Cyclists from England excited about riding in El Tour in part because Tucson is ‘a big city with a small, warm heart’

From England with love … that’s how Freddy and Ann Bon feel about Tucson and El Tour de Tucson.

It’s a reason they will be back in November when they ride in El Tour for the first time. They are visitors from England, who visit Arizona every three to four months.

“We love cycling and are big fans,” said Freddy Bon, 62. “We also love mountain biking.”

They’ll be on those mountain bikes on Nov. 21, 2026 to ride in the 32-mile event.
They’ll be coming from Ashford, which is 60 miles from London.

They have spent months in Arizona, mostly in Tucson and have a fondness for Southern Arizona. They consider it to be their second home.

“It’s a big city with a small, warm heart,” Freddy said. “There’s so much to do and so much to see, whether it’s a cycling trail or walking or just visiting places … it’s got a lot to offer.”

He talked about other places that don’t have “a heart or a soul” but that’s not the case with Tucson.
It’s a reason they can’t wait to come back. The weather will be ideal and so will the ride, they said.

“We’re very excited because it’s something we’ve wanted to do for a while,” Ann said. “Now we have the opportunity to do it. We were so excited that we had to buy the jerseys.”

And they’ll be glad to be in Tucson in November.

“It’ll be cold … and not very nice,” she said of the UK in November.  “Grey and miserable. Just not nice to go outside.”

How did they find out about El Tour all the way in England? Well, they found out while spending time in Tucson. They took advantage of Tucson’s Loop then visited Cyclovia and then Ann decided to google things to do in Tucson.

And voila, El Tour de Tucson popped up.

That was just before the ride last year “so we promised ourselves that we were going to do it this coming year,” Freddy said. “We entered into it as soon as it was available to enter.”

Of course, they’ve already started to prepare here and will continue to do so when they arrive back in England next week.

“She’s better at endurance, but not as fast as me,” he said.

We will see about that in November.