Amgen 130-mile route revealed

CYCLISTS ride through downtown Sonora in January for filming of a promotional ad for the Amgen Tour of California. File photo/Union Democrat, copyright 2012

The starting line for the fourth stage of the tour will be in front of Courthouse Square in downtown Sonora on May 16.
Riders will set out on a 130-mile portion of the race — the longest stage in the tour — along a series of rural roads that include a major portion of Highway 49 in Tuolumne County, according to event organizers.

The route will not travel down Stockton Road, nor will it follow the winding path up New Priest Grade as many local cycling enthusiasts had predicted, according to Darrell Slocum, Local Organizing Committee spokesman.
Instead, riders will queue up at the starting line in front of the Tuolumne County Courthouse before heading south down Washington Street.

“The entire Washington Street route will be significant,” Slocum said. “There will be ample opportunities to see the riders all along Washington Street.”

From Sonora, riders will travel down rural roads before reaching Jacksonville Road, eventually connecting with Highway 49 through Moccasin, Mariposa and Oakhurst. The race will then leave the highway to follow a path along twisting country roads until the finish line in Clovis in Fresno County.

The Sonora leg of the race will be the most mountainous stage in the tour. Riders will see a dozen elevation changes that begin with Sonora at roughly 1,700 feet, to a high of 3,750 feet on Crane Valley Road in Oakhurst, then back down to near sea level by the end of the stage.

“I would argue it is the most grueling stage of the tour this year,” Slocum said. “The climbs are significant.”
While the world-class cyclists will only be in Sonora for the time it takes them to pedal through the center of town, the festivities will continue long after they’re gone.

There will be race-related activities and a street fair after the stage has ended, Slocum said.