Road Bike Racing - Georgia TV Coverage

Does anyone know if any channel is going to be showing the stages? OLN has what looks like a one hour recap in 2 weeks. Cramming 6 stages into one hour should result in real in depth coverage (sarcasm). I guess it's like why local stations don't show local sporting events but I don't live in Georgia so I was hoping to catch some good racing.

AJC.com/sports has a daily update. Plus you can go to;

http://www.tourdegeorgia.org/

I found this on their website, somewhat buried, but I have no idea what this show will be:

The Dodge Tour de Georgia regional show will air on Fox Sports Net South during these times:
May 4 at 7 p.m. ET
May 8 at 9 p.m. ET
May 19 at 4 a.m. ET
May 26 at 1:30 p.m. ET
June 5 at 9 p.m. ET

Damn! By that time EVERYONE will have known what happened for the stages. Why wait until so late to replay? :(

Maybe they'll run the Giro in October? :-/

Koffee

It's amazing that a major stage race like this doesn't even warrant live coverage in the U.S.

Or maybe it isn't amazing.

Laggard, thats exactly what I was thinking, I would have thought OLN would be all over this at least. Heck, I thought maybe even ABC or something would being showing clips or highlights, Lance is racing here and that should have grabbed all of their attention. Alas, NASCAR seems to still warrant higher. What a shame.

I have some friends who went to the tour last year and rode alp D' huez and they came back saying that the ride up Hogpen gap, which is in either the last or next to last stage, is a harder climb.

It would be nice to see what the pro's say about it. I have drug myself over that climb a lot and it just beats the hellouta you.

Read all about it....

http://news.google.com/news?q=tour%20de%20georgia&hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&sa=N&tab=wn

I have some friends who went to the tour last year and rode alp D' huez and they came back saying that the ride up Hogpen gap, which is in either the last or next to last stage, is a harder climb.

It would be nice to see what the pro's say about it. I have drug myself over that climb a lot and it just beats the hellouta you.

I rode Six Gap for the first time last year and that climb will kill you. My buddy said that Brasstown Bald is even worse and the finish is at the top of BB. We plan on sitting somewhere along the climb on BB to watch the riders. Hope the real thing is as good as my mind makes it out to be.

Sad that my only nugget of info comes from a google article. :(

Koffee

Sad that my only nugget of info comes from a google article.

No kidding.... Where's the same-day coverage?

Anyway, results are in for Stage 1....
http://www.cyclingnews.com/road/2004/apr04/tdgeorgia04/?id=results/stage1

Thanks for the link.

What a nugget... 1 paragraph summarized the entire race. :-/

Better than nothing, I guess.

Koffee

What a nugget... 1 paragraph summarized the entire race.

No, no... The entire race is covered live with updates every 5 minutes similar to the OLN page on the official TdF Web site. The writing isn't nearly as thorough or good, but it is better than nothing.

You can "read" what took place during Stage 1 here: http://www.cyclingnews.com/road/2004/apr04/tdgeorgia04/?id=live/stage1

The main page is here: http://www.cyclingnews.com/road/2004/apr04/tdgeorgia04/?id=default

You'll find a links menu in the upper left corner of each of these pages that takes you to:

- Stages & Results
- Live Reports
- Photos
-

Cool! Now that's more like it!

Thanks for the link.

Koffee

Cool! Now that's more like it!

Thanks for the link.

Koffee

More info at this site too.

http://www.pezcyclingnews.com/?pg=fullstory&id=2178

Cippo is still the coolest....

Stage one results.


Position Number Rider Team Time Gap
1. 91 FRASER Gordon HNC 3.18'48"
2. 83 DOMINGUEZ Ivan COB 3.18'53" 5"
3. 14 VOIGT Jens CSC 3.18'55" 7"
4. 92 HENDERSON Gregory HNC 3.18'59" 11"
5. 25 METLUSHENKO Yuri LAN 3.18'59" 11"
6. 53 DEGANO Enrico TBL 3.18'59" 11"
7. 127 BISKNER Nieko OFO 3.18'59" 11"
8. 72 DAVIDENKO Vassili NIC 3.18'59" 11"
9. 103 BROOKS Benjamin JEL 3.18'59" 11"
10. 134 JACQUES-MAYNES Ben SIE 3.18'59" 11"
11. 2 DIONNE Charles WEB 3.18'59" 11"
12. 108 OLLERENSHAW Doug JEL 3.18'59" 11"
13. 65 MARINANGELI Sergio DVE 3.18'59" 11"
14. 104 ALBERS Kirk JEL 3.18'59" 11"
15. 42 HINCAPIE George USP 3.18'59" 11"
16. 102 MANION Caleb JEL 3.18'59" 11"
17. 82 OLSON Aaron COB 3.18'59" 11"
18. 56 RAVAIOLI Ivan TBL 3.18'59" 11"
19. 11 JULICH Bobby CSC 3.18'59" 11"
20. 1 HORNER Chris WEB 3.18'59" 11"
21. 128 STEWART Jackson OFO 3.18'59" 11"
22. 114 ROSENBARGER Jacob JIT 3.18'59" 11"
23. 64 CLINGER David DVE 3.18'59" 11"
24. 135 HAMBY Russell SIE 3.18'59" 11"
25. 48 KLUCK Damon USP 3.18'59" 11"
26. 132 WOHLBERG Eric SIE 3.18'59" 11"
27. 93 WHERRY Chris HNC 3.18'59" 11"
28. 41 ARMSTRONG Lance USP 3.18'59" 11"

And of course, Lance is getting all of the local press coverage.

Cipollini took the sprint win for stage 2.
Good to know he is riding well (I was thinking he would be a stink after what happened on stage 1)

*wonders how well he will do in the Giro*

Tomorrow is that double stage, I think. A road stage followed by a long, tough time trial.

My man LANCE took the sprint win for stage 3 over Dominguez!

My man LANCE took the sprint win for stage 3 over Dominguez!

That was a suprise.
I didn't even think he would go for it, even if he had the chance to.

Sorry to bring up an Ullrich vs Armstrong comparison... but... Armstrong has shown form, and we will see the extent of it later today in stage 4. Ullrich pulled out of la Fleche, and declared that he won't start LBL this weekend.

I liked what Cipollini said after his stage win yesturday:

"In Europe there are the same races every year," Cipollini said. "The Tour of Romandie, the Tour of Aragona. I wanted a change and after I heard Armstrong was racing here, I wanted to race here. I've been very impressed by the courtesy of the people and also the countryside landscape. Today we went through a park that was beautiful and I've probably only seen something like that in the movies. I've also been very impressed by the number of kids cheering on the side of the road, cheering the cyclists. It's a very good experience for them, and good for a sport like cycling here in the United States, something that is actually growing. Probably among those kids is a potential champion for the future. I'm sorry I haven't discovered this sport in America sooner."

Yeah, that's a great quote from Cipo. I was so happy when he won yesterday.

Yesterday a journalist asked Dominquez if he was worried about Lance at the finish. Ivan said "he didn't really care" basically saying Lance was a non factor in a bunch sprint on a single stage in a week long race. Whooops.......!

Dominguez may have lost the battle for the sprint, but he has won a personal war for the Peach Jersey, the leaders jersey. He also is the leader in the Points competition. A very strong performance by Dominguez so far.

Dominguez may have lost the battle for the sprint, but he has won a personal war for the Peach Jersey, the leaders jersey.

He lost the battle for the stage win, and there are 4 stages to go for the war on the points and GC. He hasn't won the war yet ;)

Great performance by him so far though

Damn. Wish I were there to see it for myself. :(

Next year....

Koffee

I liked what Cipollini said after his stage win yesturday:

"In Europe there are the same races every year," Cipollini said. "The Tour of Romandie, the Tour of Aragona. I wanted a change and after I heard Armstrong was racing here, I wanted to race here. I've been very impressed by the courtesy of the people and also the countryside landscape. Today we went through a park that was beautiful and I've probably only seen something like that in the movies..."

I'll bet Cipo was referring to Callaway Gardens (http://www.callawaygardens.com/) near Pine Mountain. Many of the teams stayed there last night and the racers passed through there as part of the course.

The crowd ate him up after the stage win in Columbus.

Cipo had some very good things to say about Dominguez's speed. He said Dominguez has awesome speed and might have a future in Europe.

He lost the battle for the stage win, and there are 4 stages to go for the war on the points and GC. He hasn't won the war yet ;)

Great performance by him so far though

Anytime you start a stage with the leaders jersey, you get to take it home. He now has one that he can frame for his trophy room.

Provisional standings
1 Lance Armstrong 39:48
2 Jens Voigt (CSC) 40.13
3 Chris Horner (Webcor) 40.36
4 Bobby Julich (CSC) 40.55
5 Brian Vandborg (CSC) 41.15
6 Viatcheslav Ekimov (USPS) 41.16
7 Jason McCartney (Health Net) 41.19
8 Chris Baldwin (Navigators) 41.22


Provisional, but the race is just about over and I don't see Ivan Dominguez upsetting any of those guys, especially the top three.

Looks like Lance will be wearing the peach jersey tomorrow.

Have to say I was routing for Julich to uncork a big ride, but it looks like Lance is strong. Still, Julich is only seconds out of third, so Go Julich!

Looks like Chris Horner is continuing to ride well. I gotta root for the local boys --- Go Webcor! Eric Wohlberg rides around here, so he's got my support, too.

And the time trial.

Stage Four: Rome Time Trial, 4.22.04

Lance Armstrong (US Postal Service) cycled strong to win the Stage Four time trial at the Dodge Tour de Georgia. Armstrong set an unbeatable pace, covering the 18.6-mile (29.9 km) time trial course in 39:51. Jens Voigt (CSC) finished second and defending Dodge Tour de Georgia champion, Chris Horner (Webcor) finished third. With his second straight stage win, Armstrong earns the yellow leader’s jersey. For more details on the 2004 Dodge Tour de Georgia race, please visit VeloNews.com.

Stage Four: Individual Results View Full Results
Position Number Rider Team Time Gap
1. 41 ARMSTRONG Lance USP 39'51"780
2. 14 VOIGT Jens CSC 40'13"070 22"
3. 1 HORNER Chris WEB 40'36"740 45"
4. 11 JULICH Bobby CSC 40'51"190 1'00"
5. 16 VANDBORG Brian CSC 41'15"500 1'24"
6. 43 EKIMOV Viatcheslav USP 41'16"600 1'25"
7. 98 MCCARTNEY Jason HNC 41'18"930 1'27"
8. 71 BALDWIN Christopher NIC 41'22"790 1'31"
9. 132 WOHLBERG Eric SIE 41'24"600 1'33"
10. 42 HINCAPIE George USP 41'34"900 1'43"

You probably won't see this in the news,

Tour De Georgia Cyclist Hit By Car In Rome.

http://www.onlinebartow.com/

Scroll down to the 5th article.
I hope he's OK.

Cycling news and Velonews both carried stories about Craig Lewis getting
hit by car.
I am very impressed with Julich's performances here and back in Europe. I'm
hoping this could be the year that we see him return to form. . .(or continue his
form).
Marty

I gotta root for the local boys --- Go Webcor!

Do you know if Webcor's Benjamin Haldeman is any relation to Lon, the Ultra Marathon rider?

Don,

I don't think so. Maybe the next time I get a chance to talk to one of the guys on the team I'll remember to ask.

You probably won't see this in the news,

Tour De Georgia Cyclist Hit By Car In Rome.

http://www.onlinebartow.com/

Scroll down to the 5th article.
I hope he's OK.


That is absolutely terrible! And of course, it HAD to be an SUV in the USA that hit him.... how the heck was this car allowed to drive even close to the race to begin with? And what happened with the driver? Definitely, this is negligent driving of some sort and I hope he was at least jailed.

If anyone has an update on the cyclist, let us know.

Koffee

Koffee,

The police are investigating how this guy (older) got onto the closed course.
The rider is doing alright, couple of busted ribs and concussion. The driver has
been charged (failure to yield?).

Marty

Thanks for the heads up. Let's hope they can prevent any more snafus from happening for the riders. I would love to see more of the big names out here next year racing.

Koffee

This happens in races all over the world with vehicles of all types. I don't really see the relevence of what type of vehicle it was or his age.

It may have been an unfortunate security lapse that allowed someone onto the course who was intent on going where he normally goes day in day out and couldn't adapt to the inconvenience he was facing. It's very possible race security was powerless to prevent it. He may have known alleys and routes to where he wanted to go that security was unable to plan for.

The failure to yield charge does seem to indicate that either someone in authority tried to keep him off the course and he ignored them, or he ignored some kind of signage.

I feel for the rider and for Jonathon Vaughters in his first year as a DS. He didn't need this, but s**t happens.

Watched the race on Fort Mtn,Woody Gap Friday. Was near the top of Brasstown Saturday. Lance was the crowd fave BUT Cippo got an even bigger applause. As he approached one of the last big inclines he said, Push, Push, At least 20 people pushed him. And before any outlaw remarks. Approx 20 other riders received a "little" help. It was freakin' awesome. The pace car with Sheryl Crow actually stopped right in front of me with her hanging out the window and I didn't notice until I was reviewing the pics on the computer that evening!

Why didn't Cippo just abandon like usual?

LA likes the Ga. mountains

Stage Seven: Dawsonville to Alpharetta, 4.25.04

Gordon Fraser (Health Net) sprinted to the finish line to capture the Stage Seven win and the sprint jersey on the final day of the Dodge Tour de Georgia. Fraser inched out Juan Jose Haedo (Colavita) and Mario Cipollini (Domina Vacanze) in an exciting sprinter’s finish. The relatively flat 88.4-mile (142.3 km) Stage Seven race saw legions of fans lining the course to cheer on the riders. Lance Armstrong (US Postal Service) rode to thousands of cheering fans and finished to win the overall leader’s trophy of the 2004 Dodge Tour de Georgia. The CSC team beat out the US Postal Service to emerge as the 2004 Dodge Tour de Georgia team champions.

Stage Seven: Individual Results View Full Results
Position Number Rider Team Time Gap
1. 91 FRASER Gordon HNC 3.20'15"
2. 86 HAEDO Juan Jose COB 3.20'15"
3. 61 CIPOLLINI Mario DVE 3.20'15"
4. 53 DEGANO Enrico TBL 3.20'15"
5. 83 DOMINGUEZ Ivan COB 3.20'15"
6. 25 METLUSHENKO Yuri LAN 3.20'15"
7. 1 HORNER Chris WEB 3.20'15"
8. 104 ALBERS Kirk JEL 3.20'15"
9. 103 BROOKS Benjamin JEL 3.20'15"
10. 135 HAMBY Russell SIE 3.20'15"


Stage Seven: Team Results View Full Results
Position Team Time Gap
1. TEAM CSC 77.05'17"
2. US POSTAL SERVICE PRESENTED BY BERRY FLOOR 77.06'56" 1'39"
3. HEALTH NET PRO CYCLING TEAM PRESENTED BY MAXXIS 77.10'59" 5'42"
4. WEBCOR CYCLING TEAM 77.14'44" 9'27"
5. JELLY BELLY-ARAMARK 77.17'25" 12'08"
6. NAVIGATORS INSURANCE CYCLING TEAM 77.27'33" 22'16"
7. OFOTO CYCLING TEAM 77.31'57" 26'40"
8. SIERRA NEVADA CYCLING 77.32'52" 27'35"
9. DOMINA VACANZE 77.33'24" 28'07"
10. TEAM BARLOWORLD - ANDRONI GIOCATTOLI 77.35'14" 29'57"

Stage Seven: Overall Results View Full Results
Position Number Rider Team Time Gap
1. 41 ARMSTRONG Lance USP 25.39'20"
2. 14 VOIGT Jens CSC 25.39'44" 24"
3. 1 HORNER Chris WEB 25.40'21" 1'01"
4. 11 JULICH Bobby CSC 25.41'17" 1'57"
5. 43 EKIMOV Viatcheslav USP 25.42'19" 2'59"
6. 111 GRAJALES CALLE Cesar JIT 25.42'27" 3'07"
7. 94 MONINGER Scott HNC 25.43'04" 3'44"
8. 65 MARINANGELI Sergio DVE 25.43'26" 4'06"
9. 16 VANDBORG Brian CSC 25.44'12" 4'52"
10. 132 WOHLBERG Eric SIE 25.44'45" 5'25"

Watched the race on Fort Mtn,Woody Gap Friday. Was near the top of Brasstown Saturday. Lance was the crowd fave BUT Cippo got an even bigger applause. As he approached one of the last big inclines he said, Push, Push, At least 20 people pushed him. And before any outlaw remarks. Approx 20 other riders received a "little" help. It was freakin' awesome. The pace car with Sheryl Crow actually stopped right in front of me with her hanging out the window and I didn't notice until I was reviewing the pics on the computer that evening!

In Dahlonega my cycling buddy got Cipo's autograph on his helmet. So now he's off to buy a new helmet and have his old one mounted in a glass case. I'm too lazy to stand in line amongst all the children and throngs of fans, but it is pretty cool having Cipo's sig. He tried to get Lance's but he couldn't get close enough, too many people, Lance didn't even look up, he just kept signing.

Congrats to Horner for finishing on the podium. Beating Julich is a victory in itself.