I rode my KH36 from my house to the top of the local Catalina mountains - Mount Lemmon. I travelled 40 miles, the lowest spot was at 2540’ and the end of the road (just short of true summit) is at 9134’. My GPS watch said that I had a cumulative climb of 9050’. It was 12 miles from home to the start of the Catalina highway, and then 28 miles to the summit. The last 3 miles were the hardest - ascending from 7840’ to 9134’. AspenMike could do this one-footed and backwards, but it felt like a nice accomplishment to me. The first picture is looking up at the forerange from my house. The last shot is a little muni down from the summit to Summerhaven to spend a few days relaxing in a friend’s cabin. I ate breakfast at home in the desert, and I ate lunch on the porch of cabin looking at the aspen leaves turning yellow.
Man… Great job. What did the bikers think of you?(I live here and I know there are many bikers every day training up there;)) Also your 36er setup is pretty awesome.
It was a Wednesday, so I only saw a handful of cyclists, most going down the mountain. I did chat with one guy who was impressed that I was cruising up the mountain at about 8 mph. I got a lot of attention from motorists though - lots of cameras and cell phones pointing out of windows. A couple on a motorcycle passed me on a downhill, then slowed down to let me catch up so the woman on the back could snap a photo.
Thanks Tom. This is a great road ride experience. There are also lots of great downhill and XC options to be had. I do a muni campout every year with LaBonte and company.
Awesome, that is one of my favorite climbs- Congrats!!!
If your interested, Mt. Graham and Mt. Hopkins are also great climbs, albeit tougher- They are all “ISLANDS IN THE SKY”!
Yes, my home state is,(was) Az. I grabbed my nephew, in Flag, a few years ago and we entered that event in spring that goes up Lemmon. And since we were down that way, we rode some other great climbs. Lovely area with some excellent riding.
For the 40 miles, I was moving for 5 hours, and I had 1 hour of stopped time for a total of 6 hours. I stopped a bunch to take photos and chat with some people at one of the overlooks. If I do it again, I may try for a faster time, now that I know I can do it
Oh yeah, I did not ride all the way back down. I rode down a 1000’ to the town of Summerhaven to spend a few days in a friend’s cabin with my family. The big uni rode down from there on the back of the car.
Hey Tucson Uni what MUNI do you usually ride and what is your favorite? and what are the specs on it? like crank length and that kind of stuff. I was thinking about a 26er but then i heard that the rims are weaker. If you have both what is your favorite and what are the major diffs.
MP UNI - Search the forums for the pros and cons of 24 vs 26 - it has been discussed to death. For serious tech DH, the 24 is what you want. I like my 24 guni and 29er for XC. I ride 150s on all my munis. I have no experience riding a 26. You are welcome to have a look at my stable of unis sometime.
The first picture is looking up at the forerange from my house. The last shot is a little muni down from the summit to Summerhaven to spend a few days relaxing in a friend’s cabin. I ate breakfast at home in the desert, and I ate lunch on the porch of cabin looking at the aspen leaves turning yellow.
