5-Mar-19 TUE - day 3 east loop, SV to Bisbee & back ↑9%
Challenge today was the 2 long climbs - the one to Bisbee, up and over Mule Pass, and the one from Elfreda to Tombstone, 15 miles of small chainring climbing followed by high speed descending with a very significant crosswind. It was enough to make me touch the brakes at 45 mph. It was also a narrow road with more than a little traffic as it is a major shortcut across the hills to Tombstone. Finally in Tombstone, it was very steep navigation of residential streets to get to the historic quarter of Tombstone near where our lunch stop was. Contrasting to the miles of climbing was the very long descent all the way from the top of Mule Pass, down through Bisbee, past the Lavender Mine, three quarters of the way around the roundabout, and north and downhill toward Double Adobe Road. That was fast! I reached my top speed of 47 mph for the day, in that section. The turn onto Double Adobe Road continued the descent, at which time I was coasting at 37 mph for miles. Eventually, it flattened out and my speed dropped to about 23, at which point I began pedaling again. That was sweet! Back to Tombstone, finished up lunch, crossed over the hills to the west of Tombstone, dropped down to the San Pedro River, and undertook the long climb to Sierra Vista. By this time, for some odd reason, I was feeling tired, so while the climb to Sierra Vista was not very steep, it was still a slow speed climb. So, despite high speed descents, for miles, the rolling average still came in at the low 14s. It is what it is, but overall, I still enjoyed the ride. That's the main thing.
BIKE: DFXL166; start time: 07:31; end: 16:08; avg speed:14.3; max: 47; climb: 4245; miles:100.42; mtd miles:303.67; ytd miles:1796.11
SUNNY; wind: SW 10-15; start temp: 45; end: 73
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https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/3438249614