BaseCamp athlete Ali Knutson shared her experience at the 2025 Old Tucson 10er event in Tucson, Arizona.
My why for registering for this race was because I wanted to do something different to reignite the fire for my cycling.
The Old Tucson 10er was a new endurance mountain bike event put on by Zia Rides. It was smaller; 500 people showed their enthusiasm for the Tucson event by selling out the early-season January event.
My goals were simple since it's a base building time of year. Don’t go too hard at the start, test the legs, have fun, shoot for 1:15 lap times, and podium in the Women’s 50+ category. If anything, this would be a way to see how the current base training was working.
The start was cold, about 36-38 degrees. Many of us were shivering at the start as we lined up between the buildings in the Old Tucson Studios. I knew I would start cold, but finish hot, so I had my puffy on until I was able to hand it off to my husband, Richard. I danced and jumped around to get the blood flowing and the energy pumping. I wore my wind vest over my hydration vest so I could easily unzip and remove it on the lap, should I get too warm. I ended up unzipping it after about 5 miles into the race and did not wear it the remainder of the day.
The guns went off and we shot through the western town studios of Old Tucson. We were provided a sheriff escort on pavement for about 1.5 miles, which allowed the faster team and speedy soloists to spread out when entering the course. We peeled off onto singletrack and things were a little bottlenecked at the entrance, then moved into a long line of riders. It was a good time to breathe and keep calm. There wasn’t much room to pass, if any, and I was not willing to risk taking out myself, another rider or riding through a cactus. I would later see a young woman who had been zooming past a number of us, riding slowly, one handed, with two chunks of cholla stuck to her right hand. The desert can be unforgiving.
I would finish my first lap as the first 50+ woman rider. My husband Richard was my support (as well as working the neutral support tent) and he had a bottle ready to be handed off to me so I didn’t have to stop long. I was feeling solid, but I knew I had to keep my pace controlled so that I would be able to get as many laps in before the 5:30 pm cut. If a rider went out and did not make it back in by that time, the lap would be forfeited. In the end I would have to make the decision whether or not to go out for another lap, potentially not making it back in time…
My second lap was faster, but I could feel that I was slow in certain twisty sections. There is one section of trail called Prospector that was rather rocky; the rocks were angular, sharp tire slashers. I planned well by having my tire pressure set at 18/19 psi. There were a number of other riders who did not fare as well.
It descended into a gully, then climbed out, with loose, chunky rock at the base of the climb that would shift and slip under your wheels, meeting low rise, stair step bits. It was the section that elevated the heart rate and left us breathing hard at the top, before we would descend again over the chunk and slight bends of the trail. You could not lose focus on this. This was mile 2-3. I would end up walking the climb lap 3 through 7, to reserve my matches for other intermittent punchy bits between mile 8-11. I wasn’t that much slower for walking.
The rest of the trail was a mix of twisty and straight singletrack that weaved amongst sections of palo verde, cholla and prickly pear cactus, small river type rock, and dipped into some sandy/rocky gullies with punchy climbs that slowed me down if I didn’t hit it in the right gearing. Then there were sections where I could gain confidence in the speedy flow where creosote bushes lined the trail. It would be lap two that I would be passed by the eventual winner around mile 5 or 6. She was zooming! I kept a positive voice in my head, embracing my improvement on certain sections of the trail, figuring out how to hit those punchy climbs, watching the miles slip away, and not focus on one being slower than another. Mile 7 to 8 felt exceptionally long for some reason, not because it was particularly challenging (a bit of a false flat), but perhaps because it did not require a lot of focus. My favorite miles to see were 3, 9, and 11. The energy coming into the transition sections before the finish line was a boost to the mindset. The timing tent would notify me that I was currently 2nd, then 1st (wait, is that right?), then 2nd again.
Hours passed slowly and the lap count was lost in my head after 3…At about 80+ miles, I was riding behind a gentleman who was also a solo rider. We climbed the Prospector hill together, chatting a little. I thought I was on lap 7, he didn’t think so at the mileage I noted. I said, “I guess it could be 6, I think I’ve lost count after 3.” My brain wasn’t spot on as my focus was turning the pedals, fueling, and not running into a cactus. After that, I spent about 15-20 minutes doing simple math in my head trying to figure out what lap I was on. I proved that my brain battery still had some juice, but not much. The math was a slight recharge. Later in the lap, as I was riding down one of the gully sections where the trail slipped off into some bushes and cactus, I drifted to the left edge of the trail and couldn’t quite rebalance myself before the tight switchback. I went off the trail into the bushes, but missing any cactus and cutting the switchback. I let out a little yelp as this happened and realized that with a low brain battery, it meant the fatigue in my body would result in mistakes made. Before this lap, I was telling myself it would be my last one. However, I played this back and forth. If I made it back to the finish by a certain time, I could go out for one more. But I also think I lollygagged for that reason. One technical mistake during this lap was enough to make me hesitate. I knew another lap would be slower because my riding was getting "lazy" and my efforts were fading on the trickier sections.
I rolled into the finish line at 4:15 p.m. I suppose I had already made up my mind not to continue; I didn’t think it would be wise to go for another lap. I called it. "Stop while you aren’t bleeding or covered in cactus. Body is still working and let the brain recharge."
Fueling
Hexis had advised 80g of CHO per hour. I had simple Elete electrolytes in my hydration pack. I knew it might be hard to drink out of bottles except on certain sections of the trail, so I carried one bottle with either Fluid drink mix, some with 25g or 50g. Two other bottles had 60g of NeverSecond. I also carried NeverSecond energy gels, 30g, which I figured would be easier to consume while riding. I had an alarm on the bike for drinking and eating. With the cold start, I didn’t know if I’d drink enough. The alarm was helpful to remind me, but I did well to sip from the pack throughout the race. After the 4th and 6th lap, I had to stop to pee, so I assume that meant I was well hydrated. I had my transition zone set up with other options; Bonk Breaker chews and bars, Honey Stinger GF waffles, and extra Fluid electrolyte tabs. I also had a Bivo bottle with LMNT to satisfy my craving for salty things. I would take periodic sips of this if I stopped at the table grabbing extra fuel.
At some point, I could feel my stomach becoming fatigued by just pure carbs, so I decided to have a Bonk Breaker Protein and Energy bar after two of the later laps. The change was a good choice, they were super tasty, and my stomach settled. I continued consuming the Fluid mix and a periodic NeverSecond energy gel. I felt overall the fueling was sufficient for my energy needs, at times it was 90g, and at a minimum, 55g while riding. This was supplemented by the protein and energy bar, so I never really was too low on carbohydrates.
Special shoutouts
I am damn lucky to have a professional mechanic as my husband and solo support. He prepared the bike before the race, had a spare bike for me, set up a second set of wheels in case something catastrophic happened on course, and would lube my chain as needed in between laps when the dusty conditions got things noisy.
Thanks to Jennifer Campbell for the award photos above!
Chamois Butt'r Ultra. That balm is the bomb. It keeps the tender bits happy for miles and miles and many hours. I didn’t even think about reapplying until I went to pee.
Coach Menachem's strength program. The BaseCamp strength program he created allowed me to sustain long hours on the bike, 8.5 hours of ride time (my overall time at ~8:45). I didn't feel my muscles start to protest until after the 6th lap, more than 70 miles in.
And always, BaseCamp. I could envision the community support and hear the voices of our coaches. It would have been more challenging had I not been part of the group training with varied cadence work, aerobic endurance, and recently the tempo and VO2 max efforts. Guidance on pacing, fueling, and mental performance tips all made a difference.
Results
8:45ish minutes of time elapsed, 93 miles, and a 2nd place finish in the women's 50+ age group. A story I could be proud to tell.
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