El Tour de Tucson - Cycle

The beginning of the ride was a mess - thousands of bikes all starting at the same time and a wide range of speeds. It was extremely difficult to get any room to ride above 10-15 miles per hour. For a lot of the ride, it was like being stuck in traffic for 109 miles.

The first river crossing was about 8 miles in. We dismounted and walked slowly across the sand. No one was in a hurry so I just had to exercise patience. That was a recurring theme throughout the day. I was hoping to get a little more room after the crossing as riders began to space out a little. I did, and managed to go at my pace for a while after that. Miles 10-40 were the most enjoyable section for me. Occasionally, I would be swarmed by a pack coming from behind. Inevitably, several of the riders would get in front of me and immediately slow down, causing me to hit the brakes - it was annnoying and something that I am not used to with most of my experience being in non-drafting tri events. This happened consistently all along the route.

The second river crossing happened at around mile 47. Once again, it was a mass exodus of people. It was impossible to get through quickly, so I took my time and used the opportunity to hit the restroom on the way through. After getting back on the bike, the hilliest section of the course came. I handled the hills pretty well, but I knew I was falling behind my goal pace. On the steepest uphill, I shifted into the small chainring and the chain locked up. I had to dismount to fix it. As I was about to hop back on the bike, I heard a spectator say 'there's no way you can get back on in the middle of this hill'. I jumped on the bike and started pedaling - I glanced back and smiled. Getting back on the bike on a steep uphill was my little way of redeeming myself after the three sisters debacle at Silverman - it felt good. A few miles later, I wanted to assess how close I was to three hours at the halfway point and determine my approach for the second half based on my time.

When I got to mile 55, I was around 3:20. I doubted whether I could make up over 20 minutes on the second half, but I wanted to make the best of it. However, I had fallen behind on my water and nutrition plan and needed to get caught up. By mile 74, I needed to stop to refill my water. After a refill stop, I hit the road again with mile 80 in sight. While I was feeling a little better, I was ready to be done. My goals for the race were out the window and I was just counting down the miles to the end of the season.

It was about then that the wind really started to pick up. Some major dust clouds rolled across the road and we were breathing dust as we rode through. The wind was coming from the south and we would be turning and heading straight into the wind soon enough. At around mile 88, something in my digestive tract locked up. It has only happened to me once before - during a full marathon. I am not sure what causes it. It lasted about 3-4 miles before letting up, and I had lost more time. In addition, we were now heading south (into the wind) and in the most remote section of the course. The roads were also in poor shape - it seemed like forever before the next aid station appeared. Things were pretty rough for me in this stretch.

We finally got back into the suburbs and things were a little better. At mile 100, I got my usual cramp in my upper left thigh. It usually hits me at mile 70-80, so I was glad that it held off until this late. I stretched it out and kept pedaling and it subsided - that always seems to do the trick. At this point, I was in attrition mode - I just wanted to get through the last 9 miles and go home.

The last miles ticked away, but it seemed like it took forever. There were several stops in this stretch where we had to allow traffic to get through intersections. I finally made the last turn into the chute and it was over. Final ride time of over 7 hours (although I was only moving for about 6:23 (a lot time wasted getting to the start line, and stops for traffic, river crossings, and aid stations).

Having a definitive plan might have made a difference. I was riding solo with recreational riders, which made it very difficult to ride for time. I could have either taken the approach that I was in it just to have a nice time or shown up earlier to start with the more competitive riders. I was caught in the middle and it made for a frustrating day.

I turned in my chip and had to ask around until I found out where to pick up the finisher's medal (silver). I rode back to the hotel and made my way back to the Valley. It had been a long day at the end of a long season, so I was relieved.

I am glad that I was able to finish in the top half of the pack, although I would like to have ridden harder at times. I was also using a relatively new saddle, and I was concerned about how it would test out. After my longest day ever on the bike, a lot of things were uncomfortable, but thankfully the saddle wasn't one of them.


Bottom line: I was not trained properly for 109 miles. There were also external conditions that were limiters as well (traffic, congested course, winds, river crossings, etc.)


I thought a few things were confusing about the setup of this race. Since it is a fundraising event and donations are solicited during the registration process, it is not completely clear how much the event really costs when you sign up. Check in was a little confusing as well - there was a checklist of things that were supposed to be completed, and the booths that you were expected to stop by weren't labeled very well. The finish was anitclimactic - once the finish is crossed, you hand over your chip and then need to figure out where the finish medals are located. I think that doing a lot of tris that are on a smaller scale has spoiled me a little. While there was a lot of information available, things seemed a little disorganized at times. It is such a large event that it is probably very difficult to manage.

Overall, it was okay, but the course was extremely crowded. It made the three loop Soma course look wide open. I found the congestion frustrating, but I am used to riding alone, and am not experienced with using other riders in a pack to work together. A lot of the roads were in bad shape, and the river crossings, while unique, were a hassle. However, I am sure that it is very tough to find 109 miles of uninterrupted smooth road anywhere - let alone bordering a big city. I am glad I did the event since I have wanted to for a few years, but I don't think I will be looking at it as an annual event.