OaxacaMTB.org

Monday, 21 November 2016 was “Revolution Day”, a Mexican national holiday. It seemed a good day for a ride in the rolling hill country of the Etla Valley northwest of Monte Alban. Over many rides the past couple of years, Albi has become quite an expert on the area, as this is one of his favorite regions to explore via bicycle. We drove to the village of San Felipe Tejalapam, unloaded our bikes at the municipal building there and proceeded to ride some rough country roads north to Santo Tomas Mazaltepec and back. We returned by a slightly different route which followed a stream rather than climb up and over the same ridge we negotiated on the first leg of our trek. In the course of the outing we spent 2.5 hours in the saddle and pedaled a total of 11.7 miles (18.8 kms). The first half of the ride entailed climbing 1621 feet (494 meters) to cross the ridgeline that separates the two towns. The return leg was somewhat easier, with just 1397 feet (426 meters) of elevation gain. However, where the outbound segment was entirely on country roads, the return was a scramble through farm fields, along and sometimes in a stream, and over some pretty rugged terrain. Our start/end point was the lowest in altitude, registering 5432 feet (1656 meters), while the highest altitude reached was 6110 feet (1862 meters) at the top of the ridgeline. All in all, it was a most satisfying ride.

On 3 October 1866 a famous battle took place near Miahuatlan during the time of the French Intervention, when Napoleon III dispatched a French army to conquer Mexico and install the Austrian Archduke Maximilian as emperor. This foreign invasion was vigorously contested by Mexican President Benito Juarez, whose financial and military resources were considerably less than his opponents. One of Juarez’ leading generals was Porfirio Diaz, who like Juarez hailed from the state of Oaxaca. Diaz relied on an imaginative use of terrain and deception to lure French troops into an ambush, which resulted in a clear victory and paved the way for Diaz to later capture Oaxaca city and eventually become president of Mexico, a position he held from 1876 to 1880 and again from 1884 to 1911.

As part of  the 150th anniversary of this battle, the people of Miahuatlan staged a 35.4 km (22.0 mi) mountain bike race through the streets of the city and out into the countryside. Multiple teams from neighboring towns accepted the invitation to take part, as did many individual bikers. The race got under way shortly after 10 am, and the fastest cyclists began crossing the finish line about 12:15 pm. The last of the riders completed the rigorous course some three hours later.

In making their way around the race circuit, riders were challenged by an elevation gain and loss of 3436 feet (1047 meters). Miahuatlan’s city center sits at an elevation of 5191 feet (1582 meters). The high point of the race topped out at 6266 feet (1910 meters), while the low point was 5083 feet (1549 meters).

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