Saturday, October 5, 2013
Toluca bikers gear up to pedal to Acapulco Category: Living Published on Friday, 04 October 2013 01:10 BY TED CAMPBELL
Toluca bikers gear up to pedal to Acapulco
BY TED CAMPBELL
Special to The News
For the second straight year, a group of 70 bicyclists are slated to ride from Toluca to Acapulco in a grueling, one-day, 390-kilometer trek on Friday, Oct. 11.
The group, known as the Escarabajos Toluca (Toluca Beetles) Cycling Club, will depart from downtown Toluca at about 5 a.m. Friday and arrive in Acapulco between 10 p.m. and midnight later that night.
The Acapulco Bike (Aca Bike) trek constitutes the biggest challenge of the year for the Escarabajos, according to the event’s organizer, Luis “El Gallo” Hernández.
“Aca Bike isn’t a competition, but a personal challenge, with each one of the participants striving to complete the most kilometers and stay on their bicycles as long as possible,” Hernández told The News last month.
Hernández went on to explain that six support vehicles with two staff members each will follow the riders, carrying water, fruit and bicycle repair tools.
Equiped with bike racks and caution signs, a caravan of trucks and passenger vans will also provide transportation for exhausted cyclists and broken bicycles.
Last year, 67 participants from Toluca, Mexico City and elsewhere in central Mexico participated in Aca Bike.
Many of those riders – male and female, athletes and enthusiasts, teenagers and retirees – are set to return this year.
Javier Suárez, a student and bicycle mechanic, started mountain biking two years ago at Sierra Morelos Park near his home in Toluca.
He said that Aca Bike 2012 was “the greatest challenge I’ve ever done, as well as the most fun.”
“I’d love to do it every year,” he added.
“Bicycles are my passion, and in this ride I can test my stamina to the maximum.”
While most riders agree that the hardest part of the trek is the long uphill highway to Taxco in the mountains of Guerrero state, Suárez said that crossing from Iguala to Chilpancingo (100 kilometers from Acapulco), presented his biggest challenge, “not because of the terrain, but the heat.”
“The whole ride was fun, but especially when we got to the tunnel in Acapulco,” he said.
“Everyone was cheering and going crazy. Then there was another downhill and we arrived at the statue of Diana in downtown Acapulco.”
For Victor Sosa, an agronomist from Metepec, last year’s ride was both a physical and mental trial.
“You have to be physically and mentally prepared,” he said.
Sosa had knee-replacement surgery seven years ago, so the Aca Bike trek was particularly demanding for him.
“I can’t run or participate in long-distance races like marathons,” he said. “So I started mountain biking five years ago. This ride is a great challenge against myself. It’s also a great life lesson for my two children. They are younger and in better physical condition than me, but they don’t exercise.”
Like Suárez and Sosa, many participants are mountains bikers who have since picked up road riding.
In fact, Escarabajos Toluca, founded by Hernández, began as a mountain-biking club, exploring trails in the wilderness around Toluca, such as the massive, extinct Xinantecatl volcano.
“I began mountain biking in 2000, and from then on it has been total discipline,” said Hernández, who in addition to his day job at Petróleos Mexicanos (Pemex) also owns a bike shop and offers spinning classes twice a week.
“It was a way to test my will and fighting spirit.”
In 2010, Hernández and his friends attached reflectors and flashing lights to their mountain bikes and met on Thursday nights in the center square of Toluca to take night rides through the city, passing through nearby mountains and small towns.
Now Jueves de Bici (Bicycle Thursdays) attracts between 10 and 30 participants each week and has police escorts on motorcycles and ATVs.
ACA Bike is one of many regular road rides organized by Hernández and friendly groups like Ciclismo Para Todos (Cycling for All) from Mexico City, including twice-yearly rides from Mexico City to Toluca across the Marquesa mountain range and 100- to 150-kilometer trips to places like Villa Victoria, Cuernavaca and Taxco.
Huatulco: Mexico’s most pristine coastline By Colleen Besman
Huatulco: Mexico’s most pristine coastline
By Colleen Besman
Huatulco
The Pacific Ocean along the Oaxaca coastline laps the shores of Huatulco’s 36 stunning beaches, spread across nine bays boasting warm waters and golden sands. In these bays live the most important coral communities of the Mexican Pacific. More than 700 species of animals live in the Parque Nacional (National Park) Huatulco, including numerous species of colorful fish. The park provides opportunities for snorkeling, bird-watching and hiking. Its biodiversity and pristine landscapes make Huatulco a favorite destination for nature lovers.
Trip to Huatulco
Audubon Eco Journeys
Dec 6-11
viajesconaudubon@gmail.com
or by phone at 415 152-3644
Audubon Eco Journeys
Dec 6-11
viajesconaudubon@gmail.com
or by phone at 415 152-3644
The park, a protected area, was created in 1998. It contains 6,375 hectares of lowland jungle and 5,516 hectares of marine areas, encompassing four of Huatulco’s bays. Members of the tour will sail in a private yacht to view and enjoy the coastline. The bays are calm and clear in early December, allowing for excellent snorkeling. There are no sharks in these waters, so the snorkeling will be carefree.
The tour will include a visit to Rio Copalita, which forms the western border of Huatulco. It is the largest river in the region and has paths for hiking and enjoying its extensive bird life with an expert guide.
La Crucecita is a small community located just a few minutes drive inland from Santa Cruz, the town on the main bay for this region. Although it is a new town, it has developed the feel of an authentic small Mexican village, but with many restaurants and interesting shops.
The Hagia Sofia is an agro-ecological development of more than 130 hectares in the hills above the ocean. Here there will be an opportunity to see different phases of the cultivation of fruit, vegetables and timber, as well as to observe a great diversity of flora and wildlife.
In 2005, Huatulco was awarded the Green Globe International Certification as a sustainable tourist area, and in 2010 Huatulco received an Earth Check Gold Certification; it is the only destination in the Americas to achieve this distinction.
Join Audubon Eco Journeys for an inside look at Huatulco’s pristine beaches, abundant forests, and diverse wildlife. Travel with a small group in comfort with knowledgeable guides, and enjoy visiting this remarkable seldom-visited area of Mexico.
The price of the trip, US$1,325 (a little less for Audubon members), does not include air fare, for which participants must make their own arrangements; however, there will be a van leaving San Miguel for the Mexico City airport at 7am on December 6 to catch a 2:35pm flight to Huatulco.
Reservations and full payment have been requested by October 21. Colleen Besman can be contacted for reservations at viajesconaudubon@gmail.com or by phone at 415 152-3644. Full details of the trip can be found at www.travelian.com.mx/huatulco.
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