Tucson Bike Camp Update

We are now done with Day 2, 3 and 4.
On Day 2 we did a very nice ride to Gates Pass in the Tucson Mountains. The total distance was 70 miles. Total elevation gain was 3143 feet. The road up to the Gates Pass was between 12 and 18 percent climb. I almost run out of gears (39/23 was not the best choice for it). The descent was great. In the evening we were treated to a nice pizza dinner at the home of Phil's friend Bill.
Here is the Garmin link:

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/embed/149485858

On Day 3 the weather forecast was showing rain in the late morning, so we decided to do a quick ride up the near Dove mountain (35 miles). As we were climbing to the top, the clouds got darker and darker. It felt like we were going to touch them. Instead of turning back at the top and heading straight home, we decided to stop for a quick coffee break at the Ritz-Carlton resort there. We paid for that right away. It started raining freezing rain and not too long after it changed to snow. Few of us decided to head back and the rest was smart to stay at the hotel. Only one of the brave riders made it home. Two others had to stop at a gas station half way home and hitch a ride home, another two almost suffered from hypothermia at the base of the mountain and had to take shelter at a restaurant and wait for a ride home. The rest of us at the top of the mountain rented a shuttle van and took the ride of shame home. Charles' Garmin was still on in the van and he got an average speed of 50 mph with a heart rate in the 50s. We warmed up at the house and prepared a nice steak dinner at the house.

Since the weather forecast for Thursday was showing similar weather as Tuesday, Phil decided to move the Thursday long ride to Wednesday.
We had to get up at 4:30 AM. There was ice on the windshield of the car. We drove all the way across town and parked at McDonald's. Quick breakfast and shortly after 7AM we headed south towards the town of Arivaca. The beginning was very cold, but most of us chose not to have too many layers as it was expected to warm up later. As soon as the sun came up we felt much better and started peeling off layers. There were several flats, wardrobe adjustment stops, bathroom breaks etc. We were headed up a gradual rise over rolling hills against the wind. It took us a while to get to the point where we had to decide if we were going to turn back and trace the route we came on for a total of 92 miles or we would continue up the mountain and go home using a different route for a total of 130 miles. We all decided to continue. There were 20 miles up the mountain with the wind (20-25mph) in our faces. Finally we made it to the top where we stopped for lunch at the only sandwich place. It was already 14:30. Knowing that as soon as the sun goes beyond the mountains it will be pitch dark, 6 of us decided to head towards the cars and go back pick the rest. The first 15 miles were over rolling hills with the wind still in our faces. We were burning daylight. We managed to have two pinch flats over potholes, a tire sidewall cut and a tire bulge which took precious time. We finally reached the other side of the mountain and the road turned north. The wind was in our backs and there was a gradual 1-2 percent descent. We were flying at over 30mph for 33 miles. We made up the time lost. After a brief stop at a gas station for Gatorade and bathroom break we went down the last stretch. This time we were riding on the shoulder of a busy highway and the road surface was not the greatest. We made it back to the cars at 17:00. 10 hours total ride time with almost 7 in the saddles. 126 miles, 4377 feet of elevation gain, 5 Snicker bars and six water bottles ;-)
We went back with the cars and picked up the rest of the group just before it got dark. At that point everybody was in agreement that we should skip the planned dinner and head straight home. Quick shower, light snack, plenty of fluids and most of us were in bed by 21:30.

Here is the link to the Garmin file:

http://connect.garmin.com:80/activity/embed/149913079