Inspired by scenic Sedona bicycle routes such as Lower Red Rock Crossing and Skyline and Highland drives, Cornville surgeon Bradley Williams biked his way to a state championship Saturday, June 14, in Show Low.

“Sedona has some of the best rides around,” he said. “When we are training hard, we will ride Lower Red Rock Loop, add all of the hills to the loop and hit the hills really hard.

“We…go hard up to the high school on the other side [and] will ride up to the airport hard.  Highland Drive…is very steep.”

Williams, an orthopedic surgeon for the past eight years at the Verde Valley Medical Center, passed Whiskey Row Bike Race champion Adam Nichols in the final quarter-mile of the Bike the Bluff race to beat 52 other category five racers with fewer than 10 races experience.

“I happened to sprint by him, which was really cool,” Williams said. “He tried to catch up to me, but I hit the home stretch in 23 seconds, and he did it in 25. I think I might have been the oldest guy on the road.”

Williams, 53, rode up to six days and 280 miles per week with limited mobility in his right shoulder to train for his men’s category five state championship in Show Low.

“It does take a lot of dedication to ride in these races,” he said. “I work on torn knees and rotator cuffs, [and] a lot of guys ride who have bad knees.”

For the full story, please see the Friday, June 20, issue of the Sedona Red Rock News.