Tuesday, March 9, 2010

2010 Tour of Utah - 1,000 Warriors Dead?

Yesterday, the Tour of Utah issued a press release on the dates for its 2010 stage race. It'll begin on August 17th with the prologue and end with the Park City to Snowbird stage on Sunday, August 22nd*.

*I may just have to sneak out the back door of church to see the pro peloton zip by on the climb up Suncrest. Actually, the best place to watch would be on the descent of the Alpine Loop at that first hairpin turn below the summit. I'd like to see how fast they can handle that corner.

And regarding the related infamous "1,000 Warriors Race" that I rode in last year, it looks like per the release that there are more details to come as to what type of race (or ride?) this will shape up to be:

"The Tour of Utah will also include a non-competitive ride for enthusiast** cyclists the Saturday before called "The Ultimate Challenge." Detailed information for The Ultimate Challenge will be released soon."

**What's up with the use of the word "enthusiast" cyclists. Come on! Give us more credit than that. How about amateur racers? That sounds much better. When I think of enthusiast cyclists, I think of the ladies that sign up for the 20 mile annual AF donut ride or whatever it's called.

Anyhow, based on the name, "The Ultimate Challenge" I'm assuming/hoping it will be something similar to last year, except that if the route includes the Alpine Loop, I'm confident that this year the organizers and UDOT will be smart enough to close the road for a couple of hours. I did notice that cyclingutah.com has a "Tour of Utah Amateur Criterium" on its calendar for August 21st, but I can't imagine a crit being described as "The Ultimate Challenge." Stay tuned.

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