Updated: 4:20 p.m.
The race course has been set for the 10th Amgen Tour of California bicycle race. Stage One for the men begins May 10 at the State Capitol in Sacramento and follows the Sacramento River to Rio Vista. Riders will then turn north and go through Davis and Woodland before turning back for Sacramento. Stage One is 126 miles. Riders will compete for sprint points at three parts of the stage.
At City Bicycle Works in Sacramento, Bowen Doxsee was on the computer checking out the route. He says he's pleased the Sacramento region will host the tour, but he likes the layout of previous year's courses better.
"Unfortunately how they have it now is they're in town for a little bit. They leave town and then they come back four hours later for another 20 minutes. So, personally, I wish they had kept with a prologue downtown. I think it made for a much more interesting event."
The men's tour will include 43,000 feet of climbs, but the first stage is flat. It will start at the Capitol in Sacramento on May 10th, follow the Sacramento River to Rio Vista, and then go to Woodland before returning to Sacramento.
The women's first stage on May 8th is hilly with three climbs in 70 miles around Lake Tahoe.
Craig Roecker also works for City Bicycle Works. He says he likes the layout of the women's stage better.
"This is going to be a lot more challenging ride for the women. The first stage is going to have decent distance and a heck of a lot more climbing than the men have. So, it's going to demand a more varied skill set than just getting out there and kicking it into high gear and going."
The women will race at Lake Tahoe for two days. On day two, they will start at Heavenly Mountain Resort and follow the Pioneer Trail.
This will be the second time the Amgen Tour has scheduled a stage at Lake Tahoe. In 2011, a men's stage was relocated because of snow.
Day three will be a time trial through the streets of Sacramento. The fourth day of the women's race will be a time trial around Big Bear Lake in Southern California.
Stage Two of the men's race will start in Nevada City, go through Auburn, Eldorado Hills and Winton before ending in Lodi. There are three sprints on Stage Two as well, but there is also a 1,000 foot climb.
The men's tour will then go through San Jose, Pismo Beach, Avila Beach, Santa Barbara, Santa Clarita, Big Bear Lake, Ontario, Mt. Baldy, Los Angeles and Pasadena.
See the 2015 Amgen Tour of California stages.
Original story:
The Amgen Tour of California announced Thursday the route for this year's 714-mile race.
The course will start with stage one at the state capitol and will run for 127 miles.
According to a statement, the first part of the race in Sacramento will go as follows:
"After an initial crossing of the Sacramento River via the iconic Tower Bridge, the race will pass quickly through West Sacramento to River Road. From here, the race will follow the winding Sacramento River through the small towns of Clarksburg, Courtland and Walnut Grove. The stage’s fourth bridge crossing will take the race back over the river into Isleton. A few miles later, the route again crosses the river into Rio Vista and the heart of the California Delta region.
The riders will then head north through Solano County into one of the most popular alumni race cities, Davis. Continuing north through Woodland, the route turns east and heads back to West Sacramento, across Tower Bridge and the Sacramento River for the fourth and final time. Heading straight toward the State Capitol building, the riders will enter onto the same finishing circuits that have delivered huge crowds and have showcased some of the most exciting sprint finishes in the history of the Amgen Tour of California."
See the 2015 Amgen Tour of California stages.
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