Simon Gutierrez has won three Pikes Peak Ascent titles. He has qualified for the U.S. Mountain Running team seven times. He is a three-time world mountain running masters champion, and he has run a sub-5-minute mile in each of the last 35 years. The fire to run fast burned bright inside him for nearly four decades. Now 50 years old, the 2014 Colorado Running Hall of Fame inductee says he's anxious to see if life might offer something new. Gutierrez plans to run hard in 2016, then back off and focus on helping others to enjoy the sport he loves. We sat down with this soft-spoken athlete and he delivered some sage words.

You are entering your last competitive year? I’m still running as well as ever. There just comes a point where you ask yourself, 'do I want to keep doing this and pushing my body?' I always felt like I wanted to run better than I did the year before, and I’ve been doing that for 15 or 20 years now.

There has been so much enjoyment, but I wonder if there is something else I’m missing. I love competing and doing my best. I’m not interested in age-group stuff. I like being up there in front, and I always told myself when I can’t then I’ve had enough. So I just want to give it one more good year.

What are your plans for 2016? Sometimes you go through periods when you are in good shape but you don’t run your best, or the weather is bad. The last four or five years I still feel like I can run one of my better times at the Pikes Peak Ascent. Under 2 hours, 18 minutes would be good. I’ve run under 2:18 three times, and I still feel like I can do that. First time I ran 2:13, then one year later I ran 2:21, then 2:18, then 2:20 something. I was hurt, came back after not running for a year, and ran 2:18.

Your training has to go well, you have to have a good day, good weather. And life has to be in order, too. I think there are things that influence your daily form. I have gotten a little complacent the last couple of years. I’m just having fun. I’m just enjoying this. But you have to really be on fire if you want to run your best times.

This year I have two or three races where I want to meet my potential. I’d like to run a good 2:18 at Pikes Peak, and I think I can beat my masters' record at Mount Washington, which is like a 61:30. It’ll be tough to do. Three years ago I think I ran a 62:20. That’s what keeps me going.

What happens after this year? I’m going to do some coaching. Doing a little bit now. I have a little different approach. I’m more about the healthy side of it. Everybody is caught up in performance, I want to do this, I want to do that. To me it’s more like, ‘maybe you can do that, but how about we do it healthy, nutrition-wise, training doses?' I think somebody in their 40s should be looking at it differently than somebody in their 20s. Like, how much can your body take? Maybe you don’t need this. Just a different approach.

I want to look at the individual and try to figure out what works for them, rather than have one program for 10 people. People are different. I have found that out about myself. I could not respond to traditional track work and speed work. I got worse. For me it’s a more about building an aerobic base, keep that base going and do specific workouts for whatever race I’m doing next. A lot of people, I don’t think that would work for them.

A lot of it is your age, too. I’ve been doing 90 minutes or two hours a day for 25 years. Maybe I don’t need to train as hard to reach a certain level. But somebody in their 20s who is trying to run two hours a day, they’re just going to get hurt because they don’t have those years of training in them. We need to look at what are we doing in our 20s, 30s 40s or 60s. More cross-training might be better for some people. Not everybody does the same thing. I’m looking at some protocols for that and seeing if it works.

I have a few clients I’m working with. I don’t want (the coaching business) to get big this year because I want to give my running a chance and give my clients the attention they deserve. Next year, I’d like to dial down on my racing and put an effort into other people's wishes, whether they want to finish a marathon or finish a fast 5K coming out of college. My goal is to give somebody a year to learn what works for them, then they can do it on their own later.

I have a bunch of ideas, but I’ll never do them if I keep competing. I want to be active, still enjoy running, but not have that emphasis on competing all the time.

What does you training look like this time of year (March)?: I’m coming off a performance break. I decided to take six months off and just run for fun and not put an emphasis on quality running. I’ve done some biking and cross training. I’ve gotten in a huge aerobic base and now it’s time to start training.

I’ve done a couple of runs, a couple of Neilson’s (2-mile races in Colorado Springs) and I’m not any slower than during the years when I was training hard. I ran 11:01 around the first of January, and 10:52 the same month last year when I was training hard. I think the difference is my body is fresher now, so it’s going to respond. Last year I felt like I never got in better shape from May through the ascent (in August.) So I thought maybe my body needs to go into a rest phase. Now (hill work on) Rampart Range is back on the radar. I’m building up from three to four miles steady in March, to six miles in April, to eight miles in May. It’s a good hard run up. I’m going to do more explosive stuff, maybe quarter or half-mile on steep hills. Try to get some power back. I feel like I’m lacking a little bit. Last year was a lot of treadmill work at 15 percent. So I was very efficient but I didn’t have that speed. Basically it’s two workouts a week, the rest of the time it’s recovery at 9-to-10-minute pace.

You don’t keep track of miles? Not really, its time on my feet. If I can get an hour in the morning and 45 minutes in the evening, then I’m happy. I cross train a lot, too. I’ve been getting more pool running, trying to get some turnover. I do ski machine in the winter. I count it as running, but the volume is there.

We think we have to run all the time, but I really think we run too much. Everybody has a different limit. I start running twice a day in May and June and I don’t see that I get any fitter. I should stay with 10 runs a week and four cross training evenings. It’s a slow buildup. I know how many weeks I have until Mt. Washington. And I know where I need to be that last month so I’ll spend the next few months building up to that.

So Mount Washington and Pikes Peak. Is there another race you’re aiming for? I would probably like to go back to Europe. It’s just one of my favorite places to run. I wouldn’t mind going back to the Masters World Championships. I won three of them in a row. For me I wouldn’t go back just to try to win the 50-54 age group. When I go back I want to be the fastest guy that day. That’s why I haven’t gone back. That, and life things happen.

I want to get back to Europe. I think that would be a good farewell gift to myself. Once the ascent is over there will be two or three of those races available to me. I’d like to go a week or two and say hi to some friends.

You’ve won Mount Washington three times. What is the secret to success there? You have to have your day. The first time I won I had no expectations of winning. They shortened the course and there was some extremely fast Kenyans there. And I thought, 'we’re screwed, no way we’ll beat these guys over three miles.' But then they all dropped out. The next year we ran the full course and I was beaten at six miles, and the Kenyans started walking a mile from the finish. And I was like, 'OK, maybe I can catch them.' The third time, I knew I was probably going to win. I just had to execute a good race.

At the time, Matt Carpenter, Eric Blake, Paul Low, people who were probably the top ascent runners of the time, were there. I remember looking around thinking, 'if I never win again it will be OK'. That was 2005, I was 39. That second year, if one of my best friends, Paul Low, hadn’t chosen to be the best man at a friend’s wedding, I wouldn’t have won. He had beaten me already that year and was very fast.

There is something about you and Pikes Peak. It’s just a glorious race. It’s the longest race for me. You never forget the first time you run there. And the first time I was fortunate to win. I had never been past Barr Camp. After the race, I thought, that wasn’t too bad. Then you come back the next year and think you’re going to be quicker and you’re not. You learn some respect for it. It’s a mountain, it’s a challenge.

There are lots of obstacles that have happened over the years, the weather, erosion on the trail. Just watching the race, and the number of competitors that have been on it, and everybody knows Pikes Peak. So it’s a huge honor to have won the race and to still be competitive there.

What are the keys to a fast time on Pikes Peak? It’s a little bit of everything. You have to feel good, you have to have good speed and endurance. You have to be able to tolerate the attitude. And you have to be able to run for two hours uphill, which is pretty hard.

Do you try to train for altitude? I do, but things are limited. Basically, my recipe is I go up once a week and I get better each week and I start six or eight weeks before the race. And that is about as much as I give it because then I start to get sick of it. You give up your whole Sunday morning, five hours to run up and then get a ride down. I could spend more time and get efficient at 14,000 feet, and maybe I’d run a minute or two quicker, but I’m not going to run 2:05 or even 2:10. I don’t want to train that hard. I’d probably get hurt. I’m OK with being in 2:15 to 2:20 shape and just roll the dice and see what happens.

When you train for Pikes Peak, you go bottom to top? I change it up. Eight weeks out, I’m running to the top. The first couple of times is just try to get up there at around 3:10 or 3:15. The next couple of runs, I’ll run hard to Barr Camp and then easy to the top, or easy to Barr and harder to the top. Two weeks before is usually where I’ll try to run a good strong one, 2:30 or something to see where I’m at. I think I ran a little too hard two years ago. I think I ran 2:27 five days out. Then I ran 2:22 on race day, which I was happy for, but people do silly things sometimes. I just felt good that day, so what the heck? That’s part of it.

People say you should taper, or you should do this and that. I’m like, yeah, you know what, I just want to enjoy my runs. If I happen to run a little too hard the week before, that’s OK. This year I’ll try to be a little more professional about it. I do lots of recovery runs. I do one workout on Wednesday during those weeks. Usually shorter, faster uphill runs, like up Cheyenne Cañon, hitting six-minute pace, seven-minute pace. Really changing the tempo. Thursday and Friday is easy jogging and then I’m back on the peak on the weekend.

I learned a long time ago that my body adapts to the altitude pretty quickly each week. I don’t have to spend a lot of time up there. I’m good with once a week. If I go more, I’m not sure my body is going to respond that much.

You're sponsored by Hoka? I’ve been very fortunate. When I started with them I was coming off my knee injury.  I needed cushioning for my knee. It was now or never. I didn’t know Hoka was going to be a huge brand. The first year, I heard a lot of 'are you serious, you’re running in that?' And here we are six years later they have several different models and all I can say is that I haven’t missed a day of running because of injury.

And I still do promotional stuff with Elliptigo, and I get out and do some riding. Those guys are fantastic. They’ve done a lot for runners. I think there is still an untapped market. There is so much more to be gained. It may be another thing I put a little more emphasis in once I’m done running. Mental resources are precious, you know? How much energy do I want to put into this or that. My work is very important to me, so that’s a priority.

I’ve been with SportHill since 2002, and Jim Hill, I knew him when I was in college. He gives me clothing whenever I want. I’m good with that. It’s not about the money, it’s just about ‘hey, I’ll wear your gear,” it’s good stuff. Good sponsorships are more about good relationships that you believe in.

How did you get started in running? Running is crazy. It has been such a blessing for me. I wouldn’t trade it for the world. I dabbled in it in seventh and eighth grade. The summer before my freshman year I was pretty much hooked. I was fortunate to have a coach who made it a lot of fun. That has pretty much been who I am. I just love to run. If I wasn’t competing today I’d still run.

You're still motivated?: The first thing in the morning I want to go for a run. Last thing I do, I want to go for a run to finish the day.

To be able to be successful in it … it’s not about championships and medals and PRs. It’s about your own success. Did you go for a run today? Did you have fun? What did you see? Did you meet someone that you enjoy running with? We tie success to championships. I never made an Olympic team. I never won an open national championship. But I’ve been successful because I’ve been happy with it. And I hope that is something I can relate to people in the future. Just enjoy it. It’s not about winning. You can have a passion for running and never win a race in your life.