Well, I did the El Tour de Tucson for the first time last weekend. It was fun, in a weird sorta way. Maggie, Cate and I stayed at the (fairly) new Marriott Starr Pass Resort in Tucson. It's a beautiful resort with pretty bad service, but hey, this post isn't about a resort.
The Tour de Tucson is a 109-mile bike race (or ride) that benefits the Tu Nidito Children and Family Services whose mission is to provide individual, family and group support to children and their families as they deal with serious illnesses and death. A worthy cause, to be sure.
The race starts in downtown Tucson, and heads south to Monthan Air Force Base, and then over to the foothills to the east of town. From there we wind our way up and down rolling hills all the way to Oro Valley, and then roll down Tangerine to Interstate 10 and Marana. Then we head back south to downtown and the finish.
109-miles probably sounds like a lot, but when there is a huge group of riders it seems to go faster. I took 6 hours and 20 minutes to do the ride. I could have done it much faster without too much effort, but I'd like to do it in under 5 hours, which will not be so easy. If you do it in under 5 hours you can line up later in the morning. I had to be at the start line before 5am. I got there only a few minutes before 5am, and I was probably half way back in the "gold corral". That means I had probably 2,000 riders or more in front of me. The total number of cyclists this year was 12,000, but that includes people that rode shorter distances (80, 67 and 33 miles).
The problem with lining up so early is that it is FREAKING COLD in Tucson this time of year, especially at 5 in the morning! I bought arm warmers and a windbreaker vest to help, but I was shivering from the cold. I had to stand next to my bike for two hours waiting for the start of the race! Misery. You see, the guys that do it in under 5 hours don't have to show up until 6:30am!!! That, my friend, is FINE LIVIN'!!!
So... I did the race at an decent pace (I finished in 1,777th place out over 4,500 people that did the 109-mile ride). Like I was saying, next year will be different... I will push much harder. Maggie says she wants to do it next year. I would like that, even if it means I don't do it in under 5 hours. We will be able to help each other stay warm at 5am. It will make it all worthwhile.
I didn't crash. I didn't get any flats. My biggest discomfort was numbness in my feet (well, beyond numbness by the finish), and really tired/sore arms (elbows, in particular). My butt was fine, my legs were okay (my knees really hurt the next day, but not so much during the race).
I am looking forward to doing it again. I am looking forward to getting Maggie out on longer rides in preparation for it next year!!! The longest training ride I did for this was 55 miles, which I did the weekend before the race.
Ciao!!!
2 comments:
I had the impression from Mom that Tuicson was not big enough to hold 10,000 bikes. She said it was a blip on the horizon when she drove by. Anyway, I am glad you did it and you and Maggie will have fun doing it next year. I am volunteering to help.
You are going to help at the race course, or you are going to help us with Cate?
There were over 12,000 bikes I think. It was the biggest ever.
Haven't you been to Tucson yet?
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