Originally Posted by superunleaded

Tony, the traffic jam is when the race is over. Riders trickle in from all over and get spread to the top and when the race is over, everyone tries to get down asap to get to the finish in downtown SJ. But with the crowd split up between Sierra and Mt Ham, there's a good chance that there will good spots on both places and probably not too much like a zoo like the previous years.
If you want to go downtown and watch the race, position yourself in front of the jumbotron right by the barricades so you can watch the race live on screen plus you get to see them in person when they crank it up to the finish. And if you don't care much about the race but want to mingle with the riders, head straight to the parking lot where the team buses are. Act as if you are one of the racers and the guards won't bother you
I shook hands with Johan B last year while Lance walks in front of me and I didn't have a darn camera so make sure bring a camera if you go towards the team buses. You'll just never know who would pose for you.