He came, he smelled, he conquered. I don’t know a lot about bike racing, but isn’t it possible for a world class cyclist to dial it down a few notches and still win a race? The headline conjures up an image of a bunch of mountain folk on rusty bikes slapped together with mismatched parts struggling up a hill and then Lance hurtling past at 50 mph in full gear. But it sounds like he greatly enjoyed the race and the city, and all went off without a hitch. I’m still not sure how they crammed that many people in such a small race area.
Tag: Cycling
Breaking: Armstrong and teammates to race in Nevada City this weekend UPDATED
The Union (Nevada County), all up in Web 3.0, caught the breaking news from cyclist Lance Armstrong hours ago via Twitter that he and Astana Cycling teammates Levi Leipheimer (winner of the 2009 AMGEN Tour of California) and Chris Horner will be racing at the 49th annual Nevada City Classic bike race on Saturday. Let’s hope NVC gives him a better welcome back than Sac did.
UPDATE: Word on the streets of Nevada City is that the town is “in the running towards becoming” host to the first leg of the 2010 AMGEN Tour. Cool!
Give a little, take a little for NCAC
Tough economic times have led to record declines in charitable giving across the nation, and Sacramento is no exception. Many of us with lighter-than-usual pocketbooks are holding out for good deals; we want to support worthwhile organizations, but the “bonus prizes” can put an event over the top in our decision to attend or not
Which brings us to this event. Two Rivers Cider Company, our local cider-maker with an unmatchable reputation for quality and a trophy case to match, is holding a fundraiser for the Northern California AIDS Challenge this Thursday.
For a $25 donation at the door, you’ll enjoy a selection of great food and drinks, raffles, games and prizes. The Bathtub Gins and DJ Crescendo will provide the entertainment.
For more info on the NCAC, check http://www.norcalaidschallenge.net/
Thursday, March 26th
6-9 pm
4311 Attawa Avenue
“Stay Classy” alert: Lance’s bike stolen
News10’s Ryan Yamamoto reports that cycling legend Lance Armstrong’s one-of-a-kind time trial bike was stolen from his trailer overnight. The trailer was parked behind the new Residence Inn downtown. Yay Sacramento!
This is also a “Stay Classy” alert due to the use of the acronym “WTF” in a news article, quoting Armstrong’s Twitter feed. Yay 21st century newsgathering!
Tower Bridge To Be Changed To “Tower Roadblock” Today
The Tower Bridge is scheduled to be closed to all forms of traffic from 9/17/07 – 11/20/07. This shutdown will allow a widening of the pedestrian and bicycle sidewalks that, according to the Bee, are like skinny calves on a body builder. (Let’s all absorb that for a moment)  Alternatives to crossing the river are the Pioneer Bridge and the I Street Bridge. To stay up-to-date on all things bridge related, click here. Or, if you have questions about the status of the bridge, please call the Tower Bridge Pedestrian and Bikeway Improvements Project information line at (916) 492-6454. I’m quite sure that they’d like to hear from you about your not using the bridge for two months. By the way, this whole issue prompted the following conversation in the office today:
Person 1: Man, they’re closing the bridge for two months? How am I going to get to West Sac?
Person 2: West Sac? Where’s that?
Carmichael Cycle
The Mrs. and I haven’t been riding our bikes much this summer. Ok, to be honest we haven’t ridden our bikes at all this summer. Mainly because they’ve been stuck in the back of the garage since the move and all the tires were flat. So, any thought of a bike ride first started with the concept of attacking a Jenga-like mound of garage detritus, then pumping up the tires (only to find that the tires had leaks, in all probability), and then giving up out of sheer desperation. This was, until last week. With a free weekend day, we attacked the garage, pulled out the dormant velos and piled them onto the car so they could be examined by professionals.
For no other reason than proximity, we schlepped the units over to Carmichael Cycle on the corner of Arden and Fair Oaks Blvd. Contrary to previous raggers’ general cyclery experiences, our transaction at this bike shop was great. The staff was extremely friendly, knowledgeable, and didn’t look down on us at all for not wearing tight shorts with gel inserts. By the time our repair jobs were finished on our three separate bikes the bill came to a only a modest amount. On the way out, the staff helped us load the bikes back onto the car and told us in parting, that we had the “coolest bikes ever.” Sure, he says that to all the people not wearing gel shorts, but it gave us the warm fuzzies anyway.
Carmichael Cycle, 5141 Arden Way, Carmichael- Highly Recommended
I want to ride my bicycle…
I want to ride my bike. Watch out people, I’m all hepped up on Endorphins. Is anyone else riding his or her bike to work these days? I am lucky enough to access to a bike locker and locker room at my work, which is a completely awesome perk that no one else seems to use. I always have the whole place to myself. So, after a totally refreshing and fun commute to work I have a nice little bit of alone time to drink coffee (yes, I have a latte holder on my handlebars) and shower before facing the office. Just wondering how many other SacRaggers out there are commuting with bikes these days. Any odd experiences? And another question, most likely to be answered by RunnerGirl, any ideas of how to get that Queen song out of my head? (… I don’t wanna be a candidate
For Vietnam or Watergate
Cos all I want to do is
Bicycle bicycle bicycle …)
AMGEN Tour of California
For the cycling enthusiasts among(st) you: make sure you’re prepped for the AMGEN Tour of California which is happening February 20th.
The world’s top professional teams will compete over an eight-day, 700-mile race on a route that includes the California redwoods, wine country and the Pacific Coast.
And yes, that includes the Discovery Team. Stage 2 is from Santa Rosa to Sac (that’s 116 miles, and if you could stretch that out over like 3 days I think it would be really fun). They’ve got a nice page about Sacramento, highlighting popular attractions and such:
Since its founding in 1849, Sacramento has grown into a cosmpolitan (sic) state capital while retaining its Gold Rush flavor.
That ’bout sums it up, I’d say…
Time to Get A Cruiser: Garage Sale Tips
I know that title makes little sense but I’ve been absent from SacRag for a while and I guess I’m a bit rusty. Anyhoo (a phrase I hate), I don’t know whether it’s just that I’ve been living in Sacramento for a while now, or the subliminal pressure of past SacRag posts on the subject, or all the talk of “the environment”, but I’m obsessed with getting a bike. And not the kind of bike that would give people any chance of mistaking me with an athlete either. I’m in the market for a super-vain cruiser that can only get me to Burr’s ice cream and back, people. The obsession is so strong that it’s finally motivated me to have that garage sale I’ve been talking about for months. So it’s coming up. The date and location have been intentionally ommited so as to preserve our hallowed SacRag from becoming a craigslist substitute. I’m not plugging my sale here, I’m wondering: Any good tips out there for pulling off a blow-out garage sale, Sacramento style?
GOLD LINE DOWN! But Sac driver saves the day.
This morning I arrived at my stop along the new “Gold Line” (formerly Sunrise line) on the light rail. You know, the one that’s been expanded to go to Folsom. When it runs. Everyone was milling around and there were about 5 times as many commuters as normal. After a few minutes it was clear that a) the train was not coming and b) it had not come for a while, leaving so many extra commuters waiting at my stop. Rumors were flying – that the train had just stopped one stop up, that there was some kind of threat to the train, etc. There was an RT truck parked but no RT worker and no sign posted with information. Finally, just as I was contemplating the bus map to figure out an alternate way to work, a bus driver came up and shouted that the whole line was down both directions and had been for over an hour. She said the stop before ours had at least 100 people waiting, so even when the train started again it would take several passes before we could fit on.
Continue reading “GOLD LINE DOWN! But Sac driver saves the day.”
The Sac Rag 