Site search
sponsored by
Home
News
VAIL, Colorado — All the pieces are coming together for Colorado Stage International Cycle Classic.
In January, the Vail Valley Foundation announced it had secured a big-time bike race. By May, the organizers had the courses set.
Now, more than half of the 15-team field has been confirmed. The Vail Valley Foundation recently announced that eight teams have accepted invitations to the three-stage race that will be based in the Vail Valley from Aug. 22-24.
One of the squads that will be racing is Team High Road, a Pro Tour Team with top racers George Hincapie and Mark Cavendish. Michael Imhof, the vice president of operations and sales for the Vail Valley Foundation, said that they are looking to sign three more Pro Tour teams. There are currently 18 Pro Tour Teams in the world, with High Road being the only American-based squad.
“So far things are looking good,” said Imhof, who thinks it may be easier to get confirmations now that one Pro Tour team has already signed on. “Some teams may be wondering, ‘What’s the lineup going to be?’ To get a team like High Road on board — it becomes real.”
Along with the four Pro Tour Teams, the rest of the field will be made up of Pro Continental and Continental squads. The two Pro Continental teams who have confirmed are BMC and Slipstream Chipotle. The Continental teams coming are Bissell Pro Cycling, Colavita/Sutter Home, Jittery Joe’s, Tecos and Toyota-United. Slipstream is a Boulder-based team that will be competing in this year’s Tour de France.
Early on in the planning process, the Vail Valley Foundation hired Medalist Sports, a sports marketing company that puts on the Tour de Georgia and Tour of California, to help consult on signing teams and for on-site expertise.
Imhof hopes to have a final list of teams by mid-July to early August. The teams who have confirmed have yet to announce which racers will be competing.
“You look at other long-established races, and it can be 10 days out or two weeks out before they announce,” Imhof said.
The first day of racing will feature a 130-mile road race from Breckenridge to Beaver Creek. On the second day, racers will complete in a circuit event, making 8.5 laps on a course that circles around Vail and West Vail. On the final day, racers will compete in a time trial up Vail Pass.
Sports Writer Ian Cropp can be reached at 970-748-2935 or icropp@vaildaily.com.
In January, the Vail Valley Foundation announced it had secured a big-time bike race. By May, the organizers had the courses set.
Now, more than half of the 15-team field has been confirmed. The Vail Valley Foundation recently announced that eight teams have accepted invitations to the three-stage race that will be based in the Vail Valley from Aug. 22-24.
One of the squads that will be racing is Team High Road, a Pro Tour Team with top racers George Hincapie and Mark Cavendish. Michael Imhof, the vice president of operations and sales for the Vail Valley Foundation, said that they are looking to sign three more Pro Tour teams. There are currently 18 Pro Tour Teams in the world, with High Road being the only American-based squad.
“So far things are looking good,” said Imhof, who thinks it may be easier to get confirmations now that one Pro Tour team has already signed on. “Some teams may be wondering, ‘What’s the lineup going to be?’ To get a team like High Road on board — it becomes real.”
Along with the four Pro Tour Teams, the rest of the field will be made up of Pro Continental and Continental squads. The two Pro Continental teams who have confirmed are BMC and Slipstream Chipotle. The Continental teams coming are Bissell Pro Cycling, Colavita/Sutter Home, Jittery Joe’s, Tecos and Toyota-United. Slipstream is a Boulder-based team that will be competing in this year’s Tour de France.
Early on in the planning process, the Vail Valley Foundation hired Medalist Sports, a sports marketing company that puts on the Tour de Georgia and Tour of California, to help consult on signing teams and for on-site expertise.
Imhof hopes to have a final list of teams by mid-July to early August. The teams who have confirmed have yet to announce which racers will be competing.
“You look at other long-established races, and it can be 10 days out or two weeks out before they announce,” Imhof said.
The first day of racing will feature a 130-mile road race from Breckenridge to Beaver Creek. On the second day, racers will complete in a circuit event, making 8.5 laps on a course that circles around Vail and West Vail. On the final day, racers will compete in a time trial up Vail Pass.
Sports Writer Ian Cropp can be reached at 970-748-2935 or icropp@vaildaily.com.
