Only in Tucson

Chad and I combined forces on the river path, pre-dawn. We were set to take on yet another daunting challenge, one that I’ve never successfully completed.

Home->Summerhaven->Red Ridge->Charouleau Gap->Cherry Tank->50 Year Trail->Catalina SP->Home.

(Usually by the time you survive to the Gap, you bail and take pavement the rest of the way. Or at least I do)

80+ miles, 10k+ gain and some serious adventure riding in between.

River path sunrise I.

II

A cold sunrise, latent moisture in the air.

We rolled the El Tour dirt route, quiet and calm.

Time to self-shuttle from 2500′ to 8000′. Courtesy of the inclined plane:

We took some singletrack and found ice and snow. Doubts formed about the viability of either of our escape routes off the mountain.

photo by Chad Brown

First we hit the village of Summerhaven for a tallboy (Chad) and a microwave burrito (Scott).

“Can I ask you a question, and will you give me an honest answer?”

“Did you ride all the way up from the bottom?”

“Yes”

“You have my respect!!”

So says the occupants of a vehicle that honked at us on the way up. (?!)

Minor ice/snow and a few fallen trees stunted us at the beginning of our mammoth descent. All in a day’s work for a Catalina adventure rider.

photo by Chad Brown

A graveyard.

We’re going down there.

Chad nails a switchy. For a couple of enduro weenies, we were on fire out there.

The mega descent is done, now the real adventure begins.

There’s some good riding hidden between the nastiness. You need to keep your eyes open, though.

Did I mention the cat’s claw? Aiiieeee!!

Trail sniffer required. We were fooled by a couple false leads, but I think we rode more “trail” than any of my previous attempts. Even with perfect trail finding there’s nothing fast about this section.

The 800′ climb up to the Gap was a piece of cake. The speed was unreal descending and catching air on the ledgy 4wd road.

The sun is high, spirits likewise. I decide to try my Louis FR voodoo skills and take a shortcut to the Cherry Tank road.

It worked out just fine, but our tolerance for losing further pints of blood was low. Rather than take the next FR line we utilized available energy on a few hundred feet of unnecessary climbing.

At Cherry Tank it was time to continue the gluttonous descending. 10 miles of mostly downhill singletrack. Not as easy as it sounds, though.

Moonrise:

It was difficult to get my mind around suddenly being at Deer Camp and the 50 having ridden from my house, by way of Mount Lemmon. I’ve been driving too much to ride lately. To be here without driving up Oracle Road, without even glimpsing it, was an empowering thought.

Not today, says Chad.

Sunset from Catalina State Park, I:

II:

Out of light, it was a harrowing ride down Oracle Rd to the River Path. This was the only unpleasant part of the ride. There’s a huge shoulder, but cars are everywhere, entering and exiting the road.

My headlight faded just before I hit the river path. I was cursing myself at the lack preparation, but once away from the influence of carheads, I recalled the presence of the moon. Lights were unnecessary — just a faded one in case someone else approached.

I detoured to a pay phone to see if Paula wanted to meet me on the path to spin home. She brought our commuter with its mega-HID-light and blinkies. It was still in the 60’s when we arrived home at ~8pm.

Stats:

83 miles
11,100′ gain
13:40 on the bike, 12 hours moving time

Another flawlessly executed and fun-as-heck ride with Mr. Brown. No big mechanicals, crashes or mishaps. We kept it steady throughout. Having someone to do this kind of thing with, and do it well, is a rare thing. Thanks for the ride, Chad. Not so sure it was the best prep for the 24 for ya, but what’s life for?