31 May 2014

2014 Amgen Tour of California Fan Guide

Pedal Dancer® Fan Guide Page to the 2014 Tour of California

2014 Amgen Tour of California, 9th edition, American Tour. Dates: May 11-18, 2014. 

Bradley Wiggins - Pedal Dancer
Bradley Wiggins won the 2014 Amgen Tour of California. Photo by Willie Richenstein for Pedal Dancer®
Bradley Wiggins - Pedal Dancer
Bradley climbing in Westlake Village/Thousand Oaks.  Photo by Karen Rakestraw for Pedal Dancer®
Bradley Wiggins and Mark Cavendish - Pedal Dancer
Bradley Wiggins and Mark Cavendish at the 2014 Tour of California.  Photo by Willie Reichenstein for Pedal Dancer®
Mark Cavendish - Pedal Dancer
Mark Cavendish exhausted after Stage 6.  Photo by Karen Rakestraw for Pedal Dancer®
Peter Stetina - Pedal Dancer
Peter Stetina being interviewed.  Photo by Karen Rakestraw for Pedal Dancer®
Jens Voigt - Pedal Dancer
Jens Voigt.  Photo by Karen Rakestraw for Pedal Dancer®
Tour of California - Pedal Dancer
Peloton at ATOC 2014.  Photo by Willie Richenstein for Pedal Dancer®
Taylor Phinney - Pedal Dancer
Taylor Phinney
Final Podium - Pedal Dancer
Classification jerseys. Photo by Karen Rakestraw for Pedal Dancer®
Peter Sagan - Pedal Dancer
Peter Sagan. Photo by Karen Rakestraw for Pedal Dancer®
Danny Von Popple - Pedal Dancer
Danny Von Popple. Photo by Karen Rakestraw for Pedal Dancer®
Bradley Wiggins and Mark Cavendish - Pedal Dancer
Bradley Wiggins and Mark Cavendish before the final stage start in Westlake Village. Photo by Karen Rakestraw for Pedal Dancer®
Ben King - Pedal Dancer
Ben King leads the circuit into Pasadena. Photo by Karen Rakestraw for Pedal Dancer®
Thor Hushovd - Pedal Dancer
Thor Hushovd. Photo by Karen Rakestraw for Pedal Dancer®
Mark Cavendish - Pedal Dancer
Mark Cavendish.  Photo by Karen Rakestraw for Pedal Dancer®
Bradley Wiggins and Mark Cavendish - Pedal Dancer
Brad and Mark. Photo by Karen Rakestraw for Pedal Dancer®
Mark Cavendish Podium Girls - Pedal Dancer
Podium kisses for Cav. Photo by Karen Rakestraw for Pedal Dancer®


ABOUT THE RACE

2014 Route of the Amgen Tour of California
Tour of California 2015 route
Route map of 2014 Amgen Tour of California

2014 Host Cities of Tour of California:

• Stage 1: Sunday, May 11 – Sacramento
• Stage 2: Monday, May 12 – Folsom (Individual Time Trial)
• Stage 3: Tuesday, May 13 – San Jose to Mount Diablo (mountain top finish)
• Stage 4: Wednesday, May 14 – Monterey to Cambria (coastal)
• Stage 5: Thursday, May 15 – Pismo Beach to Santa Barbara (vineyards & San Marcos)
• Stage 6: Friday, May 16 – Santa Clarita to Mountain High (mountain top finish)
• Stage 7: Saturday, May 17 – Santa Clarita to Pasadena
• Stage 8: Sunday, May 18 – Thousand Oaks (circuit climb)

www.AmgenTourofCalifornia.com
Facebook: @amgentourofcalifornia #ATOC2014
Twitter: @amgentourofcali
Instagram: @amgentourofcali

Posts by Pedal Dancer about the 2014 Tour of California:

Posts by Pedal Dancer about a few riders racing in the 2014 Tour of California:
Laurens Ten Dam is featured in one of my all time favorite video clips on Alpe'd'Huez. Laurens is the Dutch rider who loves California and said he hopes to live in Santa Cruz someday with his family.

The fans want Podium Girls?  - meet Joanna and Allison the 2012, 2013, and 2014 Tour of California Podium Girls.

Posts by Pedal Dancer - Travels in California:

California Here I come - seeing the race and being a tourist in Santa Barbara.

Pedal Dancer at the race in 2014:

May 2014 will be a very special month for me. I am attending the Giro Start in Belfast, Northern Ireland, before returning to California for the Amgen Tour of California. I will be coveraing the last three stages of this year's tour only. I plan to bring you stories from the race and have been approved for Photo Credentials.

I am certainly missing out by not attending the earlier stages. Monterey is a beautiful area. The town of Cambria is one of my favorites places to relax, ride, eat and drink local wine. Santa Barbara is a city I would enjoy visiting any time of year, for any reason, but with this bike race in town - all the better.

The race returns to Santa Clarita this year for two stage starts. Being at the race in Pasadena will be new to me. Thousand Oaks is about 20-minutes from my parents house, so the final stage should be an easy fun-filled day.

The line-up of riders in this year's 2014 ATOC is especially exciting. Californians (and visiting fans) will be treated to watching the very best in the sport of professional cycling.

What is new for 2014

Amgen has resigned as title sponsor; many of the same sponsors have returned for 2014 with some added new sponsors; Ride 2 Recovery will offer four non-competitive cycling events; AEG Global Partnerships continues to organize the American Tour stage race; and the exact dates and host cities for the 2014 race will be announced today.

News:
Mark Cavendish to skip Giro d'Italia to focus on Tour de France (and race in California!)
Hosting race comes at a cost- Thousand Oaks

Teams for the 2014 Tour of California:  see Team jerseys

WorldTour teams:
BMC
Belkin
Cannondale
Giant-Shimano
Garmin Sharp
Trek Factory Racing,
Omega Pharma-QuickStep
Orica-GreenEdge
Team Sky

Domestic Pro Continental teams:
UnitedHealthcare
Team Novo Nordisk
German Team NetApp-Endura 

Continental:
Optum p/b Kelly Benefit Strategies
Jamis-Hagens Berman p/b Sutter Home
Jelly Belly (team of US Pro champion Fred Rodriguez)
Bissell Development Team

Riders for 2014 Amgen Tour of California

Peter Sagan, Jens Voigt, Bradley Wiggins, Mark Cavendish, Matthew Busche, Laurens Ten Dam, Lawson Craddock, Joe Dombrowski, Peter Stetina, Christian Knees, John Degenkolb, Ted King, Haimar Zubeldia, Taylor Phinney, Jasper Stuyven, Tom Danielson, Rohan Dennis.  Final startlist to be released in May 2014, preliminary startlist by ProCycling Stats

Road Closures & City Guides for the Tour of California

Please refer to the information provided by each city. At the bottom of the Official Amgen Tour of California host city pages you can find links to the cities websites with more information about traffic and road closures if offered. 

Stage 1    5/12    Sacramento
Stage 2    5/13    Folsom
Stage 3    5/14    San Jose to Mount Diablo
Stage 4    5/15    Monterey to Cambria
Stage 5    5/16    Pismo Beach to Santa Barbara
Stage 6    5/17    Santa Clarita to Mountain High
Stage 7    5/18    Santa Clarita to Pasadena
Stage 8    5/19    Thousand Oaks

Which roads will be used for the Tour of California? For an estimation of when the riders will be on which roads, please see the detailed timetable (below) of when and where the race will progress and on which local streets (route map below). More information can be found under the individual city websites.

2014 Amgen Tour of California Route maps, profiles, guides, start time, miles

Stage 1 : Route Map  |  profile - 10:50 AM Start, 120 miles; Neutral Start at 11th and L Street, Sacramento
Stage 2 : Route Map  |  profile - 1:05 pm Start, 12.6 miles; Start on Sutter St. between Wool and Riley, Folsom ITT
Stage 3 : Route Map  |  profile - 10:45 am Start, 108.5 miles; Neutral Start at Raging Waters, San Jose
Stage 4 : Route Map  |  profile - 11:50 am Start, 102.6 miles; Neutral Start on Alvarado St, Monterey
Stage 5 : Route Map  |  profile - 11:45 am Start, 108.1 miles; Neutral Start at Pismo Beach Pier
Stage 6 : Route Map  |  profile - 11:35 am Start, 94.4 miles; Neutral Start on Main at 6th St, Santa Clarita
Stage 7 : Route Map  |  profile - 11:40 am Start, 88.7 miles; Neutral Start on Town Center Dr., Santa Clarita
Stage 8 : Route Map  |  profile - 8:45am! Start, 83.5 miles; On Townsgate Rd at Village Glen Dr., Thousand Oaks

Helpful Information
  • Download the Official Start list (PDF) 
  • Download the Amgen Tour of California Rider and Team Twitter Guide (PDF) 
  • Download the Women's Circuit Race Roster (PDF) 
  • Full route timetables for each stage

My 2013 guide to Santa Barbara applies for 2014

California Here I come

Three stages that will change the face of this race in 2014

1. Stage 2 - Folsom Time Trial: short traditional individual time trial at 20.1km. The yellow jersey will change from a sprinter's back to be worm by a time trial specialist.
2. Stage 3 -A 174.6km long road stage with Mt Hamilton and then Mt Diablo. With 10,900 feet of climbing, the jerey will change hands again to the climber who breaks away in the last couple kilometers or few meters.
3. Stage 6: Santa Clarita has played host many times in past years, but the final high altitude climb, with a steep last few miles to Mountain High ski resort, will likely announce the winner of this tour.

The stages into Santa Barbara and Pasadena are two Peter Sagan type stages. By now Californians are very familiar with this talented sprinter.

Two Womens Races at the Tour of California in 2014

Sunday, May 11, 2014 - Women's Circuit Race, Sacramento, CA
Monday, May 12, 2014 - Women's Time Trial Presented by SRAM, Folsom, CA

A womens criterium race was featured in conjunction with the Tour in 2008, 2009, 2010. A womens time trial was featured in 2011, 2012, 2013. (Results of those races). This year women will race in both a circuit race and a time trial, but not necessarily the same women. Crits and time trials tend to be specialties with different riders excelling in each sport.

List of womens teams to compete in 2014 at Tour of California.

Q: What is the difference between a circuit race and a criterium? A: distance and time

While both types of races involve going round and round on the same course. A criterium is a shorter course (2km or less), typically around city blocks, with the last lap determined by a preset time period of 40-60mins. A bell is rung to announce the last lap. A circuit race is raced on a longer course with repeated laps typically totaling 40-80 miles. The number of laps are predetermined ahead of time, for example, four laps of 20-miles each.

Tour of Californa race leader jerseys
Read more about the Classification jerseys for ATOC

Amgen Tour of California Gala Tickets

May 9, 2014 in Sacramento, $150.00 each: Buy Tickets
Sacramento Memorial Auditorium
1515 J St, Sacramento CA 95814
Friday, May 9, 2014 from 6:00 PM to 11:00 PM (PDT)

VIP Hospitality Ticket

Hospitality tents at the race, $150-$275 More information and buy tickets
Experiences packages or VIP car rides $1000-$7000: buy Tickets

Citizen's Ride

2014 L'Etape du California - Thousand Oaks, California, By Pedal Dancer
Ride 2 Recovery

Race Coverage

TV Schedule for Tour of California:

Amgen Tour of California Tour Tracker app:

Watch it live http://www.amgentourofcalifornia.com/watch-live/tourtracker. Download the official Amgen Tour Tracker app for real race viewing and standings: Daily streaming available - get it on Google play or download from the Apple App Store, with a ticker updates, gps tracking of riders, and fan chat. Free worldwide. The app is slightly delayed! So becareful not to use it for your timing to come out of that shaded cafe where you are enjoying your beer before the race arrives outside - you'll miss it. Also don't read Twitter until you have watched the finish yourself

International race viewing:

For international fans, please visit Steephill.TV and the list of live or recorded links to view the Tour of California in Europe. Last year the Tour of California was shown on Eurosport and on SBS in Australia. (1 mile = 1.60934 km). International links to coverage (bottom of page): http://www.steephill.tv/tour-of-california/

Previous Winners:

2013 | VAN GARDEREN Tejay
2012 | GESINK Robert
2011 | HORNER Chris
2010 | ROGERS Michael
2009 | LEIPHEIMER Levi
2008 | LEIPHEIMER Levi
2007 | LEIPHEIMER Levi