Estimated times for Stage 8 Tour of California

Here are the official estimated times of various points of interest of Stage 8
KOM @ Wolford - 12:55 to 1:05
KOM @ Palomar Mtn - 1:47 to 2:06
KOM @ Cole Grade - 3:02 to 3:35
Finish @ Party Swamis - 3:51 to 4:33
Click here for the complete estimates..

Stage 8 KOM as of Monday

Jeff Bean took this video of the top of Palomar as of yesterday. Road looks good, but a lot of snow on the side lines... Good that we have Party Swamis to go to.


Hopefully with the clear skies predicted for Wednesday to Sunday the snow will melt and it will be clear space for all the spectators.

Phil Zajicek bike in VeloNews

Check out Phil's bike on VeloNews after bringing it into our shop. We do not sell Parlees, but I got to admit it is a sweet looking ride.

Team Bike set up:

Frame: Parlee Z4 carbon
Fork: Edge Composites 1.0
Wheelset: Edge Composites 38mm all carbon clincher
Brakes: TRP 960
Drivetrain: SRAM Red
Bar: Edge
Stem: Thompson (temporary—will be Edge Composites by Tour of California)
Seatpost: Thompson (temporary—will be replaced with Edge Composites by Tour of California)
Saddle: Fi'zi:k Antares

Pedals: Speedplay

Here is the complete interview with VeloNews about the bike. Click here for the article

Other sources of Info for Stage 8

There is a nice article in Interbike Times about what is going on at the top of Palomar. Highlights are:

Two other site of info from the people who live at the top of Palomar:

http://palomarsummit.blogspot.com/

http://palomarsummit.com/

New info from the article:

Bicycles will be allowed to ride on S-6 after 9 AM until approximately 60 min prior to estimated arrival of the first rider.

The summit businesses (www.palomarsummit.com) will offer limited parking for a $10 fee on a first come/first serve basis.

Johnny at Mother’s Kitchen has a long history in the bike industry (mostly in the Santa Cruz, CA area) and is a great guy. Said he’d been going to Interbike “since about 1973″ (about 10 years before there was an Interbike, btw).

More info for Party Swamis - Keep it Coming

It is becoming clear that Swamis is connected. Several of you are calling, emailing me info about Stage 8. Here is the latest I have been told.

• There will be a Jumbotron TV on the top of Palomar Mtn for all on the mountain to watch the race
• For those of you that are looking to use Nate Harrison Grade & State Park Rd to get up and down the mountain they will stay open all day on Sunday 2/22
• Andy Green and his posse of mtn bikers, seems to have the best understanding of the possibilities of using the back roads of Palomar Mtn to get the most of seeing the KOM. Email him if you want more info.
  
• Tour planners have an alternative route for the race if Palomar Mtn has snow or ice on the roads. Alternative route is not known
• We have confirmation that the finish sprint has been changed and Party Swamis is right there. The finish will go right down Escondido Blvd in front of Party Swamis at the Center for the Arts.
  

Swamis/FOS keep those rumors/info coming - Email me if you know anything

Strongest Tour of California So Far...

VeloNews had a nice overview of the riders...

....“It is clear that this year’s Amgen Tour of California has the greatest field ever assembled in our country. We have legendary champions like Lance Armstrong, an extraordinary array of the best professional cyclists riding today and many of the most talented young riders in the world,” said Andrew Messick, president of AEG Sports.

The unprecedented field of riders expected to compete in the fourth-annual event, which drew a record 1.6 million spectators in 2008, includes two Tour de France Champions (Armstrong, Sastre), a Giro d’Italia Champion (Basso), 10 World Champions (Armstrong, Boonen, Cancellara, Michael Rogers, Cavendish, Brett Lancaster, Stuart O’Grady, Francisco Chicchi-Jr, Yoroslav Popovych-Jr. and Janez Brajokovic-Jr.), 26 Olympians and eight Olympic medalists (Armstrong, Cancellara, Hamilton, Leipheimer, Gustav Larsson, O’Grady, Rogers and Hayden Roulston) and 25 past and current National Champions......

Click here for the rest of the article

Location for Party Swamis & Rumor change for Finish Sprint

Sources are telling us that Stage 8 finish sprint is being changed and "Party Swamis" may be right on the the finish sprint. Here are the rumors...

1. "Party Swamis" is officially next door to the media center for the Tour of California. Good news for our media efforts and our team - Fly Vaustralia Presented by Successful Living.

2. It is not confirmed, but the race route will finish down Escondido Blvd. and not Grand, therefore Party Swamis will have race side positioning instead of a block away and across the park!!! This is killer news if it is true, stay tuned....

Here is the google map

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