WrapUp

It seems like just yesterday that we were loading up the van with bikes and tires in preparation for a glorious week of sun and bike racing at the Tour of California. Eight days later, we're back in sunny Portland, recovering from a week in rainy California. Yes, that does seem a bit backwards, but the California weather in February can be a bit unpredictable. The unpredictable weather made for some exciting racing, and the BikeTiresDirect crew returned home exhausted, but thrilled to have had the opportunity to follow a top level bike race for a week and call it work.

The Scene

Admittedly, we didn't quite know what we were getting into going down to the ToC. Bike races in America can be a mixed bag, we were afraid that the slightest threat of bad weather would keep the crowds at home. Thankfully we were proven very wrong. While the weather may have been a bit blustery, huge crowds turned out in every finishing town. Riders entered the finishing circuits with tens-of-thousands of rowdy fans to cheer them on. The finishing cities did a great job in shutting down their streets for an afternoon, creating a truly unique and intimate celebration of cycling.

The HealthNet Lifestyle Festival was equally well organized. Family-friendly cycling activities started hours before the race rolled in. The expo area was a veritable who's-who of the bike industry, featuring companies like Trek, Specialized, Zipp, FSA and Look among many others. The week's worst storm, during Stage 4 into San Luis Obispo, didn't seem to keep anyone at home. Huge video screens broadcast the live racing, and thunderous cheers greeted the peloton.

The Race

The field for the 2008 edition was probably the strongest ever at an American bike race. The number of World and National Champions, past and present, was staggering. In a sport where most of the top-level action occurs on a separate continent and is transmitted over dodgy internet feeds and inconsistent TV coverage, names like Bettini, Boonen, Freire, Cipollini and Millar take on mythic proportions. To see them doing their job for a week straight, so close to home was truly special.

Memorable moments on the road were easy to find. Before the race even started, downtown Palo Alto was abuzz as Mario Cipollini set out on a warm-up ride for the prologue. Cipo truly does radiate charisma, and those expecting him to ride a flashy parade until the racing turned to the mountains were mistaken, Mario was ready to race.

At the prologue, Fabian Cancellara sent a jolt of electricity through the crowd as he dominated the short prologue. The Palo Alto prologue also featured the best opportunity to meet the riders, check out equipment and bug grumpy French mechanics. The riders were all over town the morning before the race previewing the course and finding a good espresso.

The BMC team's early race heroics were awarded with "Most Aggressive Team" at the race's end. Scott Nydam's heroic days riding solo breakaways in honor of his ailing father gained him the respect of the peloton and admiration from audience and officials alike.

Stage 2 into Sacramento saw young Tyler Farrar (Slipstream) overtake the leader's jersey, after picking up some bonus sprints, which provided a career highlight for the 23-year-old out of Wenatchee, WA. Sacramento also provided the once in a lifetime photo-op of Cipollini with Arnold Schwarzenegger, only in California.

Stage 3 moved American Levi Leipheimer into the leader's jersey, but it was Dutch youngster Robert Gesink (Rabobank) who launched the winning attack up Sierra Rd. Unfortunately, Farrar's day in yellow came to a premature end as he succumbed to a stomach bug which was sweeping through the peloton.

Stage 4's crawl down the coastline to San Luis Obispo was wet, really wet. It took over 7 hours to complete, compared to 5 1/2 in 2007, and was described by many riders as their worst day on the bike ever. Dominique Rollin (Toyota), an American-based Quebecois, seemed to be the only one having any fun as he soloed away from a small break for the win.

Solvang is a small California town built to resemble a Danish village. It has also become a secret training ground for many of the world's top teams. Levi Leipheimer solidified his overall lead by winning the time trial over a rolling, windswept course.

Stages 6 and 7 provided little opportunity to knock Leipheimer off his GC perch. While the Stage 6 sprint was marred by controversy, keeping Team High Road off the podium. American legend George Hincapie finally delivered High Road's win during Stage 7. Leipheimer's Astana squad had no trouble delivering their leader to the overall victory.

Corrections

As the stages concluded, media members scrambled to get their stories while race organizers tried to get out official results, have a podium presentation and then move on to the next city. In the chaos after the miserable Stage 4 finish, it was reported that 21-year-old North Bend, WA native Tom Peterson was not able to finish the stage. It was actually Tom Danielson who registered the DNF. Tom Peterson went on to finish an incredible 11th overall.

After Stage 6, High Road sprinter Mark Cavendish was relegated to the back of the pack for improper assistance from his team car. I mentioned that Mario Cipollini was not punished for receiving similar assistance. After reevaluating the penalties, with what I imagine was a bit of encouragement from the High Road camp, Cipollini was also penalized, voiding his top-10 finish.

Rock Racing

While they may be brash, they also appear committed to cycling. Hiring Mario Cipollini first appeared to be a publicity stunt, turns out Cipollini was plenty fit, competing in sprints and surviving through the climbs. Rock has a solid backbone of selfless hard working riders which should make them competitive in any race they enter, regardless of who is leading the team. Riders like Tyler Hamilton, Santiago Botero and Oscar Sevilla deserve the chance. They've served their time and deserve to race again. Should Rock Racing be a target for increased scrutiny from cycling officials and anti-doping agencies? Sure, but they should be allowed to race. They are far from the only team with skeletons in the closet.

An organization like Rock Racing has a much better chance of attracting a young audience that might otherwise choose skate or snowboarding. Rock's image is definitely helping road racing enter the 21st century. Growing cycling in the US ultimately means competing with the X-Games and the NBA, big loud technicolor events. There's nothing wrong with a little flash, as long as they play by the same rules as everyone else.

Bike Racing in America

As a racer myself, I was amazed at what the ToC did for the towns it entered. Hotels were packed, folks travelled from all over the world to watch the race. Locally, the race drew the interest of people who did not even know professional cycling existed in America.

If the crowds that lined the roads were any indication, expect to see more of your favorite cyclists competing stateside.

If you are a Tour of California race fan and want in on our ToC special, enter code TOCE on checkout to get free shipping on orders of $25 or more. (Offer ends midnight February 29.) There are some restrictions for heavy or large items. Check back tomorrow for our next Tour update.

Words and photos by Joe King.