After several drives to the airport to pick up arrivals, we had everyone together and spent the first night at an RV resort out side of Mesa. Bikes were assembled, beer was consumed and we settled in for the night. We got a late start the next morning driving down to Tucson to meet up with @
Soup_Please (Scott) in a Safeway parking lot near the Catalina Highway. I met Scott at Eroica a few years back and immediately liked him. Super nice guy and a great athletic rider. He was on the mend after a bout with the flu a few weeks before, he was chomping at the bit to get out riding again.
Introductions were made and we set out to climb up Mount Lemmon. It was getting kind of late in the day to have any reasonable hope of getting everyone to the top so we decided to climb at paces we were comfortable with and set 4pm as the time we’d turn back in order to be back at the RV while it was still daylight. For most everyone, this was their 1st time this year to be on a big climb.
Neil and Gugie man by
Matthew Pendergast, on Flickr
We regrouped at a Viewpoint overlooking Tucson and decided that was our turn around point.
Mt Lemmon crew by
Matthew Pendergast, on Flickr
The descent off of Lemmon is really fun. @
Spaghetti Legs (Hugh) and I raced down with a super fit woman we had met at the view point, swapping leads in our formation all the way down. It’s a wonderful thing to descend with riders you can trust. We met up with @
-holiday76 (Brian) back in town at a brew pub near our RV. The others soon joined us and after finishing up our beers we packed up and drive to our campsite in Tucson Mountain Park on the South West side of town. It was completely dark by the time Mark had skillfully parked the RV and we set up camp. Now in search of food, we took to google to find something close by. We packed into my car and drove down to a place called Tiny’s. Situated on the outskirts of town, there’s a large number of trucks and vehicles parked out front in a large dirt parking lot. Opening the front door to this small place a hostess greets us and says it will be a few minutes before they can seat us.
It was weird, it was quiet and sort of dark, there were only a few tables there and a smattering of other folks, no one eating or drinking. After a few minutes she calls us and she opens a door that must have obviously been soundproofed. Was it a speakeasy at some point in the past? Country music and a loud crowd blast us as we enter this long skinny room. It was so loud I had trouble hearing any conversations except from the Latino Karaoke guy spinning the music. One of the Bar tenders was pouring drinks with one hand and singing into the microphone with the other while we were waiting for our drinks. Surrounded by cowboys, latinos and redneck bikers. Everyone was having a real good time. Burgers, wings, and nachos were pretty much all that was available on the menu
I don’t think anyone of us recognized any of the songs that were sung that night. It was so bizarre. I caught a brief video of it to share with you guys:
Tinys by
Matthew Pendergast, on Flickr
A belly full of greasy food and beer, sleep that night was not so great.
In the morning we got around and headed up to Gates Pass to meet Scott over at the Mercado San Augustin for Brunch on the other side of the mountain in Tucson.
https://mercadodistrict.com/mercado/
The desert in this area is rather lush and the road leading up to the pass is quite beautiful in it’s own way. There’s a few rollers when we first set out and it’s easy to get suckered into riding them fast but you don’t because the road ahead begins to climb steeply, ratcheting up even more just before the summit.
Gates Pass by
Matthew Pendergast, on Flickr
Gates Pass viewpoint by
Matthew Pendergast, on Flickr
This is what Neil was looking for back in January when he first said he needed a break from the Boston weather and proposed a tour.
Neil by
Matthew Pendergast, on Flickr
We wait at the viewpoint for everyone to regroup and get pictures.
Spring Break Crew by
Matthew Pendergast, on Flickr
The descent on the other side of the pass is a bit rough. Brian has the biggest tires of the group and is way off the front. Me, I took it safe, feathering the brakes and looking to avoid any hard hits on my 28mm tires. Soon, we are at the Mercado eating some great food on the patio with Scott.
Brunch stop at the Mercado by
Matthew Pendergast, on Flickr
Scott was riding a stunning MAP randonnuer and it was a treat for the eyes to view.
Scotts beautiful bike by
Matthew Pendergast, on Flickr