Big Bike Sale at Watsonville Bike Shack Saturday, Oct. 13

In an effort to reach out to farmworkers, youth, homeless and anyone else who may be in need of a used bicycle, the Watsonville Bike Shack will host a Big Bike Sale on Saturday, October 13,  from 12 p.m. to 6 p.m.  Keep reading for details. — Karen Kefauver

The event will also feature a “Tianguis Graits” (free market) where farmworkers and homeless can take home up to six items of clothing, household items, etc. free of charge. A turquoise Fuji road bike will be raffled off: $5 per ticket. All of the proceeds from this event support the Bike Shack program.

The Watsonville Bike Shack is 100% community driven and sustained.

About the Watsonville Bike Shack

Bike Shack’s normal operating hours are Tuesdays and Thursdays from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m., and Fridays at the Farmers’ Market. We also offer service hours to youth who want to learn more about bike maintenance and repair, and to work in exchange for a bike, or get credit for high school graduation or community hours towards probation. At the Bike Shack, youth learn useful skills, focusing their energy on something creative and productive, and get mentoring from lead mechanics who share similar life stories.

Event Details
Who: The Watsonville Bike Shack

What: Big Bike Sale

When: Saturday, October 13 12- 6 p.m.

Where: at Warehouse located behind the Ramos Furniture Store at 555 Main St.

Contact: Lorenzo Holguin, Phone: 831-206-2955 Email: lorenzo757@yahoo.com

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New Mountain Bike After School Programs in Santa Cruz

What do your  kids do after school until you get home from work? The owners of Bike Dojo in downtown Santa Cruz have a new option for parents to consider for their kids.

 Bike Dojo now offers mountain biking after school!

“Mountain biking offers a plethora of physical, emotional and social benefits to kids and we are excited to help them have a fun activity to do after school,” said Rob Mylls, owner of the Bike Dojo.

The program is an extension of Bike Dojo’s summer camp program and kids will be biking through the Santa Cruz mountains leaning basic riding skills.

“This summer we found kids where having such a great time and so many parents told us their child got so much out of the camp so we decided we should continue the program after school,” stated Mylls. “Mountain biking is a great way to enjoy an individual sport in a team atmosphere.”

Bike Dojo wanted to make the program easy for parents so they have given parents a simple way to enroll their kids.

“We have a punch card system so parents can pick the days they want their child to ride. You can also buy a day pass and we have included a special price for Wednesday half days,” said Mylls.

For more information call Bike Dojo at 831-713-5475 and visit: http://thebikedojo.com.

— Karen Kefauver

Guide to Amgen Tour of California Stage 2 Finish in Santa Cruz County, Monday, May 14

Here’s a handy guide to the schedule of events for the Amgen Tour of California Stage 2 Finish in Santa Cruz County on Monday, May 14. Scroll down for story, URL for the Guide to download, race schedule and where to make a financial contribution to the race. This was published by Good Times Weekly.

Amgen Tour of California hits Santa Cruz, Monday, May 14, 2012
Guide, route, closures, shuttles, schedule

STORY: http://www.gtweekly.com/index.php/good-times-cover-stories/special-publications-inserts/3782-amgen-tour-of-california-guide.html

Download GUIDE here: http://www.gtweekly.com/images/stories/051012/amgen.pdf

Schedule:

Schedule <click for complete guide, route, closures, shuttles and schedule>
11:00am Lifestyle Festival Opens
12:00pm VIP Hospitality tents open
12:30pm Team buses arrive (parking lot K at Cabrillo)
1:00pm Carmichael Training Systems (trainright.com/)
2:30pm Park Ave closes including ramps from Hwy 1 until 5:30 pm
(alternate route info: tourofcaliforniasantacruz.com/race_day/transportation_and_parking )
3:53pm Race Finishes after last rider Begin awards ceremony
4:30pm VIP Hospitality closes, tear down begins.

Help  pay for the race here:
http://www.tourofcalifornia-santacruz.com/get_involved/com

See you at the race!

— Karen Kefauver

Levi Leipheimer Talks Tour of California in Webcast

Levi Leipheimer answered questions on the Amgen Tour of California, his training and how he is feeling while recovering from being hit by a car. 

http://www.ustream.tv/recorded/22432142

For Strawberry …

For Strawberry Fields 2012 in Santa Cruz County, here are the three bicycle routes. Choose a route and click on a link to see a map. Here’s the website: http://www.strawberryfields.org/about-the-ride/routes

30M   http://ridewithgps.com/routes/905870
100K  http://ridewithgps.com/routes/934531
100M  http://ridewithgps.com/routes/935172

GPS downloads are available for all routes.  (These are for riders that have GPS-enabled bicycle computers; especially those that have mapping support.  Examples:  Garmin 705, Garmin 800.)  To perform the download of the GPS data, view the map link provided, select the Overview tab on the right, and within the overview select the Export tab.

Registration Open for Bike Ride, the Slow Coast Green Fondo, April 29

Register now for the Slow Coast Green Fondo, the official Pre- Amgen Tour of California event for Santa Cruz County. The Slow Coast Green Fondo is themed around local green solutions for everyday living, from food choices to transportation & energy choices. The event will feature a 56-mile ride through Santa Cruz County and conclude with a Multi-Course Slow Food Dinner at the Main Street Garden & Cafe.  This charity bike ride will contribute funds to Ecology Action’s BikeSmart! Youth Safety Education program as the Diabetic Youth Foundation, Food What?!, Save Our Shores & SCCCC. There is a $500 Fundraising commitment per cyclist.

Register through Active.com here.

Karen Kefauver is a freelance writer based in Santa Cruz, California. Visit her website to see more cycling stories and photos here: www.karenkefauver.com

3 Fun-Raising Events for Amgen Tour of California Santa Cruz Finish

Mark your calendars!

Here are 3 fundraisers coming up for the Amgen Tour of California Santa Cruz Finish. Tuesday, April 17, 5 p.m. Shadowbrook Restaurant will host a silent aucion and dinner. Besides cool raffle items, a portion of the restaurant’s proceeds of the day will go to the TOC. Details: http://www.tourofcalifornia-santacruz.com/content/silent-auction-shadowbrook Sunday, April 22, 4 p.m. Michael’s on Main Restaurant in Soquel hosts a silent auction. Details: http://www.tourofcalifornia-santacruz.com/content/silent-auction-michaels-main Sunday, April 29, 8 a.m. The Green Fondo, an all-day bike ride begins at 8 a.m. Details: http://www.tourofcalifornia-santacruz.com/content/slow-coast-green-fondo-0 Learn more about all three events:  http://www.tourofcalifornia-santacruz.com/events   Amgen Tour of California Stage 2 Route Making its way down the Devil’s Slide, north of Half Moon Bay, the peloton will enjoy the most spectacular coastline in the world. The stage will then turn inward and start the assault up Bonny Doon Road, which, in previous editions of the race, has determined the winner of the stage. There will be two King of the Mountains (KOM) during Stage 2, the first being atop Bonny Doon Road and Empire Grade. Once on Empire Grade, the riders will turn left and continue upward until turning right onto Jamison Creek Road for a sure-to-be-hair-raising descent. From Jamison Creek it will be onto Highway 236 then Highway 9 for another attack up Bear Creek Road and the second KOM. Then it will be over to Summit Road and down Old San Jose Road. The last several miles of the stage are downhill, followed by a short run down Soquel Drive to the finish on Cabrillo College Road. Stage 2 of the Amgen Tour of California will certainly be a long and difficult stage, but it won’t be a surprise to see a large pack of riders contest the finish in an exciting Sprint.

Amgen Tour of California Team Line Up Announced for 2012

Image via Wikipedia

LOS ANGELES (March 13, 2012) – Race organizers have named the 16 teams, including some of the world’s best international and domestic squads, to compete in the 2012 Amgen Tour of California, which will take place May 13 to 20. Comprised of United Cycling International (UCI) Pro, Pro Continental and Continental squads, the 16 world class teams chosen to participate in the 2012 race will include Olympic hopefuls and Tour de France contenders representing more than 20 countries, giving fans around the world a preview of what is to come in July in both France and London.

The 2012 Amgen Tour of California roster includes the following 16 teams:

UCI ProTeams
BMC Racing Team (USA)
Rabobank Cycling Team (NED)
Garmin- Barracuda (USA)
RadioShack-Nissan-Trek (LUX)
Liquigas-Cannondale (ITA)
Omega Pharma – QuickStep (BEL)
AG2R La Mondiale (FRA)
GreenEDGE Cycling Team (AUS)
UCI Professional Continental Teams
Team Spidertech Powered By C10 (CAN)
UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling Team (USA)
Project 1t4i (NED)
Colombia-Coldeportes (COL)
UCI Continental Teams
Team Optum Presented By Kelly Benefit Strategies (USA)
Bissell Pro Cycling (USA)
Team Exergy (USA)
Bontrager Livestrong Team (USA)

Since the inaugural race in 2006, the Amgen Tour of California has consistently drawn the world’s best cycling talent while growing to become one of the most important races on the international calendar. In 2012, the race will play an even more significant role as it will be where top competitors test themselves in preparation for the Tour de France and the 2012 Summer Olympic Games taking place in London this summer.

As previously announced by race presenters AEG, the 2012 Amgen Tour of California will start in Santa Rosa on May 13 and travel more than 750 miles throughout some of California’s most majestic and iconic highways, roadways and coastlines before the final stage on May 20 when the race will start in Beverly Hills on Rodeo Drive and finish at L.A. LIVE in downtown Los Angeles.

The 16 elite teams include the newly restructured RadioShack-Nissan-Trek, whose roster includes Amgen Tour of California defending champion Chris Horner, Jens Voigt and current U.S. National Road Race Champion, Matthew Busche who will compete against a field that includes the No. 1-ranked team in the world, Omega Pharma – QuickStep, featuring three-time Amgen Tour of California winner Levi Leipheimer and Tom Boonen; Garmin-Barracuda, featuring Amgen Tour of California veterans Dave Zabriskie and Tom Danielson; and 2011 Tour de France champion BMC Racing including veteran cyclist and fan favorite George Hincapie and one of the fastest rising stars in cycling today, Tejay van Garderen. Also, competing in California for the seventh consecutive year will be the Rabobank Cycling Team, featuring Laurens Ten Dam and Luis Leon Sanchez. Liquigas-Cannondale is set to compete as well, featuring American cyclists, Ted King and Timothy Duggan, as well as Peter Sagan, who has taken multiple stages in previous editions of the Amgen Tour of California. Competing in California for the first time will be the Australian GreenEDGE Cycling Team, who plan to bring Luke Durbridge and Robbie McEwen. AG2R La Mondiale is also on the roster, featuring Nicolas Roche and Rinaldo Nocentini.

“Breakfast with the Amgen Tour” Thursday, Feb. 9 in Aptos

Save the date to learn more about Santa Cruz County's Tour of California Stage in 2012!

On Facebook, find info on Tour of California Santa Cruz Stage, here.

Website: http://www.tourofcalifornia-santacruz.com

This blog: https://bicyclesantacruzcalifornia.wordpress.com

More info on Aptos Meeting:

February Breakfast Meeting
Date: February 9, 2012
Time: 7:30am-9:00am
Location: Best Western Seacliff Inn
Cost: $20 for members, $25 for non-members
Join the Aptos Chamber at our February Breakfast Meeting “Breakfast with the Amgen Tour.”  We will have special guest speakers Maura Noel and Matt Twisselman who will be speaking about the Amgen Tour.  Great chance for networking!

Please call for reservations, 831-688-1467.

 

Related articles

• How to Support Amgen Tour of California 2012 in Santa Cruz County (bicyclesantacruzcalifornia.wordpress.com)
• Amgen Tour of California Returns to Santa Cruz (bicyclesantacruzcalifornia.wordpress.com)
• Amgen TOC 2010 Flashback: Bob Roll on a Roll in Santa Cruz at Spokesman (bicyclesantacruzcalifornia.wordpress.com)

L’Etape du California announced for 2012 Amgen Tour of California

“For the Second Year, Amateur Cyclists Given the Opportunity to Tackle One of the Toughest Climbs in U.S. Cycling History” — maybe I should give this a try? – Karen Kefauver

LOS ANGELES (November 11, 2011) – Fresh on the heels of announcing the 13 official Host Cities for the 2012 Amgen Tour of California, AEG, presenter of the race, has announced the return of the popular amateur ride L’Etape du California. Produced in partnership with Pacific Sports, a leading sports and event management company, the 2012 edition of L’Etape du California will take place on Saturday, April 28.

Held for the first in May 2011 in conjunction with America’s premier cycling race, L’Etape du California gives amateur cyclists an experience like none other, challenging participants to ride what is arguably the toughest stage ever seen in American cycling, Stage 7 of the Amgen Tour of California. Earlier this year, Stage 7 played host to the world’s best cyclists and produced an amazing race as riders Andy Schleck, Chris Horner and Levi Leipheimer battled it out to the top.

Featuring an unrelenting, intense climb to the top of Mt. Baldy, a route legendary in California cycling lore, Stage 7 of the 2012 Amgen Tour of California will start in Ontario, a new city to the race, on Saturday, May 19. Specific details of Stage 7 will be announced early 2012, along with details of the entire race route.

Drawing riders from around the country, the 2011 L’Etape du California was won by Californian Jonathan Hornbeck. Hornbeck battled through close to 10,000 vertical feet of climbing and rode nearly 100 miles to take first place honors. He was followed by Nate Whitman and Sean Donovan, who finished second and third, respectively.

Like last year, the field for the 2012 L’Etape du California will be limited to 2,500 riders.

Details: www.letapeducalifornia.com and www.amgentourofcalifornia.com.