This last weekend I took part in a cross-country cycling trip from Tempe
to Tucson and back. This trip was more physically demanding than I had
anticipated, and despite training myself for the past three months I did not
complete it, just getting half way to Tucson before my knees began to ache.
So, I rode shotgun for the SAG (Support And Gear) vehicle, taking care of
repairs for the rest of the trip and taking a few photos.
My cycling ended at the halfway rest stop, which was at a Circle K
convenience store in Eloy:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/64004640@N03/16130499188/
I had made it over the Sacaton Mountains, had a flat tyre north of Casa
Grande, but keeping up with the group on the long though gentle grades took its
toll. Even though the terrain appears to be as flat as a billiard table, it is
deceptively rolling:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/64004640@N03/16130672780/
Eloy sits in the middle of a vast agricultural region, mostly cotton. It
also sits along a major Union Pacific rail line, with freight trains as much as
a mile long passing through every ten minutes or less:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/64004640@N03/16131863419/
The next rest stop is at a Dairy Queen at the Picacho Peak interchange.
It sits between Picacho peak, site of the only Civil War battle in the Arizona
Territory:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/64004640@N03/16318047715/
and Newman Peak, which hosts a number of microwave relay towers and other
facilities at the top that can only be reached by foot or helicopter:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/64004640@N03/16292105026/
When we stopped here on the way to Tucson, we encountered a homeless guy
who was making his way from Washington to Phoenix on a bicycle with all of his
possessions stacked on the rear:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/64004640@N03/16316259781/
His bike had broken just as he got to the Dairy Queen, and the rear
derailleur was history, having worn bearings and a broken tension spring. It
took a while to convince him that it could not be repaired, and then we
converted his bike to a single-speed so he could continue on to Phoenix. We
took up a pool and bought him a DQ sundae.
The last riders got to Tucson just after 8PM, and they joined us at the
Magpies restaurant on 4th Avenue for a party. Four of us stayed at a hostel, a
few others stayed at a couple of hotels, and the rest loaded their bikes on a
car carrier and returned to Phoenix. Those that remained got up early and met
at the Time restaurant at 4th Avenue and University for breakfast, then got
under way around 7:30.
Four of were now in the SAG vehicle, and we underestimated the speed of
the six cyclists. They were well beyond the first rest stop at Ava Valley
Road, so we caught up with them at two spots along the access road:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/64004640@N03/16318047305/
We had noticed earlier that one cyclist had a rear tyre that was in
marginal repair, and half way to the Picacho Peak Dairy Queen the tyre gave
way. We had no spare tyres, so we packed her bike in the pickup and continued
on. We knew then that if we had one more cyclist broken down or worn out, one
of us was going to have to get out and resume cycling. Fortunately, that did
not happen.
We met again at the Casa Grande rest stop in the shade of a tree, with
Picacho Peak in the background about 40 miles away:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/64004640@N03/16317184182/
Five miles later we reached the crest of the Sacaton Mountains, and a few
miles later we paused so I could take a series of photos of the town of Sacaton
(seat of the Gila River Indian Community) with the Santan Mountains in the
background. As luck would have it, I shot the last frame with one of the
cyclists speeding along the highway:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/64004640@N03/16292111616/
There was a second cyclist there, but he is concealed behind the Saguaro
cactus.
Even though I proved to be insufficiently trained for this, it was till
thoroughly enjoyable.
Chris
When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro
- Hunter S. Thompson
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