Bad news: No more Tour de Georgia?

since they’ve had this trouble in the past and there;s so much going on in April in Europe.

ToC has had an indirect impact as well.

Lots of chatter about this at this year’s ToG, without anyone ever quite being able to say why.

is going through extremely rough finacial times. DAI is down about 54 points since November. Don’t look for GM or Ford to jump in either…

No, bad idea to move it so that it conflicts with the Ardennes. It’s a perfect early season race. Move it to April, and you’ll see far fewer big names making the trip from Europe. Also, since ASO is involved in promoting it now, they are unlikely to support a move that puts it head-to-head with Liége. As it stands, Tour of Cali is a great lead-in to Paris-Nice and the other early season European races. Move it, and it looses that draw. Not too many big name Europeans will want to travel all the way to the west coast of the US once the season is going on. That’s a whole lotta jet lag right there.

but generally speaking in the south if it isn’t college football, golf or NASCAR, then there’s a huge sucking sound when something is suggested outside the good ole boy circle.

I think it has gained an identity in it’s current spot. Sure it may not get riders in peak form but it gets a great startingfield of riders who wouldn’t think of going to the US any other time of the year. And with a good parcours (as it had this year) we get exciting racing at a time we are all starving for it.

Georgia the last couple of years became a major domestic race, not an international race on the Euro calendar. Missouri is about the same. California in February is an international race. Since most of the money in cycling comes from Europe it’s kinda obvious that Georgia’s urge to be a true HC race were not viable in the long run.

or whatever the hell it’s called this week. Then teams would have to go.

I’ve been to the last three editions of this race. Good course, great venues, great support. The Brasstown Bald climb is tougher than most anything the pros see in Europe. It has fielded great teams and drawn great riders, e.g., Cipollini, Armstrong, Landis, Simoni. The finishing circuits in Atlanta are spectacular, with a great uphill finish. Due to its spot on the calendar, it seems best suited to draw the contenders for the Giro, which is not exactly the crowd that interests local fans. I have a semi-theory about its death blow. Svitsov won the race this year with his climb on Brasstown Bald, hardly somebody that would generate interest in the US. They left out the ITT for the first time this year. If there would have been an ITT, somebody like Leipheimer would have won it and generated much more buzz.

Damnit!

if Lance is back!