Somehow the Giro d'Italia, Tour de France, and Vuelta d' Espana each are able to reveal the routes for their three-week-long, 2,000-plus mile bike races in a single grand event.
Not the 2010 Amgen Tour of California. Celebrating its fifth year -- and rolling out for its first time in May (May 16 through 23) -- the tour organizers are releasing route details two stages per day through Friday.
Moving the race from February to May gives bike race organizers the opportunity for improved weather and a more challenging course that includes a mountain-top finish in the Sierra Nevada at Big Bear Lake. You'll just have a wait two more days to learn the exact route the cyclists will take.
Videos and detailed route maps were posted on Tuesday for Stage 1..... more»
Amateur cyclists and recreational bicyclists in the US and Canada will get more opportunities to participate in Italian-style gran fondo bike rides in 2010.
Nearly a dozen gran fondo bike rides are scheduled next year in California, Colorado, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and Ontario.
Cyclists appear to be hungry for such events.
When 3-time Tour of California winner Levi Leipheimer launched a gran fondo-style bike ride in Santa Rosa last October, 3,500 cyclists signed up.
Word must have spread among cyclists, because when online registration opened on Tuesday for the October 2010 King Ridge Gran Fondo -- 10 months before the event -- half the 6,000 spots were reserved the first day.
In addition to Leipheimer's event in Santa Rosa, the Tour of California is sponsoring two gran fondos along the course of two Tour stages before the race in April. Centurion Cycling is launching its first season of gran fondo with rides in California, Colorado and Wisconsin, and Gran Fondo USA is offering rides in San Diego and Philadelphia next year ... more»
Sixteen cities will host the 2010 Tour of California when the fifth edition of the bike race rolls out May 16 to 23.
This is a couple of months later than the previous four Tours of California that were scheduled in February. The new schedule will surely mean drier, warmer weather for the cyclists and spectators, as well as a bone fide mountain stage that ends at Big Bear Lake.
It also means that four of America's top cyclists -- defending champion Levi Leipheimer and Lance Armstrong, George Hincapie and David Zabriskie -- are choosing the California race over the Giro d'Italia, the three-week Grand Tour that also runs in May.
Santa Rosa seems to be one of the few cities in California to know, for sure, that it's going to be a host city on the 2010 Tour of California bike race.
The city's Chamber of Commerce chief confirmed to the Santa Rosa Press-Democrat that the bike race would return to Santa Rosa for the fifth time in a row.
Meanwhile, organizers are still putting together the list of other host cities for the 8-stage tour. The race better be a doozy, because it's going up against the Giro d'Italia. The Tour announced earlier ... more»
Mark your calendars: The 2010 edition of the Amgen Tour of California is scheduled for May 16-23.
This change could be a good or a bad thing. The race previously has been scheduled for a week in February for its first four years.
Good: May is a much more weather-friendly month in California than February. In fact, a couple of stages in the past two years have been downright miserable.
Bad: The dates put it smack dab in the middle of next year's Giro d'Italia, which has been the cycling world's focus in May for decades ... more»
Levi Leipheimer showed 2 million cycling fans on the road this week that he had the speed and strength to survive wind, rain and snow to win his third Amgen Tour of California championship.
Finishing 1 second behind the winner in Sacramento's prologue last Saturday, Leipheimer took control of the yellow jersey on Monday and held onto it with the help of his Astana teammates all the way to Escondido on Sunday.
Another US cyclist, David Zabriskie on Garmin-Slipstream, finished in 2nd place and Michael Rogers of Team Columbia finished in 3rd. Lance Armstrong, who rode in support of teammate Leipheimer, finished in the top 10.
Leipheimer could have found his championship hopes threatened at Sunday's Stage 8. ... more»
Levi Leipheimer came one day closer on Saturday to winning his third straight Amgen Tour of California bicycle race title by finishing comfortably in the peloton in Pasadena.
A member of a 10-man breakaway, Rinaldo Nocentini of Team AG2R, won the stage. He and two other riders made a break on the laps around Pasadena and held off the chase to win the 89-mile stage from Santa Clarita.
On a sad note, one of the cyclists who had really made his mark during this year's Tour of California left the race after crashing.. more»
Time trial ace Levi Leipheimer proved that he's in top form at the 2009 Amgen Tour of California by winning the Stage 6 individual time trial and probably solidifying his championship at Sunday's finish in Escondido.
He beat his closest adversary -- National Time Trial Champion David Zabriskie -- by 9 seconds over the 15-mile course. Zabriskie effort put him into second place overall, 36 seconds behind Leipheimer.
Three-time world time trial champion Michael Rogers, who had been in 2nd place at the beginning of the day, dropped to 3rd with his day's showing of 23 seconds behind Leipheimer... more»
The Trek ProjectOne Team added this message to Lance Armstrong's back-up time trial bicycle: "Lance -- Ride this one like YOU stole it."
Armstrong posted this TwitPic on Friday morning, the day of the 15-mile Solvang individual time trial that's Stage 6 of the Amgen Tour of California and perhaps the deciding stage for Levi Leipheimer.
Armstrong said Thursday that he'd ride his original time trial bike, the one that was stolen in Sacramento overnight on Saturday and recovered on Wednesday. He said it seems to be in "fine shape."
Leipheimer, Rogers (24 secs) and Zabriskie (28 secs)
Sprint phenom Mark Cavendish racked up another win for the Columbia-High Road pro cycling team at the end of a 135-mile stage from Visalia to Paso Robles on Thursday.
I couldn't watch it on TourTracker, but the post-race reports make it sound a little bit like the previous three stages: Team Astana lets a small breakaway stay out front most of the day. Sprinters' teams reel them in near the finish. Sprinter takes the win.
Team Astana's Levi Leipheimer (above left) remained in firm control of the yellow jersey for a third day. Friday's Stage 6 individual time trial around Solvang, however, will probably tell the tale of whether Leipheimer gets to win his third consecutive Tour of California ... more»
A Sacramento resident walked into the Sacramento police headquarters this morning with Lance Armstrong's stolen time trial bicycle, solving a case that police had been working on since Sunday.
Although a police spokesman said he would not go into the details about how the person acquired the bicycle, "he is not a suspect at this time."
The bicycle "appears to be in good condition with the wheels and the frame, however the mechanics for the team will have to review it ... to see if there are any flaws or damage to it." ... more»
Mark Cavendish put his name in the win column for the first time at the Amgen Tour of California on Wednesday by winning a long sprint in Clovis.
Team Columbia's speedster from the Isle of Man stayed in the peloton with his fellow sprinters as Stage 4 wound through the Sierra foothills on the 115-mile day that boasted 5 King of the Mountain climbs.
In spite of a breakaway led by US National road champ Tyler Hamilton (Rock Racing), the sprinters' teams pulled the race back together in Clovis. Learning from Tuesday's miscues, Team Columbia got Cavendish to the front where he launched a long sprint .... more»
The impact of two major climbs and an all-day breakaway didn't factor at all into Thor Hushovd's Stage 3 victory on the wet streets of Modesto on Tuesday at the Amgen Tour of California.
The Norwegian sprinter for Cervélo TestTeam followed a perfectly executed leadout by his teammates at the end of the 101-mile race from San Jose to Modesto. He was followed across the line by Oscar Freire (Rabobank) and Mark Renshaw (Columbia).
Levi Leipheimer retained the yellow jersey, in spite of a going down between the two climbs after reportedly touching wheels with Astana teammate, Lance Armstrong. The Texan remains in 4th place; David Zabriskie in 3rd and Michael Rogers in 2nd .... more»
Levi Leipheimer single-handedly closed a 3-minute gap on the final climb to take the yellow jersey on the Amgen Tour of California's Stage 2 on Monday.
Taking Leipheimer's slipstream on the descent was Garmin's Thomas Peterson, a native of North Bend, Washington. He passed Leipheimer in the uncontested sprint to win the 116-mile stage from Sausalito to Santa Cruz.
As it turned out, Rock Racing could not defend the yellow jersey earned Monday by Francisco Mancebo. He finished in the third bunch about 1:40 behind Leipheimer.
Astana teammate Lance Armstrong, in spite of his second crash in as many days, was in a group of about 10 that finished 23 seconds behind the winners and dis 4th overall. Armstrong T-boned a motorbike that went down in front; says he's OK. ... more»
Heavy rains doused a lot of dreams at the Amgen Tour of California on Sunday as Rock Racing's Francisco Mancebo spent the entire day in front of the peloton to win in Santa Rosa.
The 32-year-old Spanish cyclist appeared to thrive on the wet and windy conditions as he outgunned two challengers at the finish line and finished about 2 minutes on Levi Leipheimer, who's making a bid to win a 3rd straight Tour of California.
Because of changes in the finish line, however, Leipheimer is only 1:02 behind Mancebo in the overall standings. Following is David Zabriskie in 3rd, Michael Rogers in 4th and Lance Armstrong in 5th.
Armstrong suffered a flat and a fall during the 106.7-mile stage from Davis to Sacramento, but was right there with teammate Leipheimer in a chase group of about 17 that finished about 1:40 minutes behind. ... more»
It's deja vu all over again as Fabian Cancellara again won the prologue of the Amgen Tour of California on Saturday in Sacramento, finishing about 1 second ahead of defending champ Levi Leipheimer.
The biggest cheers were reserved for Lance Armstrong, however, who finished in 10th place, just 4.2 seconds behind the winner over the 2.4-mile course.
Cancellara, the Swiss time trial specialist on Team Saxo Bank, won the prologue last year and held onto the leader's yellow jersey until the end of Stage 2. Leipheimer finished in fourth place in last year's prologue.
Other notable finishes in the prologue include David Zabriskie, 3rd; and George Hincapie, 6th... more»
I just checked and the new and improved Tour Tracker is up and running at the 2009 Amgen Tour of California website. We're talking two video feeds -- the main one boasting 4 times the resolution as last year.
It was running video highlights from the previous three Tours of California before the beginning of the prologue in Sacramento on Saturday. Phil Liggett was the commentator.
There are quite a few improvements in the latest edition of Tour Tracker, but be warned: you'll need to download Adobe flashplayer V. 10. It's a quick download... more»
He's returning to professional cycling on US soil this weekend, and already the drama has begun.
I'm not talking about Lance Armstrong; I'm talking about Floyd Landis.
Floyd Landis returns to professional cycling in Sacramento on Saturday for the 9-day Amgen Tour of California, but he almost didn't make it. He crashed on Thursday.
Landis has served his two years in purgatory after lab tests during the 2006 Tour de France showed that he doped. Now Landis is leader of the OUCH pro cycling team ... more»
Pro cycling is getting a lot of ink in California publications this week as the peloton gathers to start the 9-day Amgen Tour of California on Saturday in Sacramento.
One of the most interesting stories has been Bob Padecky's column about Johan Bruyneel, the director of the Astana team.
Bruyneel was an accomplished cyclist when he decided to retire in 1998 and considered taking charge of the pro cyclists organization. But a young cyclist named Lance Armstrong asked him if he was interested in being director of the U.S. Postal Service pro cycling team ... more»
Lance Armstrong's return to pro cycling on US soil adds excitement to the upcoming Amgen Tour of California, but BikingBis readers are picking two-time champion Levi Leipheimer to win the race.
The 35-year-old member of the Astana team received 43% of the votes cast in the blog poll.
Teammate Armstrong finished second in the poll, with 12% of the vote, and Christian Vande Velde of Garmin-Chipotle finished third with 10% of votes cast. Returning to cycling after a two-year doping suspension, first year champion Floyd Landis received 9% of the votes ... more»
With less than a week to go before the Amgen Tour of California -- it starts in Sacramento on Saturday -- I'm curious who you all think will wear the golden jersey on the top step of the podium in Escondido when the race ends Feb. 22.
See the poll at the top of the right column and simply pick your favorite. I'll announce the results in a couple of days.
The 9-day race features the return to pro cycling on American soil by Lance Armstrong. Will he go for the golden jersey or continue to test his conditioning and work in support of 2-time defending champ and Astana teammate Levi Leipheimer?
The inaugural Tour of California champion Floyd Landis will be on hand to launch his return to cycling ... more»
The Versus cable network is broadcasting two-hour live coverage daily of the 2009 Amgen Tour of California through the end of the bicycle race next Sunday.
Cycling commentators Phil Liggett and Paul Sherwen will provide coverage as Lance Armstrong to the peloton on US soil.
Looking at the "road cred" of the cyclists in the 2009 Amgen Tour of California, you could support the tour organizers' assertion that this is "the strongest field of professional cyclists ever assembled in the United States."
The full roster of 136 cyclists on 17 teams are listed below. Scanning the list, I don't see many of today's top cyclists who aren't on it, except for former Tour de France winners Alberto Contador, and Oscar Pereiro. I'd expect a high level of competition as the race rolls through California Feb. 14-22.
Leading the bunch will be 2-time Tour of California winner Levi Leipheimer, above. Joining him on the Astana team will be comeback king Lance Armstrong, winner of 7 Tours de France.... more»
Versus has announced it would be broadcasting live from the 9-day race that rolls out Feb. 14-22. Meanwhile, the online videostream at Tour Tracker, at right, is returning for those at work who might not be able to get away from the computer.
The VS. broadcast team of Phil Liggett and Paul Sherwen will be heard everyday during the race, now in its fourth year. This is the 3rd year that VS. has broadcast the bicycle race, and the first time with live coverage every day. Here's the schedule: ... more»
Interesting in tailing the pro cycling peloton across the Golden Gate Bridge during the 2009 Tour of California?
It will only cost you $500, a donation that will go to bicycling programs in the City of Sausalito.
The Golden Gate Bridge will be closed to traffic as the peloton leaves Sausalito on Feb. 16 for the race to Santa Cruz. It's part of the neutral start, so the peloton won't be racing across the scenic span.
The cyclists on the VIP ride will trail the cyclists past the adoring crowds certain to line the bridge for the historic event. Organizers say this is the first time the bridge has been used for a bicycle race... more»
Check out this partial tentative roster for a bicycle race:
Lance Armstrong, George Hincapie, Tyler Hamilton, Floyd Landis, Levi Leipheimer, Christian Vande Velde.
It might read like the Farewell Tour for the Postal Service/Discovery revival team, but it's actually some of the cyclists who will probably ride (although on different teams) in the 2009 Tour of California bicycle race.
The Tour of California announced Thursday the nine pro continental and continental teams that will join the eight previously announced Pro Tour teams at the race, which runs Feb. 14 through Feb. 22.. more»
US-based cycling teams Columbia and Garmin-Slipstream are included among the eight ProTour teams that have announced for the Amgen Tour of California, Feb. 14-22, 2009.
Also competing will be Luxembourg's Astana team, which boasts two-time of defending champion Levi Leipheimer (left) as well as Lance Armstrong.
If invitations are forwarded to domestic teams Rock Racing and OUCH, we'll see a reunion of former US Postal Service teammates spread across five teams ... more»
Daily route maps are available for the 2009 Amgen Tour of California so you can scope out the best vantage point when the cyclists roll past on Feb. 14 - 22.
This will be the 4th edition of the California bicycle race which has flourished in spite of funding woes of similar U.S. races. It marks the domestic return of Lance Armstrong to professional cycling and the opportunity for a three-peat championship for his teammate Levi Leipheimer.
There are a few changes in the overall race that were made since the host cities were first announced in July, although the host cities and number of cycling days remains the same.
The opening Sacramento bike race is no longer considered Stage 1, but is a 2.4-mile prologue ... more»
Lance Armstrong added the 2009 Amgen Tour of California to his dance ticket on Thursday, including the week-long race among his itinerary of Tour Down Under, Tour de France and Leadville 100.
Armstrong made the announcement at his appearance at Interbike International Bike Expo in Las Vegas. He had initially omitted any mention of the Tour of California when talking about his plans at the Clinton Global Initiative on Wednesday.
According to reports, 3-time Tour de France champion Greg Lemond was on hand at the Armstrong's presentation in Las Vegas and asked pointed questions to Armstrong and Don Catlin, an anti-doping expert who will test and monitor Armstrong for an online biological profile. ... more»
The Tour of California is getting longer, as organizers announced Wednesday that they've tacked on another stage to make it 9 days of cycling from Feb. 14 to Feb. 22 in 2009.
The 2009 race, one of the first on the pro calendar, will visit 16 cities as it wends its way along 800 miles of California roadway. Eight of those host cities will be new to the race.
There's no prologue this year, as the cyclists start on Saturday, Feb. 14, with a road race that begins and ends in Sacramento. It ends in Escondido on Sunday, Feb. 22 ... more»
Out on my bike today I was thinking about the Amgen Tour of California that just wrapped up Sunday with George Hincapie winning the final stage and Levi Leipheimer winning the title.
I enjoyed this third Tour more than the previous ones. Here are five reasons why I think this was the best one yet. In no particular order:
1. The caliber of the competition. The participation of cyclists who have made their reputation in Europe was exciting. Tom Boonen, Fabian Cancellara, David Millar all played a role in this year's Tour. But the highlight was definitely Mario Cipollini, left, who came out of retirement at 40 to join the Rock Racing team.
I expected he'd be just so much window dressing, but the guy came to race.... more»
Two former US teammates capped off the third Amgen Tour of California with a thrilling one-two punch on Sunday.
George Hincapie took the Stage 7 win, vindicating his High Road team that had been ruled out of a stage victory the previous day. And Levi Leipheimer won his second straight Tour championship, his first as leader of the Astana team.
Joining Leipheimer on the podium were Slipstream cyclists David Millar of the UK and Christian Vande Velde of the US, who finished 2nd and 3rd behind Leipheimer ... more»
Race judges awarded Stage 6 to Brazil's Luciano Pagliarini because the first man across the finish line, Mark Cavendish used a team car to regain the peloton after a crash by other riders at the Amgen Tour of California.
The 20-second penalty must be a huge disappointment for Cavendish's High Road Team, which has yet to win a stage or make a threat in the overall leader's race.
American Levi Leipheimer finished safely in the peloton and retained his lead in the Tour. He only has to hold it for one more day to win the event in the final stage to Pasadena on Sunday ... more»
American Levi Leipheimer blistered the 15-mile individual time trial at the Amgen Tour of California on Friday, beating his closest challenger by a full minute.
Two-time world time trial champion Fabian Cancellara, whose hopes for a golden jersey rested on this course around Solvang, had a disappointing day. Instead of climbing back into the lead that he held after the prologue, the Team CSC rider fell out of 2nd place .
The stage win by Leipheimer puts him closer to an overall victory for Tour of California for the second straight year. He'll be able to rely on his strong Astana team on the 105-mile stage from Santa Barbara to Santa Clarita on Saturday, and the concluding 93-mile bike race into Pasadena on Sunday ... more»
Somehow the Giro d'Italia, Tour de France, and Vuelta d' Espana each are able to reveal the routes for their three-week-long, 2,000-plus mile bike races in a single grand event.
Sixteen cities will host the 2010 Tour of California when the fifth edition of the bike race rolls out May 16 to 23.
Santa Rosa seems to be one of the few cities in California to know, for sure, that it's going to be a host city on the 2010 Tour of California bike race.
Mark your calendars: The 2010 edition of the Amgen Tour of California is scheduled for May 16-23.
Levi Leipheimer showed 2 million cycling fans on the road this week that he had the speed and strength to survive wind, rain and snow to win his third Amgen Tour of California championship.
Time trial ace Levi Leipheimer proved that he's in top form at the 2009 Amgen Tour of California by winning the Stage 6 individual time trial and probably solidifying his championship at Sunday's finish in Escondido.
Mark Cavendish put his name in the win column for the first time at the Amgen Tour of California on Wednesday by winning a long sprint in Clovis.
The impact of two major climbs and an all-day breakaway didn't factor at all into Thor Hushovd's Stage 3 victory on the wet streets of Modesto on Tuesday at the Amgen Tour of California.
Heavy rains doused a lot of dreams at the Amgen Tour of California on Sunday as Rock Racing's Francisco Mancebo spent the entire day in front of the peloton to win in Santa Rosa.
It's deja vu all over again as Fabian Cancellara again won the prologue of the Amgen Tour of California on Saturday in Sacramento, finishing about 1 second ahead of defending champ Levi Leipheimer.
He's returning to professional cycling on US soil this weekend, and already the drama has begun. 
Pro cycling is getting a lot of ink in California publications this week as the peloton gathers to start the 9-day Amgen Tour of California on Saturday in Sacramento.
The Versus cable network is broadcasting two-hour live coverage daily of the 
Daily route maps are available for the 2009 Amgen Tour of California so you can scope out the best vantage point when the cyclists roll past on Feb. 14 - 22.
Race judges awarded Stage 6 to Brazil's Luciano Pagliarini because the first man across the finish line, Mark Cavendish used a team car to regain the peloton after a crash by other riders at the Amgen Tour of California.
