The Tour of California is a professional cycling stage race on the UCI America Tour and USA Cycling Professional Tour that debuted on February 19, 2006. The annual eight-day race covers between 650-700 miles (1,045 - 1,126 km) throughout California -- beginning in Nevada City, traveling through the redwoods, wine country and the Pacific Coast, finishing in Escondido. The route for the 2009 race traverses the Central Valley from Merced to Fresno, with an excursion through the Sierra...
more »

The Tour of California is a professional cycling stage race on the UCI America Tour and USA Cycling Professional Tour that debuted on February 19, 2006. The annual eight-day race covers between 650-700 miles (1,045 - 1,126 km) throughout California -- beginning in Nevada City, traveling through the redwoods, wine country and the Pacific Coast, finishing in Escondido. The route for the 2009 race traverses the Central Valley from Merced to Fresno, with an excursion through the Sierra Nevada foothills, before crossing over to the coast. The tour is currently sponsored by Amgen.
With eight to nine of the twenty UCI ProTour teams in attendance, the Tour of California has proven to be one of the largest cycling races in the United States along with the Tour de Georgia since the demise of the Coors Classic in 1988. The race is aired with daily coverage on Versus, much like the Tour de France.
On November 28, 2006, the UCI upgraded the multi-day event from 2.1 (category 1) to 2.HC (French: Hors categorie; English: beyond categorization), which is the highest rating and makes it one of only three 2.HC events in the United States along with the Tour de Georgia and the Tour of Missouri.
In 2010, the Tour of California will move from February to May, the same time of year as the Giro d'Italia.[1] It is considered likely that the number of American participants in the Giro and Italians in the Tour of California will decrease precipitously. Tour of California organizers seek to make the race a preparatory event for the Tour de France, believing that few riders who seek a serious position in the Tour de France ride the Giro. Additionally, the Tour of California is set to become a UCI ProTour event in 2011.
« less