Slowtwitch Forums: Triathlon Forum: Arizona Lodging and Locale Questions

Calendar Coaches Fitters Retailers Triathlon Clubs Stack & Reach Custom Geometry Calculator Training Log
		MAIN INDEX	RULES & LEGEND	LOG IN

Search for (options)

Newsletter Signup

Slowtwitch Forums: Triathlon Forum:
Arizona Lodging and Locale Questions

GIO

Oct 29, 09 8:18

Post #1 of 9 (342 views)

Arizona Lodging and Locale Questions	Can't Post

I'm thinking about heading to AZ in February for a little warm weather training. Although I've been to Phoenix/Scottsdale a few times, it was years ago and I never took the time to get the lay of teh land. For those of you who are familiar with AZ, I have the following questions:

1. Tuscon or Phoenix area? I am leaning towards Tuscon for the riding, but have never been. Metro Phoenix area seems a bit congested and it seems like any good, safe riding is a ways out of town?

2. Lodging? Not looking to go crazy here so Troon North is out, but given that it's a vacation I would like the place to be somethign more than a motel off a highway. I have friends that have gone to Tuscon to train and many of them stayed in places akin to the motel in "No Country for Old Men". Is there anything that's reasonably priced that you would recommend.

3. Non-training activities: Any suggestions on things to do in the afternoons after training?

Thanks in advance for any suggestions.

Check out www.hellyeahthreads.com

Devlin

Oct 29, 09 8:22

Post #2 of 9 (339 views)

Re: Arizona Lodging and Locale Questions [GIO] [In reply to]	Can't Post

In Reply To:

Tucson is probably better overall for training, but there is more to do in Phx.

Not sure what the weather is like, but Paul here on the boards runs Casa Sedona. Some great riding up there, but I think they get snowy during the winter.

John

Sponsors: Rudy Project

That is 11 dimensions of awesome. Yes, string theory is necessary to fully appreciate the meta-nature of your post.-DaveRoche

596

Oct 29, 09 8:41

Post #3 of 9 (324 views)

Re: Arizona Lodging and Locale Questions [Devlin] [In reply to]	Can't Post

Snowy? Thats a joke : )
We had 3 inches last March and thats all we saw all winter. It was gone by noon the next day : )

February will see highs in the high 40's to low 60's. We average mid 50's at that time of the year. It could also be as high as the 70's. I'll be riding nearly everyday in February.

If I chose between Pho and Tucson. I'd choose Tucson. I'd stay at the El Conquestador in Oro Valley (just north of Tucson). Its a Hilton Resort and really nice. I've stayed there a few times.

If the OP is making a longer stay for training, then you really should change around a bit.....Tucson, Tempe, Sedona (Sedona, has nice riding and the area is the most beautiful area of the US, per USA Today. It was also just picked as one of the 10 most prettiest towns in the USA by Yahoo Travel.).

Theres tons of options as the State changes constantly. ie - Fort McDowell, just NE of Phoenix/Scotsdale....has a nice route to the north toward Payson. You can stay at the Fort McDowell/Radisson/casino for some fun.

Too many options to list them all : ) With all the altitude changes in Arizona - lower then the 500ft in Parker to higher then 7,000ft in Flagstaff, for example....the terrain and weather can change quickly.
Paul
http://casasedona.com
AAA 4-Diamond Bed and breakfast Inn
As seen on the "Travel Channel"

T-Money

Oct 29, 09 10:32

Post #4 of 9 (285 views)

Re: Arizona Lodging and Locale Questions [GIO] [In reply to]	Can't Post

Don't miss the Sedona Marathon, Half Marathon or 5K if you are near Sedona in early February. Don't expect a PR on that course but enjoy the scenery!
Casa Sedona B&B is about a mile from the start.
There is a 25 meter heated outdoor pool at the Hilton in VOC (Village of Oak Creek), about 10-15' from Sedona proper. The High School (in West Sedona, on the way towards Cottonwood) has a 400m track. Trails and dirt roads are everywhere.
Riding is pretty challenging. Nothing's flat and the wind can make some hills feel even steeper. Wide shoulders or dedicated bike lanes on 179 and 89a. Drivers have not been aggressive so far.
Wait until about 11am for the temperature to warm up.

596

Oct 29, 09 13:37

Post #5 of 9 (234 views)

Re: Arizona Lodging and Locale Questions [T-Money] [In reply to]	Can't Post

"Drivers have not been aggressive so far"

Thats very true....as they are mostly tourists : ) We have 10,000 residents and 4-5 million tourists each year.

I can ride my bike in the Village of Oak Creek and 179 nearly as fast as traffic. I pass cars all the time. The tourists are busy gawking at the scenery : )
Paul
http://casasedona.com
AAA 4-Diamond Bed and breakfast Inn
As seen on the "Travel Channel"

runninginaz

Oct 29, 09 16:53

Post #6 of 9 (202 views)

Re: Arizona Lodging and Locale Questions [596] [In reply to]	Can't Post

I live west of Phoenix and we have great riding out here. There are also great mtn bike trails, hiking, trail running etc around Estrellas and White Tank regional park. The east valley is also great, there is awesome running and riding in Mesa and North Scottsdale. You could check out the visitors bureau of some of the cities surrounding Phx. As for places to stay, the new stadiums in Glendale have attracted a lot of nice hotels, not super expensive but new and close to freeways (loop 101 and Interstate 10).
Tucson is a nice training destination, the big retail store Trisports is located there (and they even advertise in Tri magazines as "the winter training capital") so www.trisports.com would be a good resource. Many pro athletes winter in Tucson and there is a nice pool at U of A.
There are also some races here in winter. Lots of running races and a few pool tris.

desert dude

Oct 29, 09 19:14

Post #7 of 9 (177 views)

Re: Arizona Lodging and Locale Questions [GIO] [In reply to]	Can't Post

1. For training tucson far surpasses phx. Lived in both places

2. Lots of places depends upon your price range. I'm not a big fan of the oro valley area of tucson for riding. Too much construction going on right now.

in tucson the desert museum, a ton of places to hike, frisbee on the mall, sight seeing on the mall, there is Mt. lemmon in case you want to ski (it's a definite possibility here in february. february can be great sit by the pool & read a book weather. Not too hot and plenty of sun.

there are a few races in Feb as well. You have the Firebird triathlon with a salt water swim and then the trisports desert classic duathlon.

Brian Stover Accelerate3 Coaching, Blog
Save at TriSports.com - use code BSTOV-S

scotthamilton

Oct 30, 09 6:51

Post #8 of 9 (121 views)

Re: Arizona Lodging and Locale Questions [desert dude] [In reply to]	Can't Post

Where would you locate yourself if training in Tuscon? I have trained down there once before (no idea where we stayed) but it seemed like we had to drive to the start of most of the biking routes - not sure if this was just us having no idea where we were or what we were doing. However, wondering if there is a section of Tuscon that makes more sense to locate if just staying for a couple of months.

desert dude

Oct 30, 09 7:41

Post #9 of 9 (109 views)

Re: Arizona Lodging and Locale Questions [scotthamilton] [In reply to]	Can't Post

I'd look at the west side first (Starr Pass to say the university), then central Tucson (between Campbell to Swan, maybe craycroft) for N/S I'd go somewhere between Broadway and Sunrise/skyline). If you do that you should be able to bike out your door, run out your door and bike to a pool.

I live central tucson and it's a 45min bike ride for me to get to the base of Lemmon (east side of town) and ~3omin bike ride for me to get to St. Marys/Silverbell (West side).

Even if you stayed far west side, it's only 75-80 min to ride across town on your bike. you could still get 10-15k of climbing on Mt. Lemmon done in a 3hr ride from the far west side.

Brian Stover Accelerate3 Coaching, Blog
Save at TriSports.com - use code BSTOV-S