The 2009 Amgen Tour of California continued Sunday with Stage 1, a very awful, wet, and miserable stage from Davis to Santa Rosa.

Second Annual Tour of California Women’s Criterium Won by Emilia Fahlin - By Stephanie Gutowski
“In this kind of conditions it’s not a surprise for a break to succeed. So many teams with a lot of horse power were trying to drive it. In these conditions when it’s cold and raining it becomes hard for the girls. We had a plan to get Martina set up for the sprint.” Read more here…

Rock Racing’s Fancisco Mancebo Wins Stage 1 of the 2009 Amgen Tour of California
“Record crowds were, once again, on hand for Stage 1 of the 2009 Amgen Tour of California to watch the world’s top cyclists travel from Davis to Santa Rosa, culminating with a climactic finish in downtown Santa Rosa.” Read more here…

Photo Galleries -
kwc gallery - Stage 1 Women’s Crit
Stage 1: Davis to Santa Rosa - Photo Gallery

Follow us at http://reviews.roadbikereview.com/tour-of-california/ as there will be more to come as the race unfolds!

The 2009 Amgen Tour of California started today with a Prologue in Sacramento today and RoadBikeReview was there to bring you daily coverage! As we will throughout the 8 day stage race.

Tour of California Prologue roundup:

Pre-Race:

Time trial, finishing speed and aggressivity for the Bissell team at Tour of California by Lyne Lamoureux
Lyne met up with the Bissell team at their pre-season training camp to talk about the upcoming season and the Tour of California, “We’re definitely going to go all guns blazing in the prologue and then it will probably take one or two stages to shake out who’s doing what and then who’s aiming for what with every team but then after that, we definitely will be targeting a few stages. Obviously trying to save Ben and Tom a little bit for the time trial,” Read more here…

Team Bike: Astana Trek Madone 6.9
Ben Coates took time out of his busy day during Astana’s pre-season camp in Santa Rosa to show us Chris Horner’s Trek Madone 6.9. Watch the video here…

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At North America’s only Pro Continental team spring is in the air. Three years after its founding, the American-Swiss team is laying the ground work necessary to set and achieve even more ambitious goals. This latest development is being accompanied by two experienced insiders, Rihs and Ochowicz who will be taking an active role in the progress. Together they will take a controlling stake in the team’s parent company, Continuum Sports. Previous team owners Gavin Chilcott and Charlie Livermore will remain active partners in the company.

The direction this ambition will lead the BMC Racing Team is clear. “Our goal has been redefined during the last year. We now seek to earn our place, as a team, within the top tier of professional teams. This goal encompasses the sporting aspects, the technology, the support and materials. We are also working hard to both broaden and strengthen the organization that operates the team, Continuum Sports,” explained Gavin Chilcott who will remain the General Manager of the team with the new ownership structure. This restructuring represents the beginning of a new era for the former professional racer and his team. “Qualitatively, the 2009 program represents the year with the most advancement of the organization overall. We are now at the point where the story of this team will take off,” Chilcott is convinced. “This is an exciting time for the BMC Racing Team.”

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SAN JOSE, CALIF., —The VELOVE Winter Bicycle Festival is about to transform downtown Santa Rosa into a bicycle wonderland during Valentines Day weekend, February 14-15. Held in conjunction with the 2009 Amgen Tour of California, VELOVE is packed with events for everyone, including bike competitions, race viewing parties, non-profit fundraising events, a pro race team signing and plenty more. It is a joint production between Bike Monkey, the City of Santa Rosa, Mainstreet and West Coast GoldSprints. To learn more and register for events, visit www.VeloveFestival.com

Saturday, February 14

• Cyclo-cross Championship: 11am-5pm – Cyclists of all ages and levels are invited to compete in a friendly cyclocross competition featuring food, drinks and live music by the Hubbub Club Marching Band.

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  Related Posts

  • Details of Free to the Public Lifestyle Festival Announced for 2009 Amgen Tour of California
  • Jacques-Maynes, Zirbel to Lead BISSELL in 2009 Tour of California
  • Amgen Tour of California Announces 2009 Jerseys
  • Versus to Air Fourth Annual Amgen Tour of California Feb. 14-22

LOS ANGELES, CA – Details about the fourth-annual Lifestyle Festival taking place adjacent to the finish line each of the nine days of the 2009 Amgen Tour of California were announced by race organizers AEG. The Lifestyle Festival is an interactive, nine-day, free-to-the-public “festival” that will travel once again with the internationally sanctioned professional cycling stage race.

The popular Lifestyle Festival gives cycling enthusiasts a place to experience the spectacle of race day in the hours leading up to the exhilarating stage finish. Located near the finish line of each daily stage, the festival will feature race-day activities such as health screenings, cancer awareness education, live music, food, entertainment, sweepstakes drawings, bicycle safety, family activities, and interactive displays and presentations featuring more than 38 participating vendors.

“The Lifestyle Festival is a very important piece of the Amgen Tour of California,” said Andrew Messick, president of AEG Sports, presenter of the race. “It provides the perfect opportunity for many of our partners and many more dedicated companies to share the message of health and well-being with the race communities and fans, as well as gives race goers a place to meet and experience the free entertainment the festival has to offer.”

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Cambiago, Italy - Ernesto Colnago e C. srl., Cambiago, Italy announce the launch of our direct subsidiary ColnagoAmerica, Inc.. “We are extremely excited to announce that we have created Colnago America,which will now be the direct supplier of Colnago frames and accessories in America,” said Ernesto Colnago from company headquarters in Cambiago, Italy.

Transition of distribution services from Veltec Sports to Colnago America (based in Chicago, Il.) will be complete by the end of February 2009, with our top priority and focus on making this transition as smooth as possible for our retail customers and Colnago riders in the USA and Canada.

“Over the past several years, Colnago has experienced exceptional growth worldwide, but to reach our full potential in the North American market, we felt for a while, we needed to make a change,” explained Alex Colnago, Colnago Sales Manager. “For the first time in the long history of Colnago sales in America, we will be in a position to have full control over our distribution, sales and marketing. Now we will be able to offer more competitive prices, improved delivery and better service to our retailers and Colnago riders in North America.”

Within the next week, Colnago America’s new web site will be launched: WWW.COLNAGOAMERICA.COM and the first Official event that Colnago America will sponsor is the Gran Fondo San Diego - Colnago on March 1st, 2009. We are very proud to announce that Mr. Ernesto Colnago will be present at the start line at Gran Fondo San Diego – Colnago as Official Starter.

Registration and information regarding this event can be found on: www.granfondosandiego.com

Colnago America is now a reality! Welcome on board. It will be a first class experience.

Brisbane, Australia — Ahead of their forthcoming debut in the 2009 Amgen Tour of California, the Fly V Australia p/b Successful Living cycling team have finalised equipment sponsors for season 2009.

In announcing a comprehensive list of sponsors, team director, Chris White said, “We are privileged to be able to announce such a fabulous list of product partners for 2009. We are looking forward to working closely with our partners and assisting them with their respective research and development programs. We have chosen our team equipment carefully to ensure the team has the most advanced and dependable cycling equipment in the world at its disposal – this will give us a big advantage in events throughout 2009”.

Team Fly V Australia p/b Successful Living will ride Parlee frames for 2009. The team will work closely with Bob Parlee and his team who will continue their industry-leading R&D program to ensure Parlee cycles remain ahead of the pack in carbon fibre bicycle technology. The team will ride the Z4 for road races and training, and the TT for time trial events throughout 2009, with the frames’ renowned combination of strength, light weight and handling making them ideally suited to the demands of professional racing. “We think the Z4 is something special, its light weight means it’s ideal for climbing, descending and sprinting. The TT is an excellent time trial bike, its low drag design will give our riders a distinct advantage in the individual and team time trials we’re targeting during the season”, Chris White said.

Continuing the carbon theme, Team Fly V Australia p/b Successful Living will spend 2009 rolling on Edge Composite carbon fibre wheels. The team will ride Tubular 1 38mm hoops for road events, Tubular 1 68mm hoops for time trials, and Clincher 38mm hoops for training, giving team riders the perfect wheel for any situation and any event. Speaking about the partnership, Edge Composites founder Jason Schiers said, “Our carbon fibre technology is world leading and our proprietary moulding process creates a spoke interface that permits higher spoke tensions to be run. This enhances the durability of the wheel as a whole by limiting spoke fatigue and increasing durability, giving riders a significant advantage when they use our wheels.”

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Seattle, Washington - Cascade Designs, Inc., the Seattle-based industry leader in the design and manufacture of premier outdoor equipment, today announced the distribution of the SealLine Urban Line of gear protection through QBP (Quality Bicycle Products). A leading distributor to the cycling industry, QBP will stock the full SealLine Urban Line including the Urban Shoulder Bag, Urban Backpack, Urban Tote, Computer Sleeve, Urban Backpack Organizer, Zip Pocket, Mobile Electronic Case and the new Water Bottle Pocket.

Introduced to market in 2007, the PVC-free SealLine Urban Line is a collection of functional, smart-looking bags, packs and accessories designed to provide guaranteed protection for everyone from the performance-first bike messenger to the eco-minded commuter. The bags feature premium-quality welded seams that outperform the sewn seams most commonly found in urban bags.

“The Urban Line has been popular with the independent bike dealer and their customers,” said Erik Flink, SealLine Brand Manager. “So we’re excited that the Urban Line will be more readily available to those shops through QBP.”

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PHILADELPHIA, PA - Kestrel Bicycles is pleased to announce its sponsorship of the Rock Racing Professional Cycling Team.

“We are thrilled to be partnering with one of the most exciting teams in pro cycling,” said Karen Bliss, Director of Marketing at Advanced Sports, Inc., the parent company for Kestrel. “We have built great relationships with many of Rock Racing’s riders through our other brands’ sponsorships, and I’m happy they will get the opportunity to race on our bikes in 2009.”

The team will ride Kestrel’s new RT900, a 950 gram carbon frameset that features a unique aero-shaped monocoque frame design and its proprietary EMS Pro fork. The team will also be supported by Shimano with Dura-Ace components.

Current U.S. Pro Road Champion Tyler Hamilton, who tested the Kestrel road bike the team will be riding, said, “The road bike handles perfectly - it’s got an incredible strength to weight ratio. I’m really impressed.”

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GRAND RAPIDS, Mich., – The BISSELL Pro Cycling Team has finalized its eight-member roster for the 2009 Amgen Tour of California. Team leaders Ben Jacques-Maynes and Tom Zirbel will equally play critical roles in the success of this high-profile race.

Ben Jacques-Maynes returns to this tour with a history of strong results. He placed 16th overall during last year’s Tour of California, and for two consecutive years has placed in the top ten for the time trial.

Zirbel will also battle in the time trial. In 2008, he placed 2nd at the USPRO and 8th at the Stage 5 Tour of California time trials, and also boasts a 1st place victory Tour of Utah 2008 Time Trial. Zirbel is also well-known for his memorable breakaway in last year’s final stage of the Tour of California.

After six years of racing on separate teams, Andy Jacques-Maynes joins his brother Ben in California for his first race back in the pro ranks, following a successful 2008 season. He ranked 2nd in the road race and 3rd in the time trial at Elite U.S. Nationals last year. The BISSELL Tour of California roster will also include New Zealanders, Jeremy Vennell and Peter Latham. Vennell adds to the team’s time trialing strength as the 2009 New Zealand Time Trial Champion. Latham, new to the team for 2009, was a member of the New Zealand Olympic and World’s Track Championship teams.

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