Several runners who rose in darkness Sunday to race up the Pikes Peak Highway said they hesitated at the alarm clock’s ring. But they were rewarded for rising.

The sun’s first light revealed a forest glittering with frost, enchanting them as they climbed 10 kilometers to the finish line at Crystal Reservoir.

“It’s absolutely beautiful,” said Dan Valerio, 52, of Denver, as he looked across the reservoir, wisps of steam rising off the water and a powdery Pikes Peak rising beyond.

See photos from the race!

“It was a great run. I felt strong,” said race winner Simon Gutierrez, 46, of Colorado Springs, after he cooled down by jogging a few miles farther up the highway. Gutierrez didn’t seem taxed at all, crossing the finish line in 43 minutes, 23 seconds — averaging a 7-minute mile during the 1,713-foot climb.

“That was fun!” said Brandy Erholtz, 35, of Evergreen, the first woman to cross the finish line. “I felt good the whole way.”

Erholtz’s 49:35 finish was fourth overall among the 70 runners.

Race co-director Ron Ilgen had expected a few dozen more runners, but figured Saturday night’s sub-freezing temperatures kept some away.

“The weather probably scared some people off, but we’ll get them next year,” said co-director Nancy Hobbs, 52, who took to the course with the pack, finishing 16th overall in 1:00:13.

It was about 20 degrees when the runners left the tollgate at 7:30 a.m. — duly noted by second-place finisher Peter Maksimow, 33, of Manitou Springs (44:46), who crossed the finish line with frost in his beard.

The inaugural run in 2011 was held in conjunction with the Pikes Peak Cycling Hillclimb and the course was longer — 11.6 miles. Ilgen and Hobbs hope the shorter distance — and a cheaper entry fee — will draw additional runners.

But the shorter distance didn’t mask the difficulty of the climb from 7,750 feet to 9,400 feet — nor the grade, which averaged about 6 percent and included stretches at 12 percent.

Art Souverein, 49, of Parker, said he felt every foot of elevation gain. “I run some hills in Parker, but they’re about 1/28th of this,” he said — then vowed to train harder and return to run even faster than 56:03 in 2013.

Ken Merenda, 57, didn’t let the cold nor the altitude stop him from joining the run. In fact, he traveled from Seabrook, Texas, to do so.

“What a great run,” he said after joining his wife, Joy, at the finish line. “It was tough, for sure — the altitude, whew! — but I’d do it again.”

This year’s course took racers past the finish line as they ran uphill, then gave them a hairpin turn for a downhill sprint to the finish.

“It was a bit difficult, psychologically, to pass the finish line, but the turnaround was pretty, with aspen leaves on the trail,” said David Bieda, 50, of Colorado Springs. “This is a great run. I’ll definitely be back.”

A winter wonderland greeted runners at the 2nd annual Pikes Peak Road Ascent 10K on Sunday, Oct. 7, 2012. The race followed the Pikes Peak Highway from the tollgate to Crystal Reservoir. Photo by MICHAEL CIAGLO, THE GAZETTE

Peter Maksimow, of Manitou Springs, finished second in the Pikes Peak Road Ascent, a 10K race along the Pikes Peak Highway on Sunday, Oct. 7, 2012. Sub-freezing temperatures greeted the runners, but their perseverance was rewarded with stunning views of P Photo by MICHAEL CIAGLO, THE GAZETTE