Not 400k, but 200k on a tandem. On Saturday, Jen and I finished our longest tandem ride, and Jen’s longest ride on any bike, the 200k, Manzano Mountain Air, in about 10.5 hours. Our return trip was slowed by stomach issues that kept us off the bike for 1.5-2 hours, but we finished well within the 13.5 hour time limit.
The Manzano 200k is a beautiful route that starts on the Northeast corner of Albuquerque, goes up over the mountains and drops down into Mountainair, NM. It’s mostly out and back, but on the way back, turns east after the highest elevation, and takes the riders through Sedillo, NM, adding about 10 miles to the return from Mountainair.
The weather was OK for Spring in the mountains. Chilly temps; most riders didn’t remove their jackets all day. A fair amount of wind. A few snow flurries during the highest few miles in the afternoon. When I first read the ride description I thought the note of where to buy hand warmers along the route was odd, but after wishing we’d packed a couple for Jen, whose hands were freezing up front, I thought I should pay more attention to such “odd” notes in the future.
As I wrote in my December, Radium Springs report, the NM Brevet ride coordinators and volunteers are awesome. Many thanks to Lizz, John and Fred for another fun ride in New Mexico!