Previewing the 30th Annual Emma Crawford Coffin Races

MANITOU SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) - Manitou Springs will host its 30th annual Emma Crawford Coffin Races on the 900 block of Manitou Springs Avenue on Saturday. The parade starts at noon.

"It's such a Cultural event in our community," said Jenna Gallas with Visit Manitou. "30 years of coffin racing. It can't be beat!"

Gallas said they'll have a couple of new elements this year. The city is introducing a new event, the "Brewer's Cup." It's a separate race between the local bars and restaurants. There will also be a race between the Emma Crawford coffins and the "Frozen Dead Guy Days" coffins, a different coffin race in Estes Park in honor of Bredo Morstoel.

Manitou's "Emma Crawford Coffin Races" is inspired by none other than Emma Crawford. Crawford moved to Manitou Springs in the 1800s in hopes that its famous spring water and clean air would help her tuberculosis. After her death in 1891, she was buried in a coffin on her favorite mountain, Red Mountain. Years later, in 1929, two boys found her skull in Manitou Springs, according to the Manitou Springs Heritage Center. Officials later found a bundle of bones, a coffin handle, and a nameplate confirming the bones as Emma's. As the story goes, a flood uprooted her coffin and "raced" it down the mountain all the way into Manitou Springs. 65 years later, the Emma Crawford Coffin Races was born.

"We are bringing together so many people from so many different places to come and experience what Emma Crawford did, rolling down in her coffin off of Red Mountain," Gallas said. "The fun. The revelry. It can't be beat."

Racers build custom coffins and push them uphill with their "Hearse Driver," or, "Emma," residing inside the coffin. They race uphill Manitou Avenue in hopes of getting the best time.

The Manitou Incline and the 900 Block of Manitou Avenue will be closed on Saturday for the event. There will be no parking downtown for parade-goers.  Manitou Springs will have a shuttle running from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. at the DMV Parking Structure at 1675 Garden of the Gods Road in Colorado Springs. The shuttle is $5 per person, and cash only. They also have a free bike valet service, and they have drop-off spots for ride-share services like Uber and Lyft.

As of Wednesday afternoon, Manitou Springs still had a few race spots open (coffin not included), and they still had a need for Hearse Drivers. You can sign up to race here.

Full Schedule:

• 8:00 a.m. - Team Check-In
• 10:00 a.m. - Coffin Staging
• 11:00 a.m. - Parade Line-Up
• 12:00 p.m. - Parade Begins
• Upon Conclusion of Parade - Coffin Races Begin
• Upon Conclusion of Races - Race for Coffin Cup Begins, immediately followed by the award ceremony