El Tour de Zona: ‘It’s more than a ride’

Alejandro Angel had such a good time with friends at the inaugural Tour de Zona in Sierra Vista and beyond that he’s going back next month on March 20-23.

“It was a great time,” Angel said. “We took an RV and enjoyed it.”

What was great was his crew – two buddies (Kevin Thornton and Joe Vaskovic) and him – stayed at the park where it all starts in Sierra Vista.

“After riding, we’d come back and sit around the camp fire, drink a beer or two and visited the food trucks,” he said. “Everything was right there and readily available.”

The success of Tour de Zona – now in its fourth year – is that ‘It’s more than a ride.”

“You didn’t have to go anywhere (or far from camp) because everything is right there,” he said. “It was just relaxing.”

As it should be.

“It’s a great weekend of people riding bikes,” Angel said.

More than 500 cyclists – for the third time – will gather as one to have a great time.

Why?

El Tour de Zona is a three-day, fully supported bicycle tour during the day and a fun festival at night visiting the towns of Sierra Vista, Bisbee and Tombstone. ZONA is all about having fun. Cyclists can enjoy three-days of destination loop bicycle rides mixed with post-ride festivals featuring live music, great food and a local craft beer garden.

First day is in and around Sierra Vista. Second day is a ride to Bisbee and back. And the third day is going to Tombstone and back.

“It’s more of a tour ride than a fast ride,” said Angel, an avid cyclist. “The first day when we rode Sierra Vista we left late and rode at our pace and did what we needed to do.

“The second day was an endurance ride and again at your own pace and the third day (to Tombstone) was nice. There’s so much history, so I loved it.”

The love was because they were so different, and the riders can ride at their own pace – from expert cyclists to novices.

Did the ride event meet his expectations?

“I’m not sure I had any expectations, although I thought it might be a faster ride,” he said. “I saw people who were fast. We were intermediate. And we saw people who were slower, and they still had a great time.”

What was cool, he said, was his group ran into people he knew, from El Tour de Tucson riders to people in the same field of work.

That’s the beauty of it, people can all get to get together – from various backgrounds and experiences – to ride an event with no pressure of speed. Just fun.

“It’s a reason why my wife might join us this year,” he said. “She rides at a different pace and that’s OK.”

Come join the party! Visit https://www.eltourdezona.org/