Tour Of California - The Report

Ian just before the start

For those of you who caught my post from Friday, you know that Ian and I where going to do a "guys weekend" around stage 8 of the Amgen Tour of California.  Save for the pool at the hotel being closed, pretty much everything went according to plan.

We pulled up to the hotel in Santa Clarita at 6:00 PM as predicted.  However, one of the first things I noticed when we were walking through parking lot was the yellow "Caution - Do Not Cross" tape wrapped around the pool gate.  Further inspection revealed the pool to be completely empty of water.  Suffice to say, things were not looking good for a swim.  Fortunately, Ian's deductive powers are not yet quite as honed as mine, and all he said was "Cool, there's the pool..." as we walked by.  At least I could pick the time and place to break the bad news, or so I thought.

We checked in and went to the room.  But the second the bag hit the floor Ian was in it looking for his bathing suit and squirt gun.  So it turned out that time was not on my side and I now had to break the news about the pool.  His reaction?  Slight disappointment bordering on indifference.  It turns out that he was more interested in playing with the squirt gun.  To him, going to the pool was more a matter of convenience than anything else.  He asked if he could take a bath and play in there instead.  The problem was solved.  He even made a half-hearted attempt to use the soap at one point.

For the rest of the evening we got some dinner, watched some TV and played a few games.  Ian fell asleep and I wasn't too far behind him.

This morning, we got up and had breakfast.  Ian was very impressed by the self service waffle maker, but not the actual waffles.  Around 10:00 AM we headed across town to the race start where we met up with Craig, who had just driven up from Huntington Beach.  With a noon start, it was still pretty quiet so we spent a good hour walking around the team stage area ogling over all the team bikes: 

BMC Pro Team/BMC

Ben King's Trek (Radio Shack)

Liquigas/Cannondale

Team Sky/Pinarello.  Note the Rabobank foam finger.

Schleck

 By 11:30 most of the riders had come out of their buses.  We saw Peter Sagan from Liquigas, Andy Schleck from Leopard Trek, Levi Leipheimer from Team Radioshack and Johan Van Summeren from Garmin Cervelo.  You might be reading this thinking that I'm coming across a bit star struck.  If so, you'd be right.  Though I can't say I've been a cycling fan for too long, I've gotten really into it.  And there's something to be said about finding a thrill like this again - it's been years since it happened last, and I forgot how awesome it can be.  Ian was having a great time too.  He had managed to get his hands on a pair of thunder-sticks, was using them as dual sabres in a fight against imaginary pirates and had just caught the attention of an Italian TV crew about the time I was trying to get a picture of Andy Schleck.

The race went off right on time.  A cycling race is quite a large production.  First there are the lead cars.  Then at least 20 motorcycles carrying the TV crew and photographers roll by.  The riders are next, and then the race officials, the team cars, the medical staff & ambulances and the neutral service vehicles.  Finally there is the "broom wagon", which is a van that drives behind the race to pick up any riders who abandon.  I happened to walk by the broom wagon while it was being loaded up with cookies and sodas.  Let's just say I'm seriously surprised that more riders don't drop out.

Once the race pulled out, it was time to jump back in the car and head to Thousand Oaks.  Even with a lunch stop, it was a quick drive.  But once we got to Thousand Oaks the road closings kicked in and things got super confusing fast.  I found a parking space that I thought was pretty close to the finish line and we started walking.  But then I was surprised to hear the helicopter.  This meant that the race was close.  And even though the last 25 miles of the race consisted of 5 laps around Thousand Oaks, I was shocked that the peleton was already in town.

Last lap, 3 km to go...

We were maybe a half mile from the finish line when the first riders came through.  It was a 4 man break away that had about a two and a half minute gap on the main field.  We stopped walking to watch for the rest of the peleton.  As the passed it made complete sense why they had gotten into town so quickly - they were stretched out single file and flying.  There was no way that the break was staying out much longer.

By the time everyone came around for the second lap, we had found a nice spot to watch near the finish line.  Sure enough, the gap between the break had lost some time and the peleton was still moving fast.

This is where we stayed for the rest of the race.  A couple of riders managed to bridge over to the break during the 3rd lap, but within the last 3 miles or so of the race, the field came together.  Matt Goss from HTC Highroad won the stage in a field sprint.

Craig had driven over from Santa Clarita too but we didn't hook up with him again until after the race was over.  When we did, we walked around the expo together for a few minutes before Ian and I left Craig as he was digging through stacks of "five-pairs-for-twenty-dollars" socks to go look at the event merchandise.  The selction was pretty much picked through by this point, but I found a half decent t-shirt and Ian decided he wanted another foam finger "because it was yellow".  Since one of the shop workers was ringing the crap out of a cowbell shouting that everything was 40% off, I figured another foam finger was fine.

But because of the guy ringing the crap out of a cowbell and shouting, I failed to hear the cashier in the line I got into say that his was a cash only line.  When I got to the front of the line I had a problem - no cash.  So I could either give up and ditch my stuff, go to the end of the correct line or try a Hail Mary pass.  I went for the Hail Mary pass, which was to argue that the "douchebag with the bell" had made it impossible to hear that this was a cash only line.  But as the "douche" in "douchebag" escaped my lips, I immediately feared that I was making a huge tactical error.  Irate customers making personal attacks against shop employees this late into the event would no doubt be treated with little empathy.  But miraculously, the cashier started laughing.  And as if on cue, the woman behind me chimed in to say that she didn't have any cash either, nor was she aware that this was a cash only line.  Magically, the line started taking credit cards.  A win for the little people.

With the United Healthcare team

So we paid for our stuff, walked back to the car and started to drive home.  Ian was asleep by the time we hit the freeway and we were home 90 minutes later.  It was a really nice trip for the both of us, and cool (as usual) to hang out with Craig.  It was also great to see such a big turn out.  And it wasn't just cyclists - there were all sorts of people there.  I heard tons of animated chatter like "look how fast the guy in the orange shirt is going" or "all that guy has to do is pedal faster and he's got it!" - In other words, genuine excitement by people that are perhaps new to the sport.

All in all, I think that AEG (who owns the tour) is doing a pretty good job of turning the Tour Of California into a highlight of the international cycling schedule.  That said, I'm not sure the expected the crowds they got and as such the fan experience infrastructure seemed a little stretched (toilets, foot traffic flow, food & beverage).  Hopefully, they noticed that too and will sort it out for next year.

Amgen Tour Of California

Yesterday, Ian, Yoda (more on this later), and I headed up to Big Bear Lake for the finish of stage six of the Amgen Tour Of California. Stage six started in Palmdale and made it's way 135 miles southeast with over 12,000 feet of climbing to the finish at the foot of the Snow Summit ski area.

We left home about 11:00 for the two and a half hour drive. The drive from Huntington Beach to Big Bear is one of those drives you really look forward to, but only after you get half way there. Driving northeast through the LA basin is always a snore (the 22 to the 57 to the 10 freeways, done it zillions of times), but once you hit the foothills of the San Bernadino Mountains the drive gets quite scenic.

Ian and I last year near Crestline, one of the towns the race went through. The view is west back towards LA.

There are a couple roads up to Big Bear. My problem is that I don't go up there enough where the drive is rote. So I actually got on the wrong road - which was one of the roads that was going to be closed for the race. I had read that part of this road would close sometime after 1:00. It was 12:50. But when I got to the critical junction, things where still wide open. Well, not exactly wide open. There was a car with "Herbalife" logos covering every inch of it's body. This person must be running late getting to the finish line to set up a booth or something, I figured. So I had no idea why they insisted on driving 10 miles an hour in a 40 mile an hour zone. I was number two in line, and soon enough there where at least twenty other cars in my rearview. Herbalife passed at least 10 turn out points. I, and 20 other drivers, where annoyed. You gotta use the turn outs....

You have to love capitalism. It seemed every roadside gas station or country store was advertising parking plus a little extra real estate for your folding chairs for $10. However, these spots where empty. Everyone was finding a wide shoulder and parking there. A couple of spots looked like some pretty raging parties where going on.

We pulled into Big Bear and found parking about a kilometer from the finish. I know it was about a kilometer because we where just past the "Kendra 1K To The Finsh" arch. So Ian and I walked up to the finish from there. It was a long slow climb to the finish. What a complete bum out that the finish was on a hill - these guys have already biked up 12,000 feet. Can't they cut them a break?

During the walk, Ian was telling me how he was going to be a bike racer when he goes to college. That's his new thing - he has grand plans for life, but has decided to hold off on any execution until college. I told him I thought that was a great plan, but he'd have to bike faster than he walks. I didn't know it was possible for any one to walk as slow as he was. I asked him if he wanted a shoulder ride. He told me he was fine, he was counting pine cones.

The "Big Bear" in Big Bear.

I said earlier that Yoda came with us. Yoda is Ian's back-pack that you guessed it - looks like Yoda. I don't know about other kids, but Ian will carry anything for about 5 minutes before he passes it to me. So I had Yoda on my back. Any single guys reading this should immediately go out and buy one. It's a great conversation starter. If I was single, I would have been picking up chicks left and right.

Ian and Yoda is we started out from home. Does it look to you like Yoda was not too keen to go?

The minute we got to the finish line, Ian told me he was starving. So the first order of business was to get lunch. But we made a quick stop at the TV monitors to see how the race was progressing. There was no way I was driving all the way up here to be in line for a $7 cheeseburger when the riders came through. But we had two hours.

Ironically, that $7 cheeseburger was good. It was great in fact. And I noticed everything around the finish area - the vendor village, the official merchandise stand, the BMX sideshow, was a hell of a lot more interesting with only about a 1/3 of the flash and hype as compared to the concourse of a typical sports arena or stadium.

After we ate, we still had some time to kill. And we had a great time doing it. Ian got a t-shirt, I got a hat, and we grabbed as many free stickers and water bottles as we could find. Soon, Yoda was bulging at the seams. And it wasn't hard to get some pretty intense gear envy going - Trek, Specialized, Cannondale, SRAM, and Felt all had booths there.

My typical self portrait. Note Yoda's hand over my left shoulder.

About 10 minutes from the expected time that the lead riders would come through, I got a call from a member of beginnertriathlete.com that I had shared messages and inspires with, but had never met. She was with her husband and 3 kids about 400 meters down from the finish line and invited us down. Ian and I headed off to meet them.

At the 400 meter mark, I saw a couple with 3 kids. I walked over to them and introduced myself as "Patrick from BT". They gave me a weird look (which gave me a second of pause) but then they saw the backpack. Like I said, that thing is a tremendous conversation piece and soon we where chatting. But they never introduced themselves.

A few minutes later the lead cars and motorcycles came by, someone shouted "here they come!!", and everyone craned their necks down the street to see the riders. However, I must admit the whole thing was a bit anti-climactic. The 12 or so riders in the lead pack blew by us at about 30 miles an hour. It was over in a second, and all I got was this picture:

This is the leaders pack going by about 400 meters from the finish. That's Michael Rogers of HTC Columbia in the yellow leaders jersey first. I'm pretty sure that Levi Leipheimer of Radio Shack is right behind him.

Peter Sagan of Liquigas won the stage. It was his second stage win in as many days.

The word was that the main peleton was still six minutes behind, so I figured it made sense for Ian and I to walk back towards the car and see the rest of the riders come in closer to where we parked. So I turned to the couple and said that I appreciated the phone call and that it was nice to meet them.

The guy answered with "Who are you?". I said "I'm Patrick from BT". He said "What's that?".

So we had attached ourselves to the wrong couple. Great. That's what that weird vibe was all about. I was just a random chatty guy going off about beginner-something-or-other.com with Yoda strapped to my back holding the hand of a kid who's face was smeared with the remnants of a cherry popsicle. I then noticed that the guy was wearing Sketchers shoes. Had I noticed that earlier, this could have all been avoided. Triathletes don't wear Sketchers.

Embarressed, I apologized for crashing their party and Ian and I made a quick egress towards the parking lot. We got back down to the Kendra arch just as more riders came through. Again, it was anticlimactic - fifty or so riders spinning at a leisurely pace chatting and laughing with each other. Not that I am being critical, it actually looked like a good time and they had all just ridden 135 miles after all.

The balance of the peleton

Except for a little bit of traffic getting out of the lot and on to the main street, it was smooth sailing home. Ian fell asleep, and as I drove off the mountain, I was feeling pretty good. Even though the "bike race" came and went in a flash, Ian and I had a great day. Like I've said before, it's more about the journey. Finish lines come and go.

It's the first time I've ever been to an event like this. As a spectator, some sports are TV sports, and some you have to be there. I think cycling is a TV sport. I've been DVR'ing the coverage from Versus every day this week to watch in the evening. The coverage has been great and I've really enjoyed it. That said, I would suggest that the producers ask their commentator Phil Liggett (who is English) to lay off some of the American wild west metaphors next year. I believe the Gold Rush of 1849 was over by the early 1850's, and these days Big Bear is where LA spends their weekends. It's a bit like me going to London and trying to tie everything I saw back to Jack The Ripper, London Bridge, or Stonehenge.

But TV does not convey the anticipation well. And that finish area was buzzing the entire time we where there. I have a feeling pro cycling in America is going to get a bit of a boost as a result of this tour. And though I have not been to a cycling event before, I've been to and worked at plenty of big outdoor concerts. So I know what's what. And this event was run completely professionally despite massive logitsical challenges. Hats off to the producers AEG. It must have sucked for them to refund about a zillion tickets for Michael Jackson's O2 Arena concerts last year, but they have a winner here.