Step into winter fitness at Ottawa County parks

Step into winter fitness at Ottawa County parks

By PETER DAINING
The Holland Sentinel
Posted Dec 26, 2009 @ 11:13 PM
Last update Dec 26, 2009 @ 11:16 PM

Holland, MI — If the trip up the Mt. Pisgah stairs doesn’t take your breath away, the view from the top sure will.

For me, it was both.

I took a trip up the 239 stairs with Ottawa County Parks Commission President Ted Bosgraaf, one of the many locals who takes advantage of Mt. Pisgah for both exercise and scenery.

Like many area parks, Mt. Pisgah is a great place to enjoy a healthy workout — even in the dead of winter.

“It’s absolutely amazing to watch these hills change through the seasons,” Ted said.

Mountain climbers, marathoners and all athletes in between use the stairs for conditioning. Ted said high school teams often make the trip, and a big group gathers every Friday morning to climb.

At 74, Bosgraaf still climbs the Park Township dunes 3-5 times per workout, several times a week. He lives near the path leading to the stairs, which is right next to Pronto Pups on Ottawa Beach Road.

With hard-packed snow covering the steps, he attaches spikes to his hiking boots for much-needed traction. As for me, I just had my old running shoes with about as much tread as a pair of penny loafers.

We first climbed the stairs at a slow pace, stopping on each landing to look around at the trees, and to see how close we were to being above the tree line.

By the time we reached the summit, I was making a bad attempt at covering up my labored breath. After all, I’m 48 years younger than Bosgraaf.

Back at the bottom, things got a little more serious. Ted took out his cell phone, ready to time me.

He’s reminded me several times about his 69-year-old friend, John Spoelhof, former Prince Corp. president, who can climb the stairs five times in 26 minutes.

Well, now my adrenaline was really pumping. By the time I tripped up the last stair, I couldn’t tell which was burning more — my legs or lungs.

I grasped the railing with a tight fist on the way down, slipping and sliding the whole way.

By the time I made it back to solid ground, I was red-faced and sweating under my fleece.

“Well, that warmed me up in a hurry,” I told Ted.

I’m proud to say I finished in 3 minutes, 16 seconds. But Ted didn’t let me gloat for long.

“You’ve got to do it five times, or it doesn’t count,” he said, laughing.

But later, when we met up with Spoelhof, Bosgraaf was talking me up.

“Ted’s brought in a ringer,” Spoelhof said. After some thought, Spoelhof was still up to challenging me in a Mt. Pisgah race next spring. Although with one condition — I have to wear a 30-pound backpack.

It looks like I’ve got some training to do.

Copyright 2009 The Holland Sentinel. Some rights reserved