TULSA — Thursday night, some Tulsa cyclists had the chance to ride with professionals, ahead of this weekend's Tulsa Tough races.
Organizers estimate around 500 people were on hand for the 25-mile ride. Now in its tenth year, it started with modest beginnings.
“Second year, I opened the store, we did it at our Tulsa location. And we had thirty-two people show up, total,” Zachary Pfaff, owner of Spokehouse Bicycles, said.
Pfaff is a long-time cyclist and has ridden in his share of Tulsa Tough races, but he wanted to give the amateurs a chance to meet the pros and add to the atmosphere around Tulsa Tough.
“It brings so much energy into the city. There’s already huge community here for cycling in town," Pfaff said, "And it just helps build it more and more every year.”
2 News spoke with a couple of the pro-cyclists on hand. They tell me Tulsa Tough sticks out among all the races they enter.
“The atmosphere, the crowds ... the way the whole city rallies, it’s unlike a lot of other races,” Monica Merced, from Austin, Texas said. “I won the first edition of this race, way back when. It’s been a staple to my career," Daniel Holloway, of Boulder, Colorado said, "I think that win, that year, basically launched me professionally.”
The pros also told 2 News what cycling has brought them.
“I’ve traveled the world on someone else's dime. So, if you’re young, you should try to figure that out,” Holloway said. “There’s a reason why bikes are called the freedom machine. It takes you anywhere, almost anywhere, we get to see really beautiful places in the country and even around the world," Merced said.
After the ride, burgers, hot dogs and cold beverages awaited the cyclists.
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