El Tour de Tucson - CycleCentury

So, the race started right at 7am, and we surged ahead with the crowd of bikes. The first few miles were kind of surreal- there were SO many cyclists. And it was really chilly, as the sun hadn't really come up over the mountains yet. I went out going faster than I normally would because I was surrounded by so many fast people, but I was feeling great and just taking in the semi-surreal experience of being in the middle of such a massive event. Josh started off ahead of us and I assumed I might not see him again until the end of the race, but Megan and I stuck together for the first bit of the ride.

About seven miles into the ride, the route crosses over a sandy wash where all cyclists have to dismount and carry their bikes to the other side. Of course, as soon as I picked up my bike to put it over my shoulder, I broke one of my water bottle cages. Luckily it didn't completely break off, but I realized that I'd have to be extra careful with my back bottle, since it was now pretty loosely attached. On the far side of the wash, there was a Mariachi band playing music and singing. They were really good, and this was also the first place on the course where lots of spectators were gathered to cheer, so the energy level was great. I stopped for a moment to see if I could find Megan behind me, but didn't see her and started riding again.

To be honest, large chunks of this ride are kind of a blur in my mind. I guess that's what happens when you're on your bicycle for almost 8 straight hours. I stopped for the first time around mile 30 to eat a little bit and to blow my poor snotty nose (some super awesome volunteer actually grabbed a whole box of tissue from his car for me!), and then kept pedaling along. Meredith caught up to me somewhere along Houghton Rd, and we were able to chat a little bit up until Freeman Rd where I passed by her on the nice big downhill. I knew that there would be an aid station after the second wash crossing, so I decided not to stop again until that point. Around mile 40-45, I started to hurt. My legs were feeling heavy and my saddle was really starting to bother me, and I was beginning to worry a bit about how I'd finish another 70 miles. I kept plugging away, forcing myself to drink and eat even though I wasn't hungry at all, and eventually made it to the second wash crossing at mile 47.

Just as I was starting the second wash crossing (which was really long, like 3/4 of a mile), I got a text from Josh saying that he was also at the wash. I was able to call him and figure out that he had just finished walking through the wash, and he waited for me on the other side. I was really pleased to know that I had been so close behind him, and it was also nice to stop for a minute and talk. I think walking across the wash gave my legs just the break they needed, because I felt much better after trudging through all that sand, surprisingly enough. Within the first mile after the wash, there is a purely awful hill on Snyder Rd. I made it to the top and pushed through, but man, this killed my legs. I was happy to coast down a few hills after that.

I lost Josh again soon after the Snyder Rd hill, and tried to keep thinking about how nice it would be once I had finished all of the uphills along Sunrise and Oracle and could finally enjoy the awesome downhill on Tangerine. I was doing fine, pedaling and spinning my legs as fast as I could, but I always seemed to be all by myself on the road, with big packs of people behind me and in front of me, but never with me. Oh well. Probably for the best, as big packs kind of freak me out anyway. I passed by all of the aid stations because I felt like I had plenty of water and I had eaten a good bit at the wash, but this turned out to be a bad idea. After the turn onto Oracle, I soon realized that I only had a couple more sips of water in my bottles. I definitely should have refilled them back at the Snyder wash. Oracle Rd is a bitch no matter what, but this was especially rough for me. I was riding all by myself (or felt like it, anyway), the wind was starting to really pick up, I was concerned about saving my last bit of water, and I didn't know when the next aid station was. I had a horrible feeling that I wouldn't be able to get more water until after the last steep hill on Oracle, which was going to suck.

Justin caught me about halfway up Oracle, and chatting briefly with him was enough to temporarily take my mind off of the dreaded upcoming hill, which was good. He passed me after a short while, and I was back on my own. Just as I was starting to see the hill nearing me, I noticed an aid station on the side of the road- I was so happy to see that damn aid station. I pulled off and dropped my bike, and as I walked to refill my bottles, ran into Josh again. We talked about the wind and the hills and ate a bunch of fruit, and he reminded me to take some Advil, which I'm convinced was a lifesaver. From this point on, Josh and I remained pretty close and leaped back and forth with each other for the rest of the race. This water stop was JUST what I needed, because I totally got a second wind after leaving. We tackled the Oracle hill, then the rolling hills in Rancho Vistoso, and then we were off to the lovely 5-mile downhill at Tangerine Rd.

The wind had picked up considerably as we rode through Rancho Vistoso, and we were all beginning to dread the final 15 miles of the race, which we knew would be directly into a headwind. I had not been expecting the crazy crosswinds on Tangerine though. On a normal day, I can coast down Tangerine at approximately 27mph, but on this day, I had to pedal pretty hard to keep up a pace of about 24mph. Talk about frustrating! This was not the free speed I had been looking forward to at all. Feeling dejected, we stopped at the bottom of the hill to stretch and eat a bit. I was feeling surprisingly good, and at this same time I looked at my watch and realized that I could most likely beat 8 hours for the whole ride!! I had some new enthusiasm towards getting this thing finished, and I was ready to push on.

From here (~85 miles) on, the wind was just terrible. Mostly, it was straight in our faces. Sometimes, it would gust to the side and make us swerve. It was devastating. In situations like this though, I really do take solace in knowing that no matter how bad I'm suffering, there are thousands of other people suffering right along with me. I'm not sure why that makes me feel so much better, but it does. I don't have much to say about the final 30 miles of the route... they were long, and slow, and painful. Josh was starting to hurt in the last 20 miles or so, so we leap-frogged each other quite a few times. We stopped for one final time about 11 miles from the finish line, and he sat down to rest his back. I was definitely starting to hit a wall and get very tired, but I knew that I was close to the end and I really just wanted to finish, so I told him that I would see him at the finish line and I went off with a mission to get this thing done.

I pushed through the last miles, watching my odometer count off every tenth of a mile and trying my best to keep a steady pace. When I finally reached the turn on Congress Rd towards the finish line, I stood up on my pedals and sprinted past the two ladies next to me towards the line. My watch said 2:42- so my time was 7 hours and 42 minutes. I crossed with a huge smile and even choked back some tears that popped up when I thought about what I had just done... I mean, this was pretty awesome. Not only had I never ridden more than 70 miles before, but I had been sick all week, and I still beat my goal time by 17 minutes?! Yeah, I was psyched. (I had a secret goal of 8 hours which I hadn't told anyone about, and wasn't entirely sure that I could actually pull off.)

Josh came through the finish just a few minutes after me, and then Megan and Liz both also crossed within the next 15 minutes. I think we may have all surprised ourselves a little bit, and having talked since then, we're all ready to do it again. :)

Next year, I'll train harder. But for my first century, I wouldn't change anything... this was wonderful.

I absolutely love riding my bike. I was already online searching for future bike races within hours of returning home from the El Tour finish line. Although I'm not sure that many can beat the atmosphere of this race. El Tour is run very smoothly, the participants are so encouraging and (for the most part) friendly, the volunteers are incredible, the events are well organized, the spectator support is awesome, the scenery is beautiful, and it's just a hell of a lot of fun. I will absolutely do this race again-- without a doubt, my favorite race thus far.