The Amgen Tour of California bicycle race is gearing up, and Santa Clarita residents will have a front row view.

On Monday, May 13, The City of Santa Clarita and Local Organizing Committee for the Amgen Tour of California will be hosting a free viewing party at Salt Creek Grille in Town Center, Valencia. The viewing party will start at 7:30 p.m. with race coverage beginning at 8:00 p.m. Then on May 14 and 15 the race comes to our streets as the world’s top cyclists peddle a course that stretches from Escondido to Santa Rosa.

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“This (Monday night) viewing party will be a nice event for cycling fans to watch the beginning of the race as the tour makes its way up to Santa Clarita,” said Mayor Bob Kellar. “The party will feature a nightly recap along with other exciting, race related news, and this really is a great way for community members to experience the Tour before arriving in our City.”

Salt Creek Grille will be broadcasting the NBC Sports Network nightly recap of the race with food and drinks available for purchase. Santa Clarita’s Local Organizing Committee for the race will be raffling off great prizes, including signed rider jerseys, limited-edition Santa Clarita Trail Packs and more.

Scheduled over eight consecutive days from May 12-19, 2013, the race will visit 13 host cities for official stage starts and finishes, with communities along the route getting the chance to see firsthand a lineup of some of the top cyclists in the world.   

Santa Clarita will host the Finish of Stage 3, one of the longest lengths of the race at 111.8 miles, on Tuesday, May 14, 2013, with the race starting from Marie Kerr Park in Palmdale and ending on Magic Mountain Parkway.  The stage will feature a 22-mile climb up Lake Hughes Road and follow the route of the famous Furnace Creek 508, the ultra-endurance race through Santa Clarita.  The peloton will likely break apart on the massive climb, but an 18 mile descent to the finish will give riders a chance to regroup and mount a large field sprint toward the finish line.

On Wednesday, May 15, 2013, the City will kick off Stage 4, starting on Town Center Drive in Santa Clarita and travel north to the finish location on Cabrillo Boulevard in Santa Barbara.  Veteran Amgen Tour of California racers will recognize this stage from past races, but they will be riding in reverse.  After the desert terrain of Stage 3, riders will welcome ocean breezes as they descend to the finish in Coastal Santa Barbara.  

Then on May 16, Santa Clarita residents will take to the streets themselves for the 10th Annual Santa Clarita Bike to Work Day Challenge. 

“The annual Bike to Work Day event is a great way to reduce traffic, get physical activity in before the workday, save money on gas and improve air quality in Santa Clarita,” commented Mayor Kellar. “This annual competition not only helps build employee morale for local employers but also shows community members how easy it is to commute to work or around town using the City’s trails and bike paths.”

Spectators can expect fun activities for the whole family leading up to the race including tricycle races, autograph signings with many of the world’s top cyclists and the exciting start of the race itself. The start ceremonies will begin at 10:00a.m. with the crack of the starter’s pistol sounding at noon.

For more information on the viewing party or the Amgen Tour of California, contact Evan Thomason at (661) 286-4167 or visit Santa-Clarita.com/TourOfCA.

Do you have a news tip? Call us at (661) 298-1220, or drop us a line at community@hometownstation.com.

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