Road Cycling - Some pics of my favorite climb

Just a few pics of todays ride, 11 mile 6,000 ft climb the 1st pic is about a mile away from the mountain.

sorry thought these pics would be ready for view without the click.

I wish I lived in your part of the country. That's an awesome bike ride I bet.

Man, those are some funny-looking trees :)

That is some beautiful site! One day I hope I'll be fit enough to ride up it.

Is that the mount Lemmon climb? I have always wanted to do that. At first it looked like a ride I take but then I saw the 6000 foot climb part! Looks like the vegetation native to Southern Arizona.

Why do photos of climbs always not look as steep as they feel in your legs and lungs! :)

Very different scenery than what's available down here. Next time I should bring along my camera. At least then I'll have an excuse to stop on the side of the road!

Is that the mount Lemmon climb? I have always wanted to do that. At first it looked like a ride I take but then I saw the 6000 foot climb part! Looks like the vegetation native to Southern Arizona.


Yes it is Mt Lemmon, very nice road at least to 11 mile marker, no bikes past 11 due to construction from last years fire. im training it now for the aug TT. what part of AZ are you?

Yes it is Mt Lemmon, very nice road at least to 11 mile marker, no bikes past 11 due to construction from last years fire. im training it now for the aug TT. what part of AZ are you?

I am in Mesa and the biggest climbs around here rarely top 1000 ft.. Want to get down to Tucson and see how I stack up against Mt. Lemmon someday though. So far the only riding I have done in Tucson is El Tour, but I do occasionally get down as far as Florence and Coolidge on Saturday rides.

Why do photos of climbs always not look as steep as they feel in your legs and lungs! :)

Very different scenery than what's available down here. Next time I should bring along my camera. At least then I'll have an excuse to stop on the side of the road!


Yea gravity sucks,, share the pics when you can.

Wow, nice climb!
That's it, I'm moving! :)

That is quite beautiful. I bet you need to carry a few gallons of water up it too huh ;)

i grew up in tucson, AZ and those pictures were great to look at. brought me back 8 years. i really miss that area.

I am in Mesa and the biggest climbs around here rarely top 1000 ft.. Want to get down to Tucson and see how I stack up against Mt. Lemmon someday though. So far the only riding I have done in Tucson is El Tour, but I do occasionally get down as far as Florence and Coolidge on Saturday rides.


Not over 1000ft around Mesa, i drove thru never rode there looked like a lot of mountains around.the record for the 9 mile TT is 34 minutes i have lots of work to do im 6 minutes off that. are you gonna ride EL TOUR this year? how did you do last time you rode it?

Here in East-Central Illinois the biggest hills are highway overpasses. That just looks unnatural to me.

I often wonder if I could hack it in those hills.

Any idea what the average gradient of the road is. It looks like it is at least a bit forgiving as far as steepness goes but it is hard to tell from a pic of them.

That looks like a beautiful ride!

Just a few pics of todays ride, 11 mile 6,000 ft climb the 1st pic is about a mile away from the mountain.

So the climb is around 10% grade, right? How hot was it when you climbed it?

Not over 1000ft around Mesa, i drove thru never rode there looked like a lot of mountains around.the record for the 9 mile TT is 34 minutes i have lots of work to do im 6 minutes off that. are you gonna ride EL TOUR this year? how did you do last time you rode it?


I guess I should qualify the 1000 ft remark. I meant within easy riding distance of mesa. Get out of town 20 or 30 miles and you have some pretty good climbs. I am thinking of putting together a 184 mile route that has 12000 feet of climbing and does a big circle past roosevelt and back through globe. I will have to work up to that for awhile though.

I fell victim to the headwinds last year and finished in 6 hrs 52 minutes. The year before I was 15 minutes faster. This year I am not going to wait for anyone with flat tires or get any myself (riding armadillos) and I am going to go for the gold! I already have about twice the base miles in that I did last year so heres hoping!

you talking about the tortilla flats area? I rode over there from where I lived, 84 miles round trip, forgot how much climbing, we descended and then climbed out from the town, something like 2500-3000 feet of climbing. Nice long climbs too. Went on a weekday morning, very little traffic.

you talking about the tortilla flats area? I rode over there from where I lived, 84 miles round trip, forgot how much climbing, we descended and then climbed out from the town, something like 2500-3000 feet of climbing. Nice long climbs too. Went on a weekday morning, very little traffic.


I am thinking of doing that at dawn on Saturday moring. It is great pavement when there are no cars on it! Also the climbs up to Globe, Saguaro lake and for the person in for a long ride Roosevelt lake.

I guess I should qualify the 1000 ft remark. I meant within easy riding distance of mesa. Get out of town 20 or 30 miles and you have some pretty good climbs. I am thinking of putting together a 184 mile route that has 12000 feet of climbing and does a big circle past roosevelt and back through globe. I will have to work up to that for awhile though.

I fell victim to the headwinds last year and finished in 6 hrs 52 minutes. The year before I was 15 minutes faster. This year I am not going to wait for anyone with flat tires or get any myself (riding armadillos) and I am going to go for the gold! I already have about twice the base miles in that I did last year so heres hoping!

Yea the wind last year was a major pain!!! most flats reported ever also. i got 2 myself but it was my fault, my frame# was falling off looking down to tie it when i looked up i was off the road into some cactus. i still managed to do well this year i start in the platinum :) good luck to you.

So the climb is around 10% grade, right? How hot was it when you climbed it?


Temp was around 97 100, avg grade is 8% some places steeper some places flatter and a few small down hills to recover on. i parked 5 miles from the mountain that day and used 1 bottle. when i ride from my house there and back it is 68 mile round trip (11miles up mountain) and i use 3 bottles, and 1 flask of hammer gel 2 of them bottles being acclerade.

you talking about the tortilla flats area? I rode over there from where I lived, 84 miles round trip, forgot how much climbing, we descended and then climbed out from the town, something like 2500-3000 feet of climbing. Nice long climbs too. Went on a weekday morning, very little traffic.


There is a race every wed night starts at 5pm, the Tortilla Flats all cats welcome and you can reg before race on the calendar here www.azcycling.com ill be there next week.

I am thinking once I get back to AZ I'll try it out. It would be my first race. I am a climber so if it doesn't come down to a sprint that would benefit me. Is it pretty well run with a good turnout? I have heard quite a bit about it, all positive.

nice looking climb. i have a friend in Tucson, I think i'll have to pay him a visit later this year. I love going up, up, up and up. Looks like I could do that their.