Minneapolis, MN - Silver medalist and World Champion cyclist Kristin Armstrong will return to the Nature Valley Grand Prix in 2008, participating in the annual five-day, six-stage race for the third consecutive year. This time, in addition to racing in the Nature Valley Grand Prix to defend her title as two-time champion, Armstrong returns as a member of the Cervelo-Lifeforce Professional Cycling Team bound for the 2008 Summer Olympic Games.

Coming off a win at the Tour of New Zealand in March, Armstrong will use the grueling stages of the Nature Valley Grand Prix to assist in her preparation for the Olympics in Beijing where she will ride with the women’s U.S. Cycling Team.

“Kristin is at the top of her sport and it’s a thrill to have such a talented rider join the field once again as she prepares for the 2008 Summer Olympics,” said David LaPorte, Festival director. “She has dominated the Nature Valley Grand Prix women’s races for two consecutive years. This year the women participating in the race will strive to beat a World Champion rider and potential Olympic medalist, which will make for some exciting races.”

Armstrong will be riding with Emma Rickards, a team member of the Cervelo-Lifeforce Professional Cycling Team. Cervélo Lifeforce Pro Cycling Team is an elite professional women’s cycling team based in Switzerland and races on the UCI Women’s Road World Cup circuit.

The Nature Valley Grand Prix will be held June 11 - 15 and is ranked #1 for women and #3 for men in the United States.

The following is a schedule of the Nature Valley Grand Prix:

• Mears Park, Downtown Saint Paul: Wednesday, June 11, 4:30 – 8:30 p.m.
  Features six corners on a mostly flat course, racing is fast-paced from start to finish.
• Cannon Falls Road Race: Thursday, June 12, 5 – 9 p.m.
  At just 60 miles, this course is short by road racing standards but what it lacks in length it makes up for in terrain with steep climbs and prairie winds.
• St. Paul Time Trial: Friday, June 13, beginning at 9 a.m.
  Racers compete against the clock along the St. Paul riverfront
• Peavey Plaza, Downtown Minneapolis: Friday, June 13, 4:30 – 9 p.m.
  A 1.2- kilometer course with six 90-degree turns and speeds exceeding 35 mph.
• Mankato Road Race: Saturday, June 14, 1 – 5 p.m.
  Totaling 86 miles, this is the longest stage in the race featuring a 1-kilometer climb that pitches at 14 percent, a climb racers must face four times as they complete a finishing circuit at the end of the course.
• Downtown Stillwater: Sunday, June 15, 10:30 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.
  Each lap of this race starts out on the famed Chilkoot Hill, an eighth-mile uphill climb at a grade of more than 20 percent and ends with racers exceeding 50 mph on this 1.5 mile circuit.

The Great River Energy Bicycle Festival featuring the Nature Valley Grand Prix is free and open to the public. It is the only professional sport event in Minnesota in which no ticket is required.

In 2007, the Great River Energy Bicycle Festival raised $30,000 for Children’s Hospitals and Clinics of Minnesota, double its largest contribution to date. Funds from the Great River Energy Bicycle Festival are directed to the Pediatric Hospice and Palliative Care Department at Children’s Hospitals and Clinics of Minnesota, the only program of its kind in the state.
About the Great River Energy Bicycle Festival and Nature Valley Grand Prix

The Great River Energy Bicycle Festival, now in its 10th year, is one of the nation’s top celebrations of the bicycle culture, with tens of thousands of cycling enthusiasts, pro athletes and avid recreational riders converging in Minnesota each June. The MN Fixed Gear Classic held at the National Sports Center Velodrome in Blaine, Minn., is a prelude to the Great River Energy Bicycle Festival. The Festival’s professional road racing event, the Nature Valley Grand Prix, began as a one-day criterium in Saint Paul in 1999. Ranked as the premier stage race on the USA Cycling National Racing Calendar, the 2008 Nature Valley Grand Prix schedule includes stops in Saint Paul, Cannon Falls, Minneapolis, Mankato, and Stillwater. The Great River Energy Bicycle Festival is a volunteer-run event, with all proceeds donated to Children’s Hospitals and Clinics of Minnesota, the festival’s benefiting charity. For more information, visit: www.minnbikefestival.com.

About Great River Energy
Great River Energy is a not-for-profit electric generation and transmission cooperative providing wholesale electric energy and related services to 28 distribution cooperatives in Minnesota and Wisconsin serving more than 600,000 customers, or approximately 1.7 million people. For more information about Great River Energy, visit: www.GreatRiverEnergy.com.

About Nature Valley
Nature Valley, the brand that created the granola bar category in 1975, brings variety to healthy, active consumers looking for wholesome and great-tasting snacks. Headquartered in Minneapolis, Nature Valley is part of General Mills, a leading global manufacturer and marketer of consumer foods products.