More than 10,000 spectators make their way to Manitou Springs October 25-26 for one of the quirkiest events in Colorado, as teams of costumed pallbearers race decorated cardboard coffins with a live "Emma Crawford" inside. The
25-year-old event pays tribute to Ms. Crawford, a woman who took to the mountains seeking healing for her tuberculosis and fell in love with hiking—physical limitations be damned. When she passed away, her fiancee had her buried at 7,000 feet on her beloved Red Mountain. As the story goes, it took 12 pallbearers to hike the coffin up the mountain, and rain eventually washed it back down. Beyond the actual race, which pays tribute to the legend, participants also vie for prizes for best coffin, best Emma impersonator, and best entourage all-around. Stick around after the races for a hearse parade and lantern-lit walking tours of the historic town.