Author Description

This book is about a mining community that saw the collapse of mining in their hometown of Leadville, Colorado in 1983. The price of molybdenum crashed due to overseas deposits being discovered. This sent Leadville to the highest unemployment in the nation overnight. To make it worse, the mine was paying up to 82% of property tax for Leadville residence. One of those out of work miners, Ken Chlouber, had a vision for a way forward after a visit from then Governor Dick Lamm. The Governor said Leadville would have to rely on tourism as its new frontier (not mining), but for that tourism to work they would have to stay overnight in Leadville. And that's when Ken's vision came. We'll have a footrace! A footrace? Leadville had that. They had 5k's, 10k's, they even had a 22-mile burro race, Colorado's indigenous sport. But none of those kept people overnight. And then Ken spoke. "We'll have them run a hundred miles! If they run a hundred miles, well, then they WILL stay overnight!" And there it was, the first breath of what would become Ken Chlouber's creation, The Leadville Trail 100 Run: The Race Across the Sky. For over forty years Ken Chlouber's son, Cole, has worked these events alongside Ken. He has laid witness and played part, from the humble beginnings of creating the race to what it has become today. Cole has also seen the economic impact the race has had on Leadville. The race has been covered in print media, it has also made numerous TV shows and video productions. But what hasn't happened is the telling of this story, of Ken's story. Cole has decided to "Dig Deep" and take on the hard work and heavy lifting himself in order to have his father's story told. What Cole has come up with is a creative and unique perspective taking place through his own eyes. The author, the Chlouber family and Merilee Maupin hope you not only enjoy these pages but find yourself in Leadville, a magical city where friends become family at home.