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| Pikes Peak running champ wants to tempt your sweet tooth | |||
| Tuesday, January 10, 2012 15:07 |
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BY R. SCOTT RAPPOLD For Matt Carpenter, who has won the Pikes Peak Marathon 12 times and holds the record for that and the Pikes Peak Ascent, victory is pretty sweet. So is the ice cream reward he allows himself after a race. The Manitou Springs runner shows no sign of sharing the sweetness of victory – he’s won the Pikes Peak Marathon six times in a row – but he wants to let others enjoy the sugary reward, as new owner/operator of the Colorado Custard Co. in downtown Manitou Springs. The shop will reopen Friday with Carpenter and his wife dishing out the same ice cream, custard, sandwiches and other treats as Vic Almen, who opened the sweet spot at 906 Manitou Ave. in 2009. Carpenter said he got the idea from the ice cream socials he and his wife sponsor.
“It just dawned on us that as much as serving ice cream, you’re serving smiles. It’s just so much fun to see kids’ eyes light up,” he said. He heard Almen was looking to sell, and the Carpenters closed the sale Tuesday. He doesn’t plan to change anything in the short term, including the sandwiches with local-flavor names like The Zebulon Pike and The General Palmer. But he is a local celebrity and city councilman as well as running legend, and he’ll probably put his stamp on the shop eventually. “We’ve got to come up with something like ‘The Incline’ or ‘Pikes Peak’ - put our own touches on it,” he said. “Obviously, I want to target those athletes and get them to eat before and after their runs.” So, he was asked, is there any irony for Manitou Springs’ most prominent athlete serving custard (which, according to the website fitday.com, contains 234 calories per cup)?
“I have always believed through my career that ice cream and custard, it heals injuries,” he said. “When people are happier, their injuries heal faster and I guarantee when you eat custard, you’re happy.” |
