Last Sunday (Nov 6) I participated in an organized bicycle ride from the nearby town of Queretaro to San Miguel along with roughly 600 others. The ride was a fund raiser for the local Red Cross (Cruz Rojo) and cost a wopping 300 pesos which is about $25.
The ride started down in the valley that contains Queretaro and then meandered on back roads up over big three ridges. The roads were a combination of paved, cobblestone and dirt and wound through beautiful highland-countryside past farms, villages (most with no obvious means of support) and rolling countryside.
There were rest stops about every 10 to 15 km with water, juice, bananas and oranges. Usually there was a stop just after each of the big climbs. At each stop the support-police car would park in the middle of the road and everyone would be collected back together into the group, i.e., those that were slower or who had had mechanical difficulties (endless flats mostly) were reincorporated.
I can’t say enough about how well organized the ride was. There were plenty of marshals, mechanics, sag wagons, well provisioned rest stops and team spirit to go around so that even the least experienced and most out of shape could participate and have fun.
The group ranged from kids to grandparents: there were families, local cycle groups, couples, fathers with sons or daughters, kids as young as 12-ish, lots of people who were not in good shape and of course plenty of people in good shape.
The ride was roughly 60km, a little less than 40 miles, and incorporated about 3000 total feet of climbing, mostly in three big climbs. When the roads were paved the ride was straight forward but the cobbled roads and most of the dirt roads raised the challenge and the fun.
One big hill was wonderfully rough and steep but unfortunately there were so many people struggling to climb the hill that most wound up walking up. Even if one was capable of riding up the walkers got in the way and once you stopped pedaling there was no real way to get restarted until the trail leveled a bit.
The ride culminated in a downhill run, all 600 or so of us, into San Miguel with cheering crowds lining the streets, a spin around El Jardin (the main square) and then a sandwich/soda/cookie at a nearby sports field. Raffle prizes were handed out to the lucky few and then it was time to go home. For me and the people I rode with it was a simple 1 to 3 mile ride home. For the bulk, there were busses to take them back to Queretaro where most had originated.
The things that stood out most for me were the extremely high level of organization and the joie-de-vivre and camaraderie that permeated the whole event. Not once did I see people having tantrums or winging at the side of the road, people all were seemingly having a good time and were willing to help those that had issues such as cramps or mechanical difficulties (pedals and seats falling off. flat tires etc). There were around 15 pickup trucks and two ambulances to pick up people who either had insurmountable mechanical difficulties or who were too tired to continue. At the final stop before our decent into San Miguel, those on the trucks were given the opportunity to get off and ride the final 15km or so.
A fantastic day for anyone who wants a fun, mellow-paced ride through beautiful countryside that one is most likely not going to see as a tourist/typical traveler. The ride is held twice a year the first Sunday in June and December.
No comments:
Post a Comment