The Tour de YC: Over the Mountain and through the Rocks

Mark Twain is quoted as saying (as my friend and colleague Curtis Kleinman reminds me),

"Don't ever let schooling stand in the way of your education."

So we didn't.  Now, please understand that Curtis and I have been known to do things that are... well... a bit crazy at times.  Last November we rode our bikes from Prescott to Phoenix via Wickenburg, some 113 miles, in one day.  We both were a bit disabled for the next day or two.  So for this year's big adventure, we thought we'd scale it back a bit.  We decided we'd visit all of our campuses--from the Chino Valley Ag Center to the Sedona Center for Arts and Technology--on two wheels, christening it the "Tour de YC."  And we were able to coax my neighbor and riding buddy, Bruce, into going part way with us.  (The engineer is evidently smarter than the college professors!)

     On Friday, October 11, my wife Carolyn helped me shuttle my truck to Sedona, where it would be waiting to take us home on Saturday.  That morning Curtis came by my house, we loaded our bikes in his truck, and Bruce, Curtis and I headed off for Chino.

     We departed the Ag Center about 7:30am with the temp in the high 30s, and while pedaling down Highway 89 we spied a herd of antelope to the west.  

Thirteen miles later we pulled in front of CTEC for a photo op.  Another 9 miles found us in front of the Prescott campus, where we shed our cold weather gear.  Bruce (wisely) left us at this point and glided to his house.  Curtis and I pumped over the hill by the Gateway Mall, enjoyed a nice downhill coast into Prescott valley, and devoured a few corn dogs at Maverick on Glassford Hill on our way to the Prescott Valley Campus.  We'd trekked about 31 miles at this point, having visited half of the campuses--but not yet half way to our final destination.

     Since we were close, we stopped by Curtis' house to drop off some gear.  His young boys came out, and I had a great time answering questions about my bicycle:  "How do the gears work?  Those are funny pedals.  Cool colors!"  A good break, as the most challenging part of trip lie ahead: The climb over Mingus Mountain.

     Now Curtis, being half my age, beat me to the top by about 15 minutes.  But we both made it to the 7,000'+ summit.  The next 12 miles were breathtaking!  We zoomed down the winding roads going faster than most of the cars.  Red rocks, gray slag from the mines, the eclectic shops and winding streets of Jerome seemed almost surreal on the bike.

     Just before we reached the Verde Valley campus, my rear tire went squishy.  The first of my spare tubes had a defective valve stem, and eventually I had to change it out again.  Not to be deterred, we climbed Black Hills Drive to the campus--33 miles after leaving Prescott Valley.

    We figured after climbing Mingus Mountain, the trip from Verde to Sedona would be pretty easy.  Again, we were wrong.  The path is deceptively difficult, with rolling hills and some formidable stretches of uphill.  We were both wearing down.  Just before sundown, we rolled into the parking lot at the Sedona Center.  

     Total time pedaling--7 hours and 42 minutes; time elapsed after leaving Chino Valley--10 hours and 15 minutes.  Total distance traveled--81.5 miles.  Thus the first annual (?) Tour de YC was completed.

    There are a number of great things about working at Yavapai College.  One is that we have some really unique and beautiful campuses located in some of the most picturesque scenery in this country.  

     But the best thing is the collegiality we share.  Like doing crazy stuff with colleagues. Supporting one another when hard times and tragedy strikes.  And the faculty's unwavering, total dedication to their students.

Sedona Sunset at the end of the 1st Annual Tour de YC