Local runner to face challenger

For the first time in a long time, Matt Carpenter will have a challenger on Pikes Peak.

The 45-year-old Manitou Springs resident, a 15-time winner in the Pikes Peak Ascent and Marathon, should be tested

Sunday in the Marathon by Mexican Ricardo Mejia, the last person to beat Carpenter on America’s mountain.

Mejia, 46, leads the Skyrunner World Series, an international circuit of high-altitude races.

He has five Marathon titles, most notably a 19-minute triumph over Carpenter in 1992. Since then, Carpenter is 7-for-7 in the Marathon and 5-for-5 in the Ascent.

“I’m sure he’s coming here to win,” said Carpenter, who will skip the Ascent for the second straight year. “Everybody is beatable. Even the record is beatable.”