Tucson landing - 16 Wheels to Tucson - CycleBlaze

January 26, 2025 to January 28, 2025

Tucson landing

Sunday

The mercury is all the way up to two degrees this morning when we go to hitch up the camper at Matt's house for the two-day drive to Tucson.

Fresh snow on everything. I'm over it.
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We don't get far down the hill before another speed bump bucks the trailer hitch off the ball. Again. This time the impact broke the electric jack so Barry has to raise the trailer back up the hard way with the car jack. There's no place open on a Sunday to investigate the hitch issue. We're just going to take our chances and press on.

Welp, that's not helpful
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There's still snow on the highway south to Pueblo. It's not bad; traffic is light and Barry is taking it slow. I'm a bit worried as we approach Raton Pass just over the New Mexico border. The winds there can be vicious, not ideal with a tall trailer. Fortunately it's calmer today and the road is clear.

As we pass by Santa Fe the snow has melted away and the temperature is almost up to the freezing point. It's still too cold to camp; a motel in Socorro will do just fine. We've covered 462 miles today, far enough to get to our destination tomorrow and set up in the daylight.

Just outside Santa Fe with the snow well behind us
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Monday

Warm sunshine and dry roads greet us for the final leg of the journey. The mesquite and other desert shrubs on the road to Tucson are a welcome sight. This will be our fifth winter stay there. Feels like a homecoming.

The Magdalena Mountains west of Socorro
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Today's agenda includes getting a weight reading on the car and trailer for clues as to why the hitch popped off the ball, twice. In Willcox we drive on to a truck stop CAT scale that tells us the weight over each axle. The readings are all well within the limits listed in the owner's manuals. It's hard to tell if the weight over the hitch is off though. We're planning to take the rig in to a shop in Tucson for advice. Hopefully the data will be helpful for that discussion.

One more errand... we're driving alongside the Houghton Greenway on the way to Ben's Bikes in east Tucson for bike cleaning supplies. The bikes look like they're making a run for it on the path.
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Scott AndersonHey, you’re here! I recognize this spot!
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3 weeks ago
Janice BranhamTo Scott AndersonYes! Now that Barry has everything up and running again, we're eager to see you guys, and Kelly too.
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3 weeks ago

We have a bit of a rough landing at our RV park on the west side of town. Setting up the trailer in the fading light takes awhile since the electric jack is broken but Barry manages. We can find only one of our four wheel chocks and need at least two to keep the trailer from rolling off the stabilizers. Fortunately Ken, our friendly neighbor, has a spare we can use. 

When I hook up the hose to the city water port, water pours out under the kitchen sink. Barry finds the culprit - a broken plastic hose fitting. I guess we'll be dry camping tonight. I rummage around for a water jug and fill it in the shower house so we can at least flush the toilet.

I was counting on the water supply to clean the up the Coke that exploded  inside the fridge during the freeze back in Colorado. Thinking I'll do the job with Windex and paper towels, I find the bottle of Windex, frozen. Setting that aside for the moment, I discover another surprise in the bathroom cabinet. The shower gel leaked, coating the shelf and everything on it. Come on!

There's another first, ice in the Windex.
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Vowing not to be defeated in my quest, I thaw out the bottle in a pan of warm water and get the fridge clean enough to go grocery shopping tomorrow. At least the stove worked. One more bright spot - Jozarelli's food truck is here so we're set for dinner.

Tuesday: Cleaning bikes, riding in the dirt

This morning Barry is off early to shop for a new electric jack and replacements for the broken hose fitting and the three curiously missing wheel chocks.  

I have ambitions for a ride today, so while he’s gone I dive in on bike service. The bikes are crusty with salt and road grime. I gather up rags and the cleaner we picked up yesterday, and fill buckets at the shower house. The cleaning and lube process is kind of fun as the temperature ticks up to 60 degrees. It's quite satisfying to see clean bikes lined up to dry in the sunshine.

The trailer stands in for a bike stand. Note the broken spoke on the rear wheel. When did that happen?
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Karen PoretYou sound like Scott Anderson..too many mishaps unwanted!
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3 weeks ago
Janice BranhamTo Karen PoretI like to think we are front-loading the chaos and can coast along for awhile without much more of this.
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3 weeks ago
Three down, two to go
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The grime on the trailer is getting under my skin so I decide to save the last two bikes for tomorrow and switch gears. We're not supposed to wash cars or RVs here, but they do allow "self-contained" washing services. I interpret that to mean we shouldn't use a hose and have water running all over. I can get the job done with two buckets - one to wash, one to rinse - and dispose of the dirty water in the toilet. That shouldn't get us evicted.

The door side is what we see the most as we go in and out so that gets cleaned up today. Tomorrow I'll take a whack at the front that the neighbors see the most.
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Barry returns with everything on his list and starts in on installing the new jack. It's not long before that's done and he moves on to the plumbing. The new hose fitting is brass instead of plastic so he shouldn't have to fix that particular problem again. He makes the switch, hooks up the city water port and voila, no leaks! We're back in business.

Or so we think. A few minutes later while I'm hunting for my bike shorts, Barry notices water on the floor - a lot of it, flowing from the bathroom. What fresh hell is this? 

Turns out the toilet shutoff valve isn't working; it's stuck in refill mode. This toilet is practically new. Barry installed it six months ago when he replaced the floor. I get out all the towels to mop up the mess as water seeps into the cracks in the floor. That can't be good. At least the water is clean, and things dry out fast here in the desert.

There's a workaround using the internal water tank and pump. Unlike the always-on city water supply, water only flows from the tank to the toilet when the pump is on and you flush, and then it keeps flowing. We just have to remember to turn the pump off after flushing.

Enough with the chores. I need to get reacquainted with my mountain bike. Barry tries to take out the broken spoke on my wheel but his spoke wrench doesn't fit. To keep it from flailing around and get me out the door he twists the broken spoke around another one, and I'm gone.

Last year we were so focused on road touring and training for those tours  that I haven't been on this bike since we left Tucson in February. I'll start with a short six mile route to ease back into things, nothing crazy. 

The trail behind the resort connects to more than 100 miles of singletrack in Tucson Mountain Park, much of it way beyond my skills. There's enough challenge with the washes and twisty hills on this short route. I make it through almost all of them without stopping, but miss a turn and come up short at 4.6 miles. That's enough to level up the dopamine in my brain. It's great to be back.

Hitting the dusty trail on my shiny-clean bike
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Didn't make it up this wash. I'll take another crack at it tomorrow.
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Still sporting the snazzy storm trooper helmet that I acquired after falling on my face two years ago.
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Today's ride: 5 miles (8 km)
Total: 31 miles (50 km)

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Comment on this entry Comment 9
Scott AndersonCongratulations! First post from Tucson and you’ve already got two Bad Story Days on the account - a 100% average. Welcome to our world!
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3 weeks ago
Rachael AndersonWhat an ordeal! I’m glad you made it.
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3 weeks ago
Janice BranhamTo Scott AndersonYup, first day here and already we're into the type 2 fun. Much annoyance in the moment but amusing by the time I get around to writing it up.
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3 weeks ago
Janice BranhamTo Rachael AndersonThrilled to be here Rachel. Looking forward to seeing you guys
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3 weeks ago
Kelly IniguezIsn't Tucson grand? Say hello to Hank for us.
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3 weeks ago
Betsy EvansYikes. What a couple of days! I'd love to know what's going on with the hitch and coupler - there's always something to learn.
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3 weeks ago
Bob DistelbergI was glad to see Scott’s comment because as I was reading this I started to wonder if you and the Andersons were in a competition to see who could have the most mishaps on tour! I hope things go more smoothly down the road.
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3 weeks ago
Janice BranhamTo Betsy EvansI'll be sure to report back whenever we get around to towing the RV in for servicr. Might be a little while, we're here for 6 weeks.
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3 weeks ago
Janice BranhamTo Bob DistelbergWhile I'm an admirer of Team Anderson, we have our own sorry history of bungled up bike tours going back to the first one 10 years ago, when I hit a rock and wound up with a plate and 8 screws to put my clavicle back together. That was the worst of it, certainly not the end.
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3 weeks ago