Tour of California Fun Facts
By Michael Sayers
Retired Professional Cyclist and Native of Sacramento
What Makes Time Trials So Important...and Exciting!
As we approach the start of the 2009 Tour of California, I would like to talk a little about the stages that make up the Tour. The Tour of California follows the same basic format that all big cycling races follow. Essentially, the Tour of California is developed and laid out the same way the Tour de France is, but just on a smaller scale.
Prologue Determines Who Wears the First Yellow Jersey
Like the Tour de France, this year's Tour of California starts with a prologue stage, which is just a very short time trial. Its name is fitting because like a prologue in a book it "sets the table" for the rest of the race. Now, a time trial is unique because the riders race against the clock. They start and ride by themselves to the finish line. Each rider races at 30-second intervals and the guy with the fastest time wins.
It's that simple.
The prologue also allows the race to establish an overall leader who will don the race leader's yellow jersey. It is a safe and orderly way to get the race underway and a very important stage. A guy may not cement his overall victory in the prologue, but he could certainly lose the overall victory in the prologue.
All Those Other Very Important Stages
Just like the Tour de France, the Tour of California is made up of multiple road race stages. The road race stages will travel from one city, cover anywhere from 90 to 130 miles, and end in a completely different city. The terrain will vary from flat to mountainous. Some of the road stages will be set up to favor the climbers with multiple, large climbs, and those climbs will be the largest factor in establishing the overall victor. To be fair, some of the stages will be flatter and favor the sprinters who most certainly deserve some time in the spotlight. To make the race a bit more exciding, some of the road stages will finish with several laps of a short circuit in the finish town. That is how the stage to Sacramento finished last year. This type of finish allows for the fans to see the riders pass several times.
Second Time Trial is an Uphill Climb
Stage 6 in Solvang is a time trial as well. However, it is much longer and much hillier. This stage is called the 'stage of truth' because riders must compete and try to win without any help from their teammates or through tactical maneuvering. It is just "mano y mano" where the best man wins. This stage will certainly separate the true contenders from the pretenders. This stage, along with Sacramento, will also allow the riders to use very special equipment and bikes that are developed specifically for this type of race. It is like the "Formula 1" of bike racing, and carbon fiber is the material of choice.
And the Winner is...
After the last stage is completed in Southern California, the man who has the lowest accumulated time for all the stages combined will be declared the overall champion. It will take a well-rounded rider with a good team to win this year's race. In my next installment, I will touch on the tactics the teams will employ during the race.
Michael Sayers
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