Winter Camp

That's Pusch Ridge towering above the Maddox's Casa del Tucson site of our January winter camp with elevations rising to above 9,000ft.   It was a great weekend of riding in Tucson culminating with Teenie's first place female over all finish in the El Tour de Tucson 60 mile event (over 1,600 cyclists in the 60 miler alone..and a total of 6,000 riders doing the 111, 85, 60, 42 mile events) a truly epic event.   Our plan was for Randall, Mark (Kansas City Headstrong affiliate rider) and myself to ride for Teenie delivering her to take the Queen's crown..

Race start..... 2 miles out a rider hits a road barricade on the left careening through the pack creating a domino effect taking DS out and stopping T and Mark in their tracks as the lead group is charging up Swan Rd.  (DS may very well take the team asphalt award... although I may be a close second)

Well as Winston Churchill said "no war is won without a plan, then again, no war is won according to that plan".  I am in the lead pack wondering who went down when a rider tells me DS went down.... Where's Mark? T?  hold pace ... some serious little climbing efforts in the first 15 miles at race pace.... hold on... mass of riders bad traffic miss the break at a turn across a 4 lane... sit up and wait for team.... the Maddox's neighbor, Roger Kennedy, team comes up and I get with Allajandro (Dominican Republic Pro) to help set pace...no T, no Mark... work with Allahandro...like moose and squirrel... 6'3" and 5'3" rotating at the front  (riding with Giselle has prepared me for this).... keeping Roger focused and out of the wind for his goal of winning the 60+... after 24 miles I am spent and sit up spinning thinking that Mark and Teenie should be coming up if they did not go down and just like that I hear "bird!"... Mark is at the front of a large pack pulling T along in second position..I slide back and check the pack and see no woman who is doing the 60..ride back up to the front . "T you OK.... I'm GOOD!"  GAME ON.... back on plan... (I had seen no woman in the front pack and there was no one my group so we just need to deliver T to the finish.)...

Mark is controlling the pace, no one coming around... I sit in and then head to the front to relieve Mark and send them back to rest for the final run in...... 1.5 miles to go we execute the plan as defined.... leading up to the final turn, Mark going to the front setting the pace, then I go and accelerate Mark and T on my wheel til I see the banner then pulling off with Mark taking T all the way to the banner...... perfect....... one for all, all for one.......awesome.... T left no matches in the pack on this one.....

Mark demonstrated a true team mate with his unselfish work at the front for so many miles.   If was a victory for all of us.... I would recommend Mark be added to the Headstrong race team roster as a Headstrong Remote Racer....

Congratulations to Teenie for a herculean effort and for being at the top of the podium.....