LOS ANGELES, Calif. - The route for this year's Amgen Tour of California is out and the Central Coast is playing a prominent role. You'll have multiple locations to see some of the best racers in the world, ride through the Central Coast.
Here's the information about the routes. Stage's 4 and 5 will touch the Central Coast:
Stage 4: Wednesday, May 15 – Santa Clarita to Santa Barbara
Start Location: Theater Drive and Town Center
Finish Location: Cabrillo Blvd.
Start Time: 12:35 p.m.
Stage Length: 84.7 miles
Veteran Amgen Tour of California racers will recognize this stage from past races, but they'll be riding it in reverse. After the desert terrain of Stage 3, they'll welcome ocean breezes as they descend to the finish in coastal Santa Barbara. They'll have their work cut out for them: punishing headwinds are a regular feature along the route to Santa Paula, site of the first sprint of the stage.
A sprint in Ojai will be preceded by the K.O.M. and technical descent of Dennison Grade. Past Ojai, the climb up Casitas Pass will give way to long downhill and flat finish along the beach in Santa Barbara. There is no question that this stage will favor the sprinters.
Stage 5, Presented by Visit California: Thursday, May 16 – Santa Barbara to Avila Beach
Start Location: Cabrillo Blvd.
Finish Location: Front St.
Start Time 11 a.m.
Stage Length: 116.4 miles
A start along the beach in Santa Barbara will see the race retrace much of its 2006 route, but in reverse order. The riders will continue over the steep and windy San Marcos Pass along state Route 154 before descending into the Lake Cachuma Recreation Area. The racers will then tackle Foxen Canyon Road outside of Los Olivos and pass through Orcutt and the quaint farm town of Guadalupe, which gave the race a warm welcome in 2006. A sprint in Arroyo Grande will foreshadow an anticipated massive sprint to the finish in Avila Beach, which offers a picturesque harbor, quaint shops, a beautiful beach and the opportunity for its 1,700 residents to join thousands of race fans to watch the peloton storm down Front Street in hopes of capturing the stage win.
