I am now almost 48 hours removed from the race and thought it would be fitting to offer a few final thoughts about the 2008 Amgen Tour of California. Defining moments for me: first rider off in Palo Alto, driving through Davis, Sprint in Patterson on Stage 3, driving Stage 3 without getting sick, trying to open the car door against the wind on Stage 4, the Course Marshals being hammered by the wind and rain on Stage 4 and 7, the Rock Racing girls, the race start in Modesto, Sierra and Balcom, driving through La Canada Flintridge, and entering into the Rose Bowl.

I got to spend an hour with our UCI Commissaire President yesterday, as I drove him to LAX for his flight back to Amsterdam. Martin Swinkles has presided over several Tour de France races. I am adding him to my list of people I would like to have over for dinner.

I will always be amazed with what it takes to put this race together. There are so many people involved, yet I have never seen egos get in the way. Everyone works together to make this one of the greatest races in the world. AEG, Medalist Sports, the sponsors, and the host cities work untold hours and never give up on solving an issue. It is an amazing partnership of committed individuals and organizations.

It is always difficult to see the trucks packed for the final time, taking the signage off of your vehicle, and seeing your friends head to the airport. As for me, I am already behind in getting things ready for Colorado Stage Race and other Medalist events. Planning has already started for the 2009 race. The Tour de Georgia is just six weeks away and I know that most of the people I work with on the Amgen Tour of California will be gathered in Georgia.

Hope you have enjoyed these past several days with me.

-Eric

Ps. All of the pictures and text for this Blog were done with my iPhone

That's a Wrap!

This chap was walking near the deviation point in Pasadena. The sign and his expression says it all. I am going to finish this Blog in the next day or so. There are a lot of pictures to post and a lot of stories to tell you so check back in a day or so.

Danger Will Robinson

I spent a little too much time coming down Angeles Forest cleaning debris and getting a car off the course. I was 5K from the KOM when I heard on race radio that the 1st rider had made the KOM. Faced with an 8 mile descent and a rider that could go downhill faster than me, I was in a bit of a panic. I pushed the Tundra to the max and prayed that the "Black Ice" was not settling in the corners. I was able to create a modest gap and then I encountered this mile long patch of fog/cloud coming down Angeles Crest...sweet!

Rock Stars

This is a picture before the start of Stage 7. These are all of our moto officials, moto marshals, and CHP. Words cannot describe what they mean and do for the race. Simply put, without their incredible skills, there would be no Amgen Tour of California. When the riders are asked about the race, they almost always tell you the most impressive thing is how protected they are on the road. They feel totally secure and safe. That allows them to focus 100% on the race.

A "Tall" sendoff by Santa Clarita

Not sure who these folks were. The start at Santa Clarita was one of the best on the tour (Best has been awarded to the City of Modesto). Good crowd, just a spot of rain, and a really nice venue at the Town Center Shopping Center. The City of Santa Clarita bent over backwards to help us for the finish of Stage 6 and start of Stage 7. There was nothing we asked that they couldn't do!

Bikes in the Ready

Yellow can be a rider's favorite color

Pasadena Bound

Just got in from driving Stage 7 to see how bad things are (weather and the roads). The short answer is that both are bad, but can be managed. We will be going over Millcreek Summit and into the Angeles Forest. Each team has riders that are sick, but the racers are pros and want to finish what was started. I think that Stages 3, 4, and 7 will define this race as a very difficult week of racing and help further boost its reputation!

Gotta Love the Tree Huggers!

Each tree along the final 500Ms in Santa Clarita for the Stage 6 finish was full of fans trying to get a better view.

I have to admit that I am a little tired of the Let Levi Ride push. I really like Levi and I think there is little chance that he and Astana will be kept out of the big dance. It just seemed that you stopped moving, someone slapped a "Let Levi Ride" sticker on your butt.

I saw this on Stage 6 somewhere near Casitas Pass. Pretty clever.

Getting Close to Home

These last two Stages (along with Stage 3) are my babies to layout,
develop traffic mgm't plans, etc. As you can see, it was beautiful
this morning, rain is in the air.

Surviving Solvang

The TT is always the toughest stage for the crews. With some amateurs going off an hour before the Pros, things were compressed even tighter. A sort section of road heading into Los Olivos flooded up to the yellow line. It looked like if someone spit in the water, the remainder of the road would flood too. The weather calmed down and we had a great day (but not without some drama).

It started with the Rock Racing Rolls Royce trying to get on the course (during the live TT) so it could avoid a little traffic. If you know me then you know my answer to that one! Also lost one rider who decided that he would follow his lead vehicle through deviation. Coming to the final turn wth 300M to the finish, cars would deviate off the course and continue down a narrow alley to pick up another rider. Let's see: do I continue straight to a waiting crowd of thousands of people or do I turn down an alley and continue 500m into team parking?

Last thing was doing the D3 (Deviation Death Dance)...again...with Mr. Vaughters. Maybe I can get one of those spike strips from CHP???

Ok God, I was just kidding...

Sitting here at deviation waiting for the race to come in. The conditions today for Stage 4 were some of the worst I have seen: driving rain and a headwind that gusted to 40 mph+. Not sure how many have abandoned. Before our plane was forced to land (and taking down our repeaters, it was up to 10 riders. Everyone is soaked and generally miserable.

One of our Routing/Signs crew gave me this "No Trespassing" sign. They found one attached to several of the route signs they placed along some of the rural stretches of Stage 3. There were people who hated us and people who loved us on this stage. It is hard to determine who is in the majority. You tend to listen to the "squeaky" wheel. I think I learned my lesson on this Stage. Don't assume that the naysayers speak for the majority of the people.

Modesto - Stage 3 Start

The "Trademark" of Modesto. Just a little under two hours to race start. Looks like rain on and off all day. Final check of Mt. Hamilton is positive. One of the most epic days of racing in the USA is about to unfold. As a precaution, we are adding a second broom wagon today. The cutoff is 10% of the leader's time. I am sure I will have a lot to tell you, after I get into San Jose!!

Rain, Rain, Rain, Rain...

It's 3:45 AM. I am at the start waiting for the start crew to show so we can begin our build. We were up till vey late last night. A group of 14 of us took over a local pizza place and I am afraid they may never be the same! A tremendous bunch of people who work their asses off all day and then let it rip at night. You don't dare think about the long days. Just set the alarm and it is "Showtime". More about the crew later this week.

It rained through most of yesterday's build and start. The rain stayed away for most of the race. Once we hit Davis (great town and I hope someday a host city for the race), it started again and it was a very wet and cold finish in SAC. The Governator was there. Nothing major to report from the stage, but it was awesome to see Boonen win. The guy is a magnet. At team parking in the morning, there will be 30-40 media and fans pressing ever closer to him. Bettini has to push his way through the crowd. World championship kit and no one even sees him! Boonen is far and away the rock star of this race. Rock was well behaved and had a good day on the road.

I have waited for today's stage since last Spring. Many of you know this stage has had some unique issues to deal with. Closing remote roads for the race seems easy, but when it is the only road available to the residents, rumors and irrational fears start to rule people's judgement. I hope the race is uneventful, as we head towards Mt Hamilton. Managing the caravan on this stage is going to require all the creativity our Tech Director can muster. Chuck is a genius and the best there is so I know it will go well today.

What all the guys will be wearing this Spring

Here we have supermodel Rob Bushnell is the head of our group that puts all the signage on the course. Here we see Rob in part of our new rain gear collection. Accessorize this with an orange flag and a whistle and you are set for a wild night on the town!

Motos To Go

These are a portion of our Moto Marshal's rides. We have about 15 in the race. They supplement CHP in controlling everything for loose dogs to cars coming on the course towards the riders. They are the best there is and come from around the world to do this race. They are just one of several elements that make this race possible and such a huge success.

The Great Chiweenie

Chiweenie's owners take her everywhere they go. His real name is "Gu" and is a rescue from a pound in Fresno. He was at every stage. If you get the chance, read his book "The Adventures of the Great Chiweenie".

Elvis lives (and is on every KOM)

These guys are on all the KOMs. Funny and inventive, Elvis could give the Devil his due on Sierra!

Political Strategists Descend on Santa Rosa

Actually, these kids were doing balloons for the kids and making a little college tuition money. Very talented group.

Nuts

As in "Peanuts". Santa Rosa was the home to Charles Shultz. Because Charles M. Schulz lived in Santa Rosa, the city has a special celebration each year in which they exhibit statues of one of his Peanuts characters. It was Charlie Brown in 2005, Woodstock in 2006, and Joe Cool in 2007. These statues are all for sale and businesses around town buy them and then display them on their own premises. The ones that are not sold are left on display around the streets of Santa Rosa.

Joe Cool

This 4 foot tall Joe Cool is a nice greeting as we beging the build for the start of Stage 2.

No Flying Pigs...

...But Santa Rosa has the Flying Goat. This is as far removed from a Starbucks as you can get. Great food and awesome coffee.

Sushi? Santa Rosa?

Who would have thought that some of the best Sushi around would be in Santa Rosa and smack dab on the Start line for Stage 2? A group of us ate here on Monday night. It was awesome. Dynamite Rolls, Dragon Rolls, Crunchy California Rolls, and cold beer. Life is good.

Getting the message out

Every time my truck stops for a minute, someone slaps a Levi sticker on the back.

Let's get serious

Prologue are great for the crowds, but the real racing begins here in Sausalito (BTW, the Spinnaker is at the start and is an amazing place to eat and the treat the race staff like royalty).

ATOC Moto Marshals

The very best in the biz. They come from around the world and is tough gig to get. The overall level of their professionalism at this race is hard to describe. Without them, there could be no race.

The ATOC goes to the dogs!

Joseph the wonder dog.

Let the good times roll...

What an awesome day. Palo Alto and Stanford were great hosts. Big crowds and spectacular weather! One of my roles is to "deviate" the chase cars off the route before the finish line. Vaughters came as close as anyone in running me over and it drew a loud gasp then a loud round of applause from the crowd. Even CHP winced at that one.

Rock Racing getting ready to roll

With all the speculation that Rock was going to pull their remaining five riders, there was no question that their wrenches had orders to get everyting ready to go. I saw them working until into the dark to get the bikes set for the Prologue.

Here Today...

I think that everyone expected there to be a fair share of drama with the race. Some expected it to be on Stage 3, while sothers expected something else. As it turns out, it was something else. I am glad the Rock decided to stay in the race. The remaining riders deserved it. As you can see Cipollini has arrived with a couple of hard to miss sweet rides.

It is past 1:00 AM and I am still repacking before I can go to sleep and then up at 4:30 AM. Ah...it must be another Tour (this will be my 6th one in three years). Many of us have spent nine months and it is ready to launch this baby. There are now 950 people involved in moving the race down the road. The time cut for Stage 3 will be 10% of the stage winner's time. This is going to be interesting! The weather looks good, but rain looks possible for Stage 4. I am sure that Seaside must feel snake bitten!

I Think I've Seen Heaven!!

As we are preparing for the Team Manager's meeting, Specialized was next door doing photo shoots. I missed Paolo Bettini, but not the beautiful and ever present Specialized angel.

Race Check-in

This is the main check-in area for the staff. This is where we get our "creds", radios, clothing, and per diem cards. Each functional group gets their own stuff. We all look pretty spiffy on the first day. The trick is to look nice and neat everyday. Not an easy task.

The teams are all here and left Friday night for the Gala in Sausolito where all the riders and teams are presented to the public. The team parking area is abuzz with mechanic building new road and TT bikes for all the riders. I'll get some shots of a lot of busy people later today. Meetings from 9:00 AM until 9:30 PM today: CHP, security, Caravan drivers, officials, team meeting, TT meeting, course marshals, and an overall meeting with the entire race staff of 500+ people.

Roger That

Not sure how many radios we go through but this is a fraction of what is distributed for the race. To enable us to communicate over a 25 mile radius from the caravan, we fly an airplane each day at 25,000' equipped with repeaters. This is just a sampling of what goes on as the staff and teams roll in. Highlight of the day was showing Phil Ligett and Paul Sherwin where to find their car at checking!

The Calm Before the Storm

Yesterday was one phone call after the other and they all started the same "I know you are super busy right now, but...". It seems that no matter how much time I have, I always need a few minutes more. Made it to LAX in record time, then took just as long to get through four different lines. In the end, we made it to the hotel in Palo Alto about 1:00 AM this morning. Lynn is cultivating some type of bug. We may need to put the race MDs on our speed dialing list.

Well, the worst part of the trip is over. Final check of things today: confirming that we are not going to encounter any trains along the route, permits and insurance are all completed, and double check the list of all of the t-shirts, hats, and autographs that I promised to a long list of folks. Several impromtu calls and meetings have already been set for today. First thing is to pick up our vehicles (I just know that Lynn is going to have the nicer ride) and then go through the credentialing process. This is where we get our IDs, per diem cards, and clothing. In 2006, we got so much stuff (including a Robin's Egg blue running suit...huh??), but now we are down to the basic race attire of hat, rain gear, hoodie, t-shirts, long sleeve polos, and a few button down shirts. Then I check in with the other directors and plot the course for the rest of the day.

For many of us, the Amgen Tour of California starts today!! Wahooo! I started working on this year's race almost nine months to the day. This is going to be some delivery!

Before We get Started...

I work for Medalist Sports. We produce several notable bike races and cycling events in the USA: Tour of California, Tour of Georgia, Tour of Missouri, US Pro Championships, Livestrong Challenge, and the inaugural Colorado Stage Race (Aug 2008). We were recently named the best race production company in the land by Velonews!

My role as Asst. Technical/Course Director is to help layout and map the race routes and then secure the various permits and permissions that need to be obtained.

Six-Days Before Race Start

They say the devil is in the details. There are numerous demons chasing me right now, so it must be true. I need a list to keep track of all the lists I am maintaining right now. One for things I still have to finish before leaving for Palo Alto, one for what I need to pack, one for what I need to have in the car with me during the race, one for things I promised people that I am going to encounter along the race route, etc.

Today I am focusing on permits, letters to go out to selected residents along the course, and trying to make sure we are not going to encounter a train crossing the numerous RR tracks we cross over the eight days of racing.

I am going to do my best to maintain this Blog throughout the days in Palo Alto leading up to the race and then entries throughout the week of racing. I'll be using an iPhone to take lots of pictures. There are plenty of places on the Internet that you can see some great shots of the race. I will try and take you behind the scenes and give you an idea of what the day-to-day life is like at the ATOC.