Sacramento was treated to some fantastic pro racing as the modified stage 2 course of the 2011 Amgen Tour of California offered 3 circuits around the state capitol building.  A breakaway of 4 riders struggled to stay ahead of the peloton, but were caught before rolling onto the streets of California’s capitol city, where huge crowds waited despite the threat of poor weather.

Rain fell briefly just as the riders started to duel it out trying to get teams positioned for a sprint finish.

At the end of the day, it was Ben Swift of Team Sky that claimed the sprint – and of course the overall leaders jersey at the end of the first active day of racing of the tour.  Ben Swift stated that he actually felt the rain may have helped him out:

The rain helped me a little bit.  Coming from Britain, you get to experience riding in rain.  It puts a fear in
some people and helps you control things more.

Racing continues tomorrow as Route 3 travels from Auburn to Modesto.

In response to anticipated weather conditions, officials have moved the start of stage 2 of the 2011 mgen Tour of California to Nevada City, CA.  The start time has also been delayed to 12:15 Pacific Time.  This essentially moves the start along the original route to the location and time it was expected to pass the new start location, thus allowing the rest of the 61 miles to follow the originally planned route.

The route was expected to leave Squaw Valley and pass over Donner Pass.  However, the threat of more winter-like conditions again raised concerns for the safety of riders, spectators and crew, prompting this change.

This will mark the second year that Nevada City has hosted a stage start, the first being Stage 1 of the 2010 Tour.  Andrew Messick, president of AEG Sports, also spoke of the possibility of a return again:

Nevada City did an outstanding job hosting the first stage of the 2010 race and we know that the riders and fans will appreciate the return.  We owe a debt of gratitude to Andy Chapman, Carol Chaplin and everyone in Squaw Valley, who worked tirelessly to create what would have been an exceptional Stage 2 start and hope that we will have an opportunity to bring the Amgen Tour of California to the city in a future year.

This change will have some rewards for spectators in Sacramento, CA however.  Originally the route was scheduled to make only a single pass around the state capital building.  However, in light of the shortened course race officials have increased that to 3 circuits through the heart of the city.

According to officials:

Following the peloton’s 12:15 p.m. PT departure from Nevada City, California, the riders will travel approximately 61 miles to Sacramento, picking up the original Stage 2 route.  The riders will enter Sacramento at approximately 3 p.m. PT and complete three circuit laps before finishing in front of the Capitol Building between 3:30 and 3:45 p.m. PT.  The race’s original schedule called for only one complete circuit, but due to the modified course, the additional two circuits were able to be added.

Stage 1 of the Amgen Tour of California was unfortunately canceled due to the risks presented to riders, spectators and staff by winter-like weather conditions.  Many riders expressed their agreement that the cancellation of stage 1 was the right thing to do.  This was further underscored by reports that as many as 6 race marshals may have been involved in an incident or incidents resulting in their motorcycles crashing in the slippery conditions.  There are no reported injuries as a result of these crashes.

However, while stage 1 is behind us, there is still risk of potential impact on tomorrow’s stage 2.

Current predictions are for a 50% chance of snow at Donner Pass – the highest elevation of the route.  At a press conference on Monday following the stage 1 cancellations, officials stated that a plan ‘B’ was already in place for the second day of racing.  Given that the rest of stage 2 is mostly downhill after Donner Summit, this plan B could possibly be a modification of the starting location.

Stage 2 diverts off of the path of Interstate 80 onto CA Highway 20.  The descent into the valley continues through Nevada City before finally turning south for the flat run up to Sacramento.  The course does a loop around the state capitol building as it has done in past years, and is likely to result in a sprint finish to the line.

Update: Stage 1 was canceled. And Delores Pickford (@dpk4d) gives us a really good example of why.

The official release from officials says that Stage 1 of the Tour of California is slated for a 1:15pm Pacific time start – using a much shortened course allowing for the scheduled end time of  3:15-4pm pacific to remain as scheduled.

However, given the weather that just rolled through Sacramento, there still remains the possibility of a complete neutralization of the inaugural stage of the 2011 race.

While I myself was riding across Sacramento – about 100 miles west of the South Lake Tahoe start of Stage 1 – I found myself caught in a hail storm, and thunderstorms continue to roll through this area.  However, the official release sent out at about 11:30 am states:

Stage 1 of the 2011 amgen tour of california to start at 1:15 p.m. pT

Route Shortened Due to Later Start Time, but Still Includes KOM and Sprint Competitions

Lake Tahoe, Calif. (May 15, 2011) – After monitoring weather conditions overnight and this morning, while consulting with public safety and race team officials, organizers of the 2011 Amgen Tour of California have announced that the current and projected weather conditions will allow Stage 1 of the race to start at 1:15 p.m. PT at the original start line in South Lake Tahoe.  Race officials will continue to pay close attention and monitor the course and all other conditions. If at any time it is determined to be unsafe to continue, the race will be neutralized.

The new route (which merely eliminates a portion of a loop around Lake Tahoe) will continue to take the riders from South Lake Tahoe to Northstar around the west side of Lake Tahoe and will be approximately 50 miles.  The projected finish timing, which was to be between 3:15 and 4 p.m. PT will remain unchanged.

The Lifestyle Festival in Northstar will open as scheduled at noon PT, with the timing of the Amgen Breakaway Mile remaining on schedule for 2:30 p.m. PT.

“We have been in constant communication with all parties involved in the 2011 Amgen Tour of California – from public safety and transportation authorities to teams and all of our partners – to ensure our decision protects the safety of our riders and fans,” said Andrew Messick, president of AEG Sports.  “We thank everyone for their tireless efforts in bringing this race together, and pledge that we still have a great day of racing ahead of us today.”

Fans are still encouraged to come out to the start line at Montbleu, where rider sign-in will take place at 12:15 p.m. PT, allowing them to see the cyclists up close before they take off for the start of the race.  Unfortunately, with the change in course, people will not be able to see both the start and finish in person.  Fans in the South Lake Tahoe area who want to experience the Stage 1 finish at Northstar will need be on the road by 12:30 p.m. PT at the latest.

Beginning with a neutral start that takes the cyclists west out of South Lake Tahoe, the race will follow the second half of the original route and feature highlights including:

• King of the Mountains (KOM) competition at Emerald Bay at approximately mile 13
• Sprint line at Tahoe City at approximately mile 31
• KOM competition at Brockway summit at approximately mile 43

The revised stage 1 map revised puts the route along the west shore of the lake, a route familiar to many that have ridden in this area.

We’re getting close to another Tour of California.  The team lists show a competitive field that should make for some great racing.  I’ll be covering a few of the stages for VeloReviews, as well as looking out for Team Type 1 for here at JustAnotherCyclist.com.  Also, there are plans brewing to get some like minded folks together during some of the stages.  If you are going to be at any of them, let me know so that we can meet up in person.