all the times that you've ran on that trail too, like that's amazing.
Speaker 4:Yeah, yeah, oh. So 30 seconds, like, probably not like um. I did get a few like crowns if you were looking at Sigma, um or segments on Strava for me, but like just overall 30 seconds. So I don't know, because I feel like those big boulders are a little cumbersome to get around. You kind of have to slow down and make sure you're not going to topple anybody over, because you can't see past one of them and the trail's open and I never want to be that person that takes out a child or something.
Speaker 3:It's not good PR, Especially for you. Multiple-time champion takes out kid Not a good headline.
Speaker 4:Yeah, oh, my Only. Their mom would be screaming at me and I'd be crying. It would be a hot mess.
Speaker 3:Oh God, all right. Last year you missed this race. You didn't come out to race just because Golden Trail and Mammoth. Last year it was a busy summer. This year you're obviously coming back. I can ask you about this Were you happy to miss it last year, especially given the fact that it was shortened?
Speaker 4:Do you know what? The fact that it was shortened made it easier to swallow, that I missed it, but it would have been like a slightly longer bar trail mountain race, which I do love too. So I guess once you sign up for something, you just have to be willing to accept whatever that race presents itself on that day Like. Is it going to be 98 degrees, you know? Are you going to get stung in the face by a bee? Is it going to get shortened? Is it going to snow? So it's all part of the game.
Speaker 3:Have you looked at forecasts for this year at all? I haven't. I haven't checked anything Like I know we're still a little far out, but I'm just so curious as to what, like. I hope it's just a beautiful day in the mountains for you guys.
Speaker 4:Yeah, honestly, I would pick a little snow over like 90. It's easier to fuel.
Speaker 3:That's true. The only thing is is it's like I wonder with the from a risk profile perspective if it does snow a little bit, if they let, like it's one thing for the ascent, but if for the marathon, if they would let people up there like I don't know if they would be willing to do it. Maybe I don't know.
Speaker 4:You're running down. Well, there was a little bit of snow in 2023.
Speaker 3:Yeah, you're right, you're right there was.
Speaker 4:And I was super worried. So I wore really like shoes I wasn't super comfortable in, but they had better grip and my feet were on fire by the end. I will not do that again. I'm just gonna wear my normal shoes, because it wasn't that slippery up there. I knew better. I was just like psyched myself out. But yeah, that last mile had a couple stretches of decent snow accumulation.
Speaker 3:Wow. So with that, though, what shoes were you wearing for this year, or what would you? What are you going to go for from a shoe selection? Wise?
Speaker 4:I'll probably do the Solomon Pulsar Pros. I have one pair left. I bought a ton before they kind of stopped making them and I'm on my last pair, so I don't know what I'm going to do after this. This might be their last race.
Speaker 3:I'm on the market, oh man, If there's a Solomon rep listening to this guys.
Speaker 4:Please help. I'm on one.
Speaker 3:So this would be I mean, I got asked the question like this would be your fourth win. What would that mean to you to win this race again?
Speaker 4:Oh, it would be so cool. Um, it's just I don't know. I feel like you got to defend your home turf a little bit and there's so many fast women in Colorado Springs, so I'm sure it would stay here, I guess, cause there's not a big international um competition field competition field that I know of.
Speaker 3:Yet yet.
Speaker 4:Yeah. So it would just mean a lot, and I don't know, I like to make arbitrary marks and it would maybe be cool to get five wins or something like that, and then I could be like all right, that's enough.
Speaker 3:I mean it's kind of cool, though, Like you think about it. I haven't had this conversation with John yet either, but it's kind of neat, cause, like you'd be going for four, is he? Would he be going for four or five? I think he'd be going for four as well, which is kind of crazy. Like you guys are up there, like that's history in the race you know. Like you're up there in the discussions then with you know your Mac carpenters of the world and your Joes and people that have you know your Joes and people that have you know set records and done amazing things. Like you know, in the race in its own right, is that a little weird, like when you, when you think about your name being like synonymous with that race, like it's kind of a crazy thing to be wrapped up in the history of it.
Speaker 4:Yeah, oh. I just feel like I couldn't even start to put my name in the same category as Matt Carpenter, hasn't? He won it like 10 times.
Speaker 3:I have no idea.
Speaker 3:I should know this, but especially because I want to interview him one day. I should know. Obviously, I think it might even be more than that. It's crazy. He's so insane, yeah, but think about it. I mean in the sense where any person that's won more than three times, I think it's a conversation, Even if you've won in the three-time range. It's a conversation where you're a multiple time winner of the race. You know, you get into that conversation of, you know the greats and people that have raced this race, which is kind of cool.
Speaker 4:Oh, thanks, it was funny. I was running broken arrow or breakneck point when it was the qualifier for worlds and I wasn't really mentioned except for in this little blurb at the bottom of this, like right up, and it was like and then christina mascarina, she's a little bit of a backyard betty but she's won a few things and so every time I win pike speak, I'm like, well, I'm just backyard betty out here, backyard, you know, only doing my, my bread and butter races that's actually really funny.
Speaker 4:I can't believe they said and so, yeah, every time I win it, i'm'm kind of like yep, you know your regular backyard pity.
Speaker 3:On that, though. Do you feel the pressure then? Because Pikes Peak you do have so dialed, it is your backyard peak. Do you feel not just the pressure to win a race like this, but do you feel pressure to perform outside of Pikes Peak as well?
Speaker 4:feel pressure on Pikes Week because I should be able to nail it every time and everyone's human and you have a bad day. But yeah, I feel like to lose would hurt the most because I don't really mind if I gave it my all and not placing at any other race, but I feel like it would sting, particularly for this one. But I don't think anybody expects anything of me outside of this race, which is kind of nice, so I think everyone just assumes I only can run straight up and straight down which they might Right.
Speaker 3:Listen, I either way you're, you're an all time great and it's just amazing. It's a, it's an honor Like I can't. Hopefully, next year we'll be talking about the fifth one, so it's going to be be. It's gonna be crazy where we're at um christina. I appreciate it so much. Thanks for coming on. This is an amazing conversation and wishing you the best of luck in your uh pursuit of the fourth pikes peak marathon win awesome.
Speaker 4:Thank you so much for having me and thanks for all of your fun podcasts.
Speaker 3:I really enjoyed listening to everybody that you're interviewing, so keep it up oh, thanks, appreciate, hey, before I let you go, I have one question for you, and we can cut this out, if not. I just this is something I've been stewing on today because Jolene tested positive. I wanted to get your take, especially on from the golden trails and, like I said, we can cut this out. This is not doesn important time in our sport, like what are your thoughts on it?
Speaker 4:Man. So I have so many mixed emotions on this. I feel sad that we live in a world where Jolene needs this prize money so desperately to feed her family and to make a life for herself and that she's in a position where almost that you would do anything to make sure your kids are okay, and so my heart bleeds for it. But I don't know how to set up a system that doesn't reward winning when it's a competition, and I'm glad that they're doing testing. I'm glad that she got caught. I do think doping is more rampant than people want to talk about, like if you go from nowhere or placing in your age group to winning and you're past your 30s, like I'm pretty suspicious. So yeah, I mean, and they cut her off cold turkey, right.
Speaker 3:Yeah, she was dropped.
Speaker 4:But I mean there have been other athletes that didn't get dropped, that have tested positive, so I feel like there needs to be a standard, so I agree there yeah, it's, it's an interesting place in the sport I but so this hit me near and dear to.
Speaker 3:I was thinking about it because, you're right, like jolene was in a place where and there's a lot to this like I've had some conversations, uh, with athletes I won't talk about, uh, like in regards to anti-doping and just in regards to Kenyan runners specifically, and I think there's a lot of situations that people don't understand with managers and with coaches, and where you got to remember like and not just not you, but like just the audience, but like man, like people you know Kenyans, in a lot of places is very poor and when you have to provide for your family, and where a lot of times, you'll get into these coaching situations where or managers or coaches will take advantage of you monetarily.
Speaker 3:That's so common and it's for a lot of Kenyan athletes, unfortunately, and it puts you in a weird spot. And then, when it comes to the doping perspective, it's like doped and we know, and like you took it willing, like we, you know, but at the same time, like is is that your only way out? Is your coach, you know, pushing that, because the coach that got, um, her coach, the same, uh, there was I forget his name is robert something um who tested positive um at uh series and all in 2022. He was his coach as well, so it's like a super common thing amongst the coaches. So it's kind of crazy.
Speaker 4:it's wild yeah, the coach athlete dynamic is is the tricky one. I mean, you look at any high level sport, like all the gymnastic stuff that came out, you know now all of this doping stuff. It's just the power dynamic is not fair. Yeah, they're so sad all the way around. I feel bad for the athletes that were cheated of their podiums and of their money and my heart goes out to I don't know to so many people. And then part of me is a little bit mad. I'm like, well, no wonder I get 14th place. I'm clean at work full time.
Speaker 3:Yeah, no serious. Well, that's the thing. You're not the only person that says that, you know, and it makes a lot of sense and I would be angry too. You know, it's a. It's a weird position, it's a weird spot and I hope we can do just as a community. We can continue to either build a framework for more anti-doping or do something, maybe an out-of-season testing pool that we can figure out. But yeah, I appreciate your perspective.
Speaker 4:I was just so curious, just because it happened to come out today and we just happened to be chatting and I was like curious to see what your thoughts were. So oh yeah, definitely it has been a hot topic today. I mean, I've gotten it sent to me by like three or four people and I've sent it to a few people, and so I've been talking about it since I found out as well, and I mean I think we do need to continue talking about it because it's obviously a big issue.
Speaker 3:Yeah, definitely, definitely Well, christina, thank you so much. Have a wonderful evening, happy anniversary and uh you know we'll be in touch. Good luck, and uh hope to chat with you after Pikes Peak.
Speaker 4:Awesome. Yeah, hope to see you there. Crush your uh Cirque series in Seattle.
Speaker 3:Thank you, appreciate you, take care. Bye, thank you.
