Good Move/Bad Move?

[slovakguy]

http://www.cyclingnews.com/features/messicks-masterplan-for-the-tour-of-california

while i understand the tour of california organisers' need to grow the brand, i think this move will be just the thing to make the tour of california the second tier event it's trying to be. ultimately i believe the organisers would like to compete as a gt (and that is a pipe dream, to be sure), but all their efforts to get the riders into the mountains would seem to be better placed by linking up with the tour of missouri in an apres vuelta event.

 

[swampy1970]

Personally I don't see why they're moving to May. The intent seems to be a move to allow the course to take in the some of the big climbs that are available in the Sierra Nevadas but May is a crapshoot for that - as many years they're still covered in snow! This year many of the lesser travelled passes over 8,000ft in the northern Sierras still had snow on them in the first weekend of June and the following weekend was fecking freezing with snow and freezing rain.

Who knows when the 10,000+ft monster climbs further south opened...

California has the terrain to put on an absolutely brutal tour, more brutal than the TdF organizers could ever dream of but not for more than 10 to 14 days at the most. Late May, early June would probably be a better bet.

I say drag them through Death Valley (-262ft the lowest and one of the hottest places on Earth) in August and have them finish at the top of Schulman Grove at a little over 10,000ft.... Sweet.

 

[Yakko]

the sport would have to grow *a lot* to accomodate another GT....

 

[Bikeridindude]

Good move gets my vote. Reason being is because at this point in the year the riders preparing for the Tour want to be getting some good hard climbing in, but not 3 weeks worth of getting slaughtered. Sastre and Menchov showed this year what happens when you try to kick ass in the Giro and then do it again in the Tour, it's just too much. I think that there will be quite a few Tour contenders that will want to come to the TOC in mid-May. We'll see, I'm looking forward to it.

 

[slovakguy]

can sort of see the logic, but still can't buy into it. the intercontinental travel, the canard about the mountain training (you'd be better served training on the actual stage routes than a few stages on the toc), and the level of competition you'll be riding against all speak against it. looking into the crystal ball, this will be a make or break edition for toc.

 

[jhuskey]

The TOC has gotten what recognition and participation that it has because it is scheduled with nothing else going on in cycling at that time. In May it will be overshadowed by the Giro de Italia.
Just my opinion.