Officials of the Amgen Tour of California Announce Big Bear Lake as a Host City

BIG BEAR LAKE, Calif./ November 3, 2011– Today AEG, the official race presenter of the Amgen Tour of California, announced its 13 Host Cities for the 2012 Amgen Tour of California professional road cycling race. The seventh annual event will cover more than 750 miles in eight days from May 13-20, 2012. Big Bear Lake has been selected as the race’s Stage 6 Finish on Friday, May 18. The City of Palmdale will serve as the Host City and start location for Stage 6, which ultimately finishes with a demanding climb to Big Bear.

“While the detailed route of the race, including for Stage 6 from Palmdale to Big Bear, is not yet final, we can say that it will be one of our most challenging courses to date,” said AEG Sports Executive Director Kristin Bachochin.

This is the second time in three years Big Bear Lake has been selected as a Host City, which reaffirms the mountain resort as a world-class road cycling destination. Officials of Big Bear Lake are excited with the opportunity to present Big Bear’s mountainous terrain and natural assets to recreational outdoor enthusiasts throughout the world. The visibility includes 27 hours of total race coverage on VERSUS, broadcast exposure in 216 countries and territories worldwide. Last year there were 1.1 million visitors to the official tour website, more than 30,000 social media fans and more than 340,000 visitors to the online tour tracker.

“Big Bear is honored to serve as a finish city for the 2012 Amgen Tour of California,” said City of Big Bear Lake Mayor Bill Jahn. “In 2010, we served as the first-ever mountaintop finish for the race, and it definitely put Big Bear on the international map for road cycling.”

The Amgen Tour of California is considered cycling’s most important and successful stage race in the United States. It is the largest annual spectator sporting event in California and largest cycling event in North America with more than 2 million spectators. The prestigious road cycling race features elite professional teams and athletes from around the world. Listed on the international professional cycling calendar (2. HC ranking), the Amgen Tour of California awards important, world-ranking points to the top finishers.

Next year will mark the seventh straight year Amgen Tour of California has brought the drama and excitement of professional cycling to California. The 2012 Amgen Tour of California will travel along a more than 750-mile course in eight days. The 13 host cities for the eight stages include: Santa Rosa, San Francisco, Santa Cruz, San Jose, Livermore, Sonora (new city for 2012), Clovis, Bakersfield, Palmdale, Big Bear Lake, Ontario (new city for 2012) and Mount Baldy and Los Angeles.

For more information about the 2012 Amgen Tour of California, please visit www.amgentourofcalifornia.com. For more information pertaining to the Stage 6 finish, also known as “The Big Bear Climb” visit www.bigbear.com.

About the Amgen Tour of California

The largest cycling event in America, the 2012 Amgen Tour of California is a Tour de France-style road cycling race, presented by AEG, that challenges the world’s top professional cycling teams to compete along a demanding course from May 13-20.

About 2012 Stage 6 Finish Partnership:

Stage 6 of the Amgen Tour of California is being funded by a partnership of the City of Big Bear Lake, The Big Bear Lake Resort Association, The Big Bear Chamber of Commerce and San Bernardino County.

Contact:

Dan McKernan
Director of Marketing & Public Relations
Big Bear Lake Resort Association
Phone: 909-866-6190 Ext. 235
Cellular: 951-283-9442
Fax:      909-866-5671
Email:    dmckernan@bigbear.com
Website:            www.bigbear.com

“We have been treated to one of the best cycling stages we’ve seen in America, ever.”

Here are the official results for Stage 6 of the 2010 Amgen Tour of California, on May 21, from Palmdale to Big Bear Lake:

Amgen 2010 Volunteer Handbook

Want to see some of what happens behind the scenes? We’ve loaded the Amgen 2010 Volunteer Handbook to this blog. Please follow this link to download:

http://www.thebigbearclimb.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/amgenvolunteerhandbook.pdf

This is a short video of the volunteer meeting at Best Western.
The sound quality isn’t the best, the treble in the sound system was off.

Amgen Tour of California

STAGE 6 OF 2010 AMGEN TOUR OF CALIFORNIA IS SET FOR A DEFINING DAY OF RACING

Stage 6 Route from Palmdale to Big Bear Lake is the Most Challenging Stage

BIG BEAR LAKE, Calif. April 14, 2010 – Today officials of the Amgen Tour of California announced the Stage 6 route from Palmdale to Big Bear Lake. On Friday, May 21 the world’s top professional cyclists including Lance Armstrong, Levi Leipheimer, Dave Zabriskie and George Hincapie will battle it out on the Tour’s most challenging route known as the queen stage. The route from Palmdale to Big Bear Lake consists of 135 miles and more than 12,000 feet of climbing. The grueling queen stage is specifically designed to challenge cyclists, and should have a significant impact on the overall standings of the Amgen Tour of California (ATOC).

“The May timing of the 2010 edition of the AMGEN Tour of California is going to allow us to visit some challenging new areas of California that previously were not possible due to the weather,” said Andrew Messick president of AEG Sports, presenter of the race. “The Stage 6 route from Palmdale to Big Bear is the perfect example, with our first-ever mountain finish at a 7,000 foot elevation.”

Palmdale City Hall will serve as the backdrop for the most difficult stage in the five-year history of the Amgen Tour of California. After a five-mile neutral section heading south on Sierra Rd., the route makes a left turn onto Angeles Forest Highway. Facing the riders is the imposing San Gabriel mountain range, and within a few miles the first of seven King of the Mountains (KOMs) will be crested.  After a blistering descent from Mill Creek Summit, the route turns to Upper Big Tujunga and then onto Angeles Crest Highway (Hwy. 2).

The cyclists will encounter a number of climbs, including five KOMs, along Angeles Forest Highway and Hwy. 2 as they strive to reach Dawson Saddle, the highest point of the entire tour at 7,900 feet. From Dawson Saddle the racers will have their first sprint to Wrightwood at an elevation of 5,960 feet.

The peloton of riders will cross Interstate 15 on an overpass, and make their push east onto a curvy Highway 138 to Silverwood Lake. In the distance the cyclists will see mountain vistas that surround Big Bear Lake, which looks quite intimidating from afar. From Silverwood Lake a steep and windy climb into the San Bernardino Mountains begins on their way to Crestline

The race then moves onto Highway 18, which is known as the Rim of the World Highway, because of its narrow stretch of road that sets on the edge of the San Bernardino Mountains. This portion of the race goes through the mountain communities of Sky Forest, Running Springs and Arrowbear.

Just outside of Arrowbear the racers will encounter the last long sustained climb of the day. The riders will have a steep climb all the way to Lakeview Point, which tops out at 7,112 feet. At this point the cyclists will be treated to a stunning view of Big Bear Lake, the jewel of the San Bernardino Mountains.

From Lakeview Point the racers will sprint along a portion of Highway 18, known as the Arctic Circle. The racers will kick it into high gear as they give it their all on this final sprint to Big Bear Lake. The race route enters Big Bear Valley at Big Bear Dam, but rather than crossing the dam and heading through the City of Big Bear Lake, the riders will continue on the north shore of the lake and race along the shoreline for about three miles. The cyclists will ride through the quaint mountain town of Fawnskin and pass by some of Big Bear’s most recognizable locales, such as the Big Bear Discovery Center, Serrano Campground and the East Boat Public Launch Ramp. The cyclists will cross over Stanfield Cutoff to the City of Big Bear Lake and make a mad dash for the finish line at the base of Snow Summit Mountain Resort at an elevation of 7,000 feet.

The race starts in Palmdale at 9:30 a.m., and is expected to end in Big Bear Lake sometime between 3:20 p.m. and 4 p.m. By the end of stage the race the riders will have climbed more than 12,000 feet. The Amgen Tour of California’s first-ever mountaintop finish in Big Bear Lake could very well be a determining factor in the outcome of the final standings.

Basic Log_FINAL

About the Amgen Tour of California

The largest cycling event in America, the 2010 Amgen Tour of California is a Tour de France-style cycling road race, presented by AEG, that challenges the world’s top professional cycling teams to compete along a demanding course from May 16-23.