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From: Doug Hormann [mailto:djhormann@verizon.net]
Sent: Friday, September 28, 2007 8:50 AM
To: 'Erik Long'
Subject: RE: [OBRA Chat] Tour of America
Regarding spectator friendly venues. Try southern Missouri! Before you
laugh, I've been talking with Chris Reed and Gary Metcalf of Medalist
Sports, the race organizers for the Tour of Georgia, Tour of California and
now the Tour of Missouri (they also put on the Livestrong Challenge series).
Gary was dumbfounded at how the local rural mid-west crowd turned out to
cheer on the riders as they went through parts of Missouri that would
probably look familiar in a Field of Dreams (or Deliverance) sort of way.
People building haystack bikes, sitting on top of their tractors for a
better view. Schools busing in their students to watch. Whole towns lining
the streets as the peloton passed through. The Governor of Missouri was at
the event each day. Sounds like the local flavor of another big tour.
So don't put down a grand tour of America just yet. Yeah, I also laughed at
the 200 plus mile stages (multiple), and the promoters seem to know more
about marketing then they do about bike racing, but the idea of a national
tour seems to be gaining some traction in certain circles.
From: obra-bounces@list.obra.org [mailto:obra-bounces@list.obra.org] On
Behalf Of Erik Long
Sent: Thursday, September 27, 2007 11:03 AM
To: rcjohnson1@attglobal.net; Ken Finch
Cc: obra@list.obra.org
Subject: Re: [OBRA Chat] Tour of America
I've been THROUGH Tonopah. It's about the size of Shaniko, plus a movie
theater.
Let's all just agree that that the Tour of America is not going to happen.
At least, not in the format that it's been presented in so far. I mean,
come on, there's a handful of stages in there that are longer than friggin'
Amstel. What a joke. That's right up there with 178 meter velodromes.
Pro-level racing here in the states would benefit more from
spectator-friendly venues, TV coverage, and a little more hype for our older
events. Paris-Roubaix and Liege-Bastogne-Liege didn't become what they are
as result of a corporate brainchild and a five-year run. Races like those
are a long-standing tradition. We need to get our current classics some
recognition and leave the grand tours where they're appreciated.
> Date: Thu, 27 Sep 2007 08:44:11 -0700
> From: RCJohnson1@attglobal.net
> To: kj_finch@yahoo.com
> CC: obra@list.obra.org
> Subject: Re: [OBRA Chat] Tour of America
>
> The more I think about their whole proposed schedule the more I'm
> convinced this is either:
> a) a clever publicity stunt
> or
> b) some people who are completely out to lunch
>
> I mean come on, a stage finish in Tonopah, Nevada? Who's actually been
> to Tonopah? I don't know about you but that's far from the top of my
> list as a bicycling destination of any kind - let alone a race.
>
> Rick
>
> Ken Finch wrote:
>
> >At a time when professional racers are already complaining about the
demands of three week tours and those demands being cited as a major cause
of doping, I'm not really sure if a 4 week, 3000 mile tour is the direction
professional cycling needs to be moving in.
> >
> >Not to mention all the other obstacles that exist to pulling this off.
> >
> >Ken F.
> >_______________________________________________
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> >obra@list.obra.org
> >http://list.obra.org/mailman/listinfo/obra
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> >
> >
> >
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