Santa Clarita is making plans to host the finish for the fifth stage of the 10th annual Amgen Tour of California, officials said Friday.

Santa Clarita is making plans to host the finish for the fifth stage of the 10th annual Amgen Tour of California, officials said Friday.

The international cycling event begins May 10, and the Santa Clarita portion starts Thursday, May 14, with the stage beginning in Santa Barbara and winding up on Magic Mountain Parkway.

“The Amgen Tour of California will be one of the biggest events in our city – and our state – this year,” said Mayor Marsha McLean. “The world will be watching, and it’s a tremendous responsibility and privilege that Santa Clarita will have the opportunity to play a part in such a storied sporting event.”

The fifth stage covers 98 miles of the eight-stage, 800-mile route.

“Following a ‘white-knuckle’ descent of Grimes Canyon, the route heads through the orange groves near the small town of Piru, and the race starts its 13-mile eastward push on Highway 126 toward Santa Clarita,” according to a news statement by Amgen officials. “A prevailing tailwind should help keep the race together and treat the crowd in Santa Clarita to another massive field sprint on perfect wide roads.”

The race wraps up in Los Angeles on Sunday, May 17 with a 60-mile leg from L.A. Live to the Rose Bowl in Pasadena.

Santa Clarita officials also are seeking volunteers to help out with the event.

As the race enters its tenth edition, tens of thousands of Californians have had the distinction of serving as Amgen Tour of California volunteers, many of whom return year after year and even plan vacations around traveling with the race entourage, officials said.

“Because of the epic scale of a sporting event of this caliber, we rely on our volunteers across the state as the heart and soul of race operations,” said Kristin Bachochin Klein, executive director of the race and senior vice president of AEG Sports. “It’s rewarding to see how passionate people of all ages and walks of life have become about the race through the past decade, whether veteran volunteers or new to the race experience.”

 Volunteers must be over the age of 18 or accompanied by an adult. For further information about volunteer opportunities in Santa Clarita please contact Tess Simgen, Volunteer Program Supervisor with the City of Santa Clarita at (661) 250-3708 orvolunteers@santa-clarita.com.

Schedule and route for the 2015 Amgen Tour of California:

Men’s Race

• Stage 1: Sunday, May 10 – Sacramento
• Stage 2: Monday, May 11 – Nevada City to Lodi
• Stage 3: Tuesday, May 12 – San Jose
• Stage 4: Wednesday, May 13 – Pismo Beach to Avila Beach
• Stage 5: Thursday, May 14 – Santa Barbara to Santa Clarita
• Stage 6: Friday, May 15 – Big Bear Lake (Individual Time Trial)
• Stage 7: Saturday, May 16 – Ontario to Mt. Baldy
• Stage 8: Sunday, May 17 – L.A. LIVE (Downtown Los Angeles) to Pasadena

Women’s Race

• Stage 1: Friday, May 8 – South Lake Tahoe
• Stage 2: Saturday, May 9 – South Lake Tahoe
• Stage 3: Sunday, May 10 – Sacramento
• Invitational Time Trial: Friday, May 15 – Big Bear Lake

 For further information about the Amgen Tour of California, click here.

About the Amgen Tour of California

The Amgen Tour of California is a Tour de France-style cycling road race created and presented by AEG that challenges the world’s top professional cycling teams to compete along a demanding course that traverses hundreds of miles of California’s iconic highways, byways and coastlines each spring. The teams chosen to participate have included Olympic medalists, Tour de France contenders and World Champions. Amgen Tour of California is listed on the international professional cycling calendar (2 HC, meaning “beyond category”), awarding important, world-ranking points to the top finishers. More information is available atwww.amgentourofcalifornia.com.

This year, the men’s nearly 700-mile course will wind through 13 host cities, including Sacramento, Nevada City, Lodi, San Jose, Pismo Beach, Avila Beach, Santa Barbara, Santa Clarita, Big Bear Lake, Ontario, Mt. Baldy, L.A. LIVE (Downtown Los Angeles) and Pasadena. The women’s race will travel through South Lake Tahoe, Sacramento and Big Bear Lake.