2025 Kitt Peak 300km Brevet

Ride Report

March 29, 2025

Mike Sturgill gives the pre-ride brief

21 riders gathered at the El Con Mall Starbucks in Tucson for the 2025 Kitt Peak brevets of 200, 300, 400, and 600 kilometers. It was an early start time; 0500 and for yours truly that meant setting the alarm for 0245 and getting on the road by 0305 to arrive at 0445. Time to get set up, but too early for a Starbucks coffee and/or bathroom break, they didn't open until 0530!

Brian McGuire pre-rode the 600 brevet solo earlier in the week and would provide fantastic support all day!

Paul Foley avoiding the deadly trolley tracks on University Drive

Many of the usual Arizona suspects showed up for this one; and quite a few snowbirds from Colorado, Michigan, and New Jersey were looking forward to a day of calm temperate riding in the Arizona desert.

We roll out of the El Con Mall and head through the University of Arizona campus to meet the first hazard of the day. The trolley tracks on University Drive. They go for about an mile, and if you have the misfortune of riding into one, well, your day might end early!

Heading toward Gates Pass

We rode mostly as large group until we crossed under I-10 and started our way up toward Gates Pass. There is a lot of climbing later in the day, so I simply drifted off the back of the group and rode up and over the pass at my own pace.

From the top of Gates pass, its about 21 miles to the support stop at Three Points/Robles Junction. Its mostly downhill, and predicted winds from the west were forecast to start later in the morning. So I dialed up the pace and arrived at Three Points in about the middle of the group.

Brian McGuire was there with a smile and lots of food and water. So I made a quick reload, and headed inside the store for a natural break. Getting back to the bike, Paul and Vern from Colorado were just rolling out. I quickly refilled the bottles, bid farewell to Brian and set off to catch them. 

Paul driving the pace toward Kitt Peak

They were soft pedaling and I was able to rejoin quickly. The wind was just starting to build from the West (our direction) and it was great to have company to share the work and conversation for the next 15 miles to the base of the Kitt Peak Climb.

Sells is the blur in the distance on the left!

We stopped at the base of the climb to strip off some layers and all set off at our own pace for the 12 miles to the top. As we got higher the temperature dropped and the winds really picked up. They were steady out of the west at 20-30 mph. Picture water running through rocky rapids, accelerating in narrow spots and even flowing upstream in places. That is what the wind felt like going up. Around one switchback; wind accelerating through a road cut felt like 40 mph on the nose; around another there was a nice push from behind!

Baboquivari in the distance

Finally reaching the western slopes of Kitt Peak, a bit more than halfway up, Baboquivari peak comes into view, and the winds were mostly cross or tail to the top.

Still a mile to go!

The multiple telescopes on the peak come into view, and you would think the climbing would level out. It does not! There is still 2 more miles of steading climbing to reach the visitor center.

The bikes taking a breather

Brian was wearing all his layers!

When I arrived most of the riders were huddled against the wall the visitor center, or going inside to get out of the high winds and cold temperatures. Empty water bottles, gloves, hats, and wrappers would go flying if you were not careful.

Brian made sure we had plenty to eat, and also warned us to be extremely careful on the descent with the wind conditions! Good advice!

I put on all my layers, including my balaclava and rain jacket for the descent and was still cold! Reaching the bottom, the route continues west to Sells to the control and turn-around there at the Bashas grocery.

With no one in sight, I stripped off my layers and headed into the wind for the 20 mile run to Sells figuring to tack onto a group when they caught me.

Locals at the meeting place in Sells

Before I knew it, I was on the outskirts of town, and two of the lead riders were heading back. I arrived at the Bashas expecting to see some riders but there were none. But they left some half-full gallons of water on the sidewalk and I was able to top off, spending less than a minute at the control! We loop through town, so I didn't see anyone else until I was outside the city limits and several others were  headed in.

Kitt Peak in the distance

The road surface was fantastic, wide smooth shoulder, very little traffic, and the best part, tail winds of 20 mph gusting to 30! In fact rolling along at 20 mph, it sometimes felt like riding in dead air. Going to Sells I averaged 15 mph, on the return the average was 20, with a top speed on a slight downgrade of 35mph!

Back at Three Points

I rolled into Three points and most of the group that was there were going to continue to Arivaca for the 400 or 600 brevets. They rolled out shortly after I arrived.

Chips, Coke, shade and company at Three Points!

I took a long break catching up with Brian and reloading my supplies. Paul and Vern rolled in shortly after me and shot this photo of yours truly and Brian in the shade and out of the wind!

Paul and Vern from Colorado

Paul and Vern tried to convince me to ride with them to Arivaca! Sorry I signed up for the 300, so luckily I had no choice if I wanted to complete my brevet!

Mostly tailwinds from Marana to Tucson

The route continues east out of Three Points for 10 miles to Sandario Road where we head North. Luckily the crosswinds were slightly off the tail, so no big help, but not holding me back either. I stopped at the Subway in Picture rocks for dinner and a break from the cross winds. Five more miles of Sandario Road, and we turn right toward Tucson. From here its only a few miles to The Loop.

The Loop!

The Loop, a 100+ mile bike path in Tucson has an extension to Marana. Its a wide multi-use path, with many underpasses and bridged crossings all the way into Tucson. I covered the 18 miles of this section of The Loop in about an hour, very fast for city riding, even with a tail wind since there are few if any stops. We exited The Loop about 5 miles from the finish. Mike selected one of the Bike Boulevard routes from here to the finish at El Con Mall with wide residential streets and on demand traffic crossing signals.

The finish at 13 hours 13 minutes

This was the first time I had taken this route to the El Con mall. At the end of these rides, you pretty much want it just to be over. Miles of stop and go traffic can be quite annoying. I think this finish was one of the best in terms of low traffic and very few stops. Hats off to Mike Sturgill for great route planning and Brian McGuire for being the ever-present with support during the day!

I was hoping to finish before sundown! ✅ 

No I didn't get a COVID booster shot, this is the drive-through lane at the Chick-fil-A! 

There are more brevets on tap, check out Azbrevet.com and join us!

Steve Atkins

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2025 Bartlett Lake 200km Brevet

Ride Report

January 2025

Perfect day for a bike ride!

Mike gives the pre-ride brief

Less than two fistfuls of Randonnuers lined up for the Bartlett Lake 200km and 100km brevets. Perhaps because two weeks earlier the Saguaro Lake 200 brevet was held. Debby and I were in Austria over the holidays so I was especially glad Mike added this ‘non-supported’ ride to the Azbrevet.com calendar.

It is always great seeing old friends and meeting new ones on these rides. Brian McGuire signed up for the 100km version and led the pack the first few miles to Cave Creek Road. From there we started taking pulls at a conservative pace, but it was only a few more miles until the group split apart and most riders settled into solo paces.

The end of Pavement on Seven Springs Road

It’s 30 miles of false flat then increasingly steep grades to the turn-around at the end of pavement (EOP) just past the first control at the Sears-Kay Ruins. As I made my way to the turn-around, there were many riders on the road, and a few from the brevet already heading back to the control Sears-Kay. 

After I made my turn-around there was a huge peloton of junior riders from the Bicycle Haus team on the road. They were hammering the last few miles to the EOP! They were resplendent in their matching team kit and bicycles, and even had a chase car following them!

Cindy and friend at the Control

After the EOP it’s only a mile or two back to the Sears-Kay turn-off. As I drifted into left side of the lane, the lead group of the Bicycle Haus team flashed by! I completed the left turn and made my way to the control to check-in. The lead riders on our event were just finishing their reload and were about to head out. It was great, and unexpected, to have a supported control, especially with Cindy Sturgill and her friend providing water, food, and encouragement for the riders. I would have liked to stay longer, but the clock is always ticking on a brevet. It was especially nice that Cindy set aside the one Mountain Dew (my favorite) until I got there. With the Dew done, water bottles reloaded, and a couple of bananas in my pocket, I headed out as Brian and a few others were riding in!

Once off Cave Creek Road, there were substantially fewer cyclists and relatively light lake traffic. Although, it must have been a day for club rides/drives as a large group of Mazda Miatas flashed by on the way down to the lake along with several motorcycle clubs.

Just in case…

I made it to the control at the Bartlett lake about an hour after leaving Sears-Kay. It’s mostly downhill but there are two sustained climbs on the way down to the lake. I didn’t need any water or supplies, so I snapped a photo of the control, and got back on the bike for the climb back to Cave Creek Road. At least on the way up, there are a couple of ‘intermission’ descents. In any case, it took an hour and a half to complete the climb.

It’s mostly downhill through Carefree and Cave Creek but with lots of Saturday traffic, you need to stay alert and watch for tourists and snowbirds. Only one close call; with car from Nebraska attempting the dreaded right hook. That is when the driver overtakes the cyclist, and not seeing you in the mirror (you are in the blind spot), completes the right turn directly into your path. Luckily I saw it coming and was able to slow, dart left and behind into the lane and pass on the left as the oblivious driver made her way into a Curio Shop parking lot.

Sharp enough to puncture!

Soon the route joins the Carefree Highway. There is heavy traffic, but a good shoulder. While it was slightly downhill, the winds were building from the southwest, so that there was little benefit from the traffic draft. In a short construction zone the road narrowed to one lane and the shoulder disappeared. Luckily, there was room to ride just to the right of the traffic barricades, so it was like riding on a protected bike path. The only downside; it was full of glass and road debris. About half-way through the zone a shard of glass sliced my rear tire.

New River Control

It took only 10 minutes to complete the repair and get back on the road to the next control. Soon the 7th Street turn appeared and its 13 miles of false-flat to gentle climbing to the next control at the Shell station/Subway in New River. The shoulder comes and goes along this section, but traffic was light, and mostly courteous!

I took about 10 minutes at the control to reload the bottles and get some solid food (hard boiled eggs, string cheese, and a Starbucks Frappuccino) and liquid calories on board before heading back out.

Windy section

The next 10 miles toward Lake Pleasant were right into wind, but not as bad as I have experienced on other rides. This flag at a batch plant confirms the wind direction! It’s only a few more miles before the route turns south toward Peoria and the wind would be crossing or on the tail for the remainder of the ride.

Mike selected a great route through planned communities in Peoria with wide roads and smooth bike lanes. It’s another 10 miles of stop and go riding through the streets of North Phoenix past the Deer Valley Airport before landing back where we started, for me, 9 hours and 30 minutes after the start.

Alex was at the finish, packed and ready to head out as I rolled in. It was nice to visit and share ride plans before packing up and heading back home. No need for fast food today, Debby told me a big pot of Ham and Navy Bean soup was awaiting my arrival. 

More brevets are on tap, head to AZbrevet.com and check them out!

Steve

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2024 Kitt Peak 200km Brevet

Ride Report

Sunrise on the I-10

The endless summer of Arizona brevets continued with a brevet of 200 km that included climbing to Kitt Peak and its assortment of celestial observatories. With a civilized start time of 0700 at the El Con Mall in Tucson, that meant hitting the road about 0515. Traffic was light and the sunrise was beautiful! 

Alex, Mike, Teresa, Chris, Brian

Only six of us on this one, Mike provided the preride briefing and we rolled out together at 0700.

University of Arizona Mall

We rode through the UofA campus. It was game day and they were setting up tents and tables for the pre-game festivities. 

Mike joins the Shootout

We rolled along University Drive, being careful to avoid the embedded light rail tracks. We rolled right into a group ride with about 30 or so riders. They were the ‘senior’ group riding the weekly Tucson Shootout ride. One of the riders filled me in; the group got so big that there are now 3 groups, we had happened upon the ‘senior group.’  He assured me that while they may be old, they are still fast. Beware of the old man with a million miles in his legs! They were impressed that were headed out to Kitt Peak and back.

Lucky for us, they turned off at Silverbell road before the real shootout commenced, and we continued up towards Gates Pass. 

Gates Pass - West Side Scenic Pullout

Crossing Silverbell, the road tilts up toward Gates Pass. The group was a bit too fast for me, so I let them go and continued at my own pace. The forecast was for afternoon temps of 100+ and I did not want to burn matches this early in the ride. Cresting the Pass, there was some traffic behind me, so I jumped into the big ring to start my descent, I wanted to head down without being slowed down by car traffic. Unfortunately, my chain dropped during the shift, but I was already moving and rolled down, stopping in the scenic pullout to put the chain back on!

Kitt Peak in the distance

Once back on the road, I was soon on the Ajo Highway with Kitt Peak in the distance. I stopped at the Robles Junction (3 Points) general store to reload my bottles just as Mike, Chris, and Brian were rolling out!

I made a quick stop, only 3-4 minutes, but the group was long gone. Another 18 miles to the Kitt Peak turnoff, but for some reason it just seemed like we would never get there. Somewhere along the way, I rode up on Brian. He was stopped for a flat tire so I took a break and we headed on together.

I made a wrong turn here, even though the sign was clear, and headed a few hundred meters down the dead end road to Pan Tak. It didn’t look familiar, and my Garmin was telling me I was off route!

So I turned around and rejoined the route as Brian rolled past. Ah, here is the correct turn, and the Garmin confirmed it!

Its 12 miles to the top, the first 2 are easy 2-3% grades, then it tilts up to 8% for a solid 10 miles. Whose great idea was this?

Progress is measured in mileposts and elevation markers, but the observatories still seem way out of reach!

Don’t be fooled by this sign, there are still 3 solid miles of climbing to go. No, I didn’t turn off my phone!

Great view of Baboquivari Peak in the distance as the road continued on the southern slope of Kitt Peak.

The Kitt Peak observatories from the southwest. Still some serious climbing to get there.

It’s usually a good sign when the elevation sign is more precise than just, 2000, 3000, 4000, etc. because it usually means you are at or near the top.

Chris and Alex both were heading down when I was on the final miles of the climb, and Mike was just about to leave the visitor center to head down when I arrived. He said there were drinks and snacks inside and pointed out a cool solar telescope exhibit that was open. I grabbed lunch and found a table in the shade next to the solar telescopes.

Solar Exhibit

A volunteer docent assured me there were filters on the telescopes and they were safe to view. I really didn’t think to ask, and assumed they would be safe, since people heading out of the exhibit did not appear to be blinded by the experience. There were two telescopes, one with red filters that allowed you to view the solar flares, and the other with white filters to see the spots on the sun. Both were very clear.

As I was having lunch Teresa rolled up on her ElliptiGo machine. I was very impressed with her skill and strength to get that thing up and down such a steep climb. I ended up spending 45 minutes for lunch visiting with some nice folks visiting from Greenville SC. They were in town for a WWII fliers reunion. Her father was the flier, and when he was alive they started attending this reunion. Now it’s mostly families of those airmen. He was very interested in my Calfee machine, and he showed me photos of his vintage steel racing bike that he rides. 

All things being equal, 10 miles of 8% downgrade is much more fun than 10 miles of 8% upgrade. Too bad it doesn’t last as long. 

I stopped for one more photo of Baboquivari before rolling back into the desert heat. It took 3.5 hours to cover the 30 miles from 3 Points to the top of Kitt peak, and 1.2 hours to get back! I made another quick stop at 3 Points to refill bottles and headed back out into the 100+ heat.

There were no services between 3 Points and Tucson, and I thought 2 bottles would get me there. I was wrong. The heat and headwinds on Sandario Road really slowed me down. I considered going off route a mile to two the Saguaro National Park Visitor Center, but hoped the Desert Museum in Tucson Mountain Park along the route would have water. It was open and this delightful oasis was not a mirage. In fact the water fountain was refrigerated and filtered! I spent 20 minutes here in the shade, cooling off, drinking, and eating some pocket food. When I left there was a big puddle where I sat from dumping several cool bottles of water over my head and body!

East side descent Gates Pass

Recovered and with the sun getting lower in the sky, the last 10 miles to the finish were actually enjoyable, that is, once the very steep climb up the West side of Gates pass was behind me. It was mostly downhill to the finish from there and with the sun at my back, and my kit still soaked from the dousing at the Desert Museum, I hardly noticed the heat.

UofA Mall

Luckily the football game was still underway when I rolled through the University of Arizona Mall. Most the fans were still at the game, and the few I saw were watching the game on TVs set up in their tailgate tents!

Happy Halloween

Mike uses the 3rd Street Bike Blvd to get from the UofA to the finish at the El Con Mall. There were several groups of cyclists in costumes headed toward campus. I’m guessing they were probably not headed to the library!

I rolled into the El Con Mall about 10 and a half hours after the start of this one. The sun was nearly down and I was very happy to have this one in the books. I doused myself with some nice warm water bottles that were inside the truck baking all day.

The other riders were staying in Tucson to ride Sabino Canyon and Mount Lemmon on Sunday, but luckily I had a Sunday commitment and couldn’t join them. So I grabbed a Chick-Fil-A sandwich, fries and a large Root Beer, and pointed the Sequoia back toward home!

There are more events for 2024 and 2025, check out Azbrevet.com and join us!

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