It is no secret, even to the casual observer , that road cycling in and around Tucson is a very popular activity. It clearly has become part of this city’s culture. Here is what some well-respected sources say about Tucson cycling:
Lance Armstrong, as his new Radio Shack sponsored cycling team begins training in Tucson for the 2010 Tour de France
Quote from a recent Tucson press conference with Lance Armstrong: "Tucson is a real cycling mecca for the United States. You have a good infrastructure with roads, good climbs. You have nice flats. You also have a lot of bike lanes, which is helpful for any cyclist, but even for us when you're rolling down the road with 23 or 24 guys. It helps to have that extra 4 or 5 feet that can get you some separation from the cars. The interaction with the traffic and the local people has been wonderful."
For more information about Lance and the new Radio Shack team, check out these links:
KOLD TV, Dec. 7
KOLD TV, Dec. 8
Examiner.com, Dec. 9
The League of American Bicyclists
Founded in 1880, The LAB is the national advocacy organization representing the interests of the country’s 57 million cyclists. In 2006 Tucson was awarded a gold level bicycle-friendly community designation by The LAB. The National Bike Rally is the official annual cycling event of the League of American Bicyclists, held in conjunction with a nationally recognized cycling competition. This year Tucson has been selected to hold the NBR in conjunction with the 25 th anniversary of El Tour de Tucson, the largest perimeter bicycling event in the United States. The BFC program analyzes bicycle-friendliness in five areas: education, enforcement, encouragement, engineering and evaluation. Communities are rated platinum, gold, silver or bronze. As of 2006, only Davis, California has received the platinum award.
Tucson Department of Transportation’s Bicycle and Pedestrian Program
According to TDT, there are over 475 miles of striped bike lanes in the Tucson Metro region. 1 More than 273,549 passengers utilize Sun Tran bus/bike racks annually 2 and 1.7% of Tucsonans bicycle to work. 3
Bicycling Magazine
In 2006, the world’s leading bike magazine ranked Tucson as the nation’s second best city for bicycling in the 200,00-500,000 population category.
Perimeter Bicycle Association of America
They are responsible for the production and promotion of major cycling events in Arizona, resulting in significant fundraising efforts for various charitable organizations. Perimeter’s flagship event is El Tour De Tucson. Founded in 1983, El Tour began with 198 cyclists and raised $4500 for the American Diabetes association. Today this event is recognized as America’s largest perimeter bicycling event. The projections for the 2007 tour: 10,000 participants and a fundraising goal of more than 20 million dollars for a multitude of charities.
Sources:
1. Pima Association of Governments
2. Sun Tran
3. Bicycle and Pedestrian Program, Tucson Dept. of Transportation
