On the field, the Giants won two of three against the Florida Marlins, while rain played heavily on the IndyCars in New Hampshire, and the Stock Cars at Watkins Glen just south of New York's Finger Lakes.
No torture to speak of during the Giants' games, but blood pressures pegged the meter at the IndyCar race. Race officials restarted the race on a wet track, with all too predictable results for the slick tired cars...a nasty multi-car pile-up messed up the points for several championship contenders before the resultant red flag and black flag ended the day.
To the south, NASCAR's good ol' boys saw fit to postpone their race until Monday. If I think of it, I'll catch the replay this week...if not, no matter...I know who won now...still, Watkins Glen is one of only two road courses the stock cars visit each season...hurry Formula One! I'm havin' withdrawal symptoms over here!
This week I added a new bicycle race to my niche sports pantheon as well: The Tour of Utah wrapped up Sunday. It's a nice race, five stages and a prologue, featuring pretty country and a fairly heavyweight field.
One of Team CorduroyPlanet's fantasy racers returned to race in Utah after his injury abandonment in the Tour de France: Team RadioShack's Janez Brajkovič who finished the ToU 3rd overall. Lots of American stars raced Utah too: Levi Leipheimer, George Hincappie, Christian Vande Velde, and up and coming star, Tejay Van Garderen.
TV coverage was less frontline than you see from France (On the plus side, nobody got run down by a TV vehicle). The penultimate stage made me sit up and pay attention...an eleven lap circuit race in Salt Lake City featured a climb that started right beside my sixth grade school, and ran up past the State Capital. I lived above Capital Hill in the 6th and 7th grade, and I learned to ski while living there. Had I not learned to ski back in Utah, it's clear I wouldn't be writing CorduroyPlanet today.
I couldn't remember the name of my old elementary school, so I searched the 'net...ixquick.com, YahooMaps, Mapquest...Much was learned. I guess my old school was razed some time ago...it was a tired old antique when I attended school there in 1963. It was named after either Washington or Jefferson...good either way...
This afternoon, I was reading some political screeds online when a Tweet by Truckee's local fishwrap caught my eye: @SierraSun_News : Lake Tahoe preparing bis for '12 Amgen Tour of California Then it happened...
Like a short-circuit in some time-worn wiring harness in a too-old snowcat, I had a brainstorm (OK you wags...a brain fart) Suddenly my mind was working at Warp Speed!
My Lincoln Highway obsession melded somehow with bike racing and suddenly it hit me like a bolt of lightening! A 2013 Lincoln Highway Centennial Stage of the AMGEN Tour of California!
I couldn't type fast enough! Halfway through another surge of electricity surged through my over-amped gray matter and I changed the start city and moved the finish for good measure!
"This is a just a little work in progress by a feverishly obsessed bicycle racing fan/ Lincoln Highway history buff.
Here’s my proposal for a Lincoln Highway Centennial Stage of the 2013 AMGEN Tour of California.
Start: Placerville, CA Known variously through history as: Dry Diggins, Old Dry Diggins, and Hangtown.
Route: East along US HWY 50 using as much of the original Pioneer Branch of the Lincoln Highway roads as is practical, over Echo Summit 7,382 ft (2,250 m) into South Lake Tahoe.
At the city of South Lake Tahoe, the route turns north, away from the historic Pioneer Branch and climbs around Lake Tahoe’s scenic Emerald Bay, Lake Tahoe proper, through Tahoe City and along the Truckee River into Truckee, CA where the route turns west and joins the Truckee Branch of the Lincoln Highway, along Donner Lake and up Old HWY 40 to a Mountaintop Finish…
Finish: Atop Donner Summit 7,056 ft (2,151 m) just east of Donner Ski Ranch.
Stats: In round numbers it’s 177km/110 miles with 7400ft/2255M of climbing. It’ll take a little time with my maps and calculator to itemize how much of the route is on actual Lincoln Highway roads…there have been many alignments and “improvements” to the Lincoln Highway since it’s inception in 1913.
There it is, my little hat tip to my current passions…
Who’s with me?"
Enamored with my excellent idea I posted it to my Tumblr blog post haste!Here’s my proposal for a Lincoln Highway Centennial Stage of the 2013 AMGEN Tour of California.
Start: Placerville, CA Known variously through history as: Dry Diggins, Old Dry Diggins, and Hangtown.
Route: East along US HWY 50 using as much of the original Pioneer Branch of the Lincoln Highway roads as is practical, over Echo Summit 7,382 ft (2,250 m) into South Lake Tahoe.
At the city of South Lake Tahoe, the route turns north, away from the historic Pioneer Branch and climbs around Lake Tahoe’s scenic Emerald Bay, Lake Tahoe proper, through Tahoe City and along the Truckee River into Truckee, CA where the route turns west and joins the Truckee Branch of the Lincoln Highway, along Donner Lake and up Old HWY 40 to a Mountaintop Finish…
Finish: Atop Donner Summit 7,056 ft (2,151 m) just east of Donner Ski Ranch.
Stats: In round numbers it’s 177km/110 miles with 7400ft/2255M of climbing. It’ll take a little time with my maps and calculator to itemize how much of the route is on actual Lincoln Highway roads…there have been many alignments and “improvements” to the Lincoln Highway since it’s inception in 1913.
There it is, my little hat tip to my current passions…
Who’s with me?"
In no time, another flash enveloped my now over-softened mind...again to Tumblr:
The 2013 Lincoln Highway Centennial Tour Across America!
A little more work than a single stage...to wit:
I Told You I was Feverish…
My mind continues to race…my idea for a Centennial Stage on the 2013 AMGEN Tour of California to commemorate the Lincoln Highway’s 100th Anniversary is at least doable…
This next one qualifies as a pipe-dream for sure. I don’t think there’s room for an American Two Thirds-Grand Tour on Pro Cycling’s calendar.
Presented without expectations:
The Lincoln Highway Tour Across America
…sure to be shortened to the “Lincoln Tour of America” or just “Lincoln’s Tour” “Tour de Lincoln”?
Twelve Stages: Over two weeks between Le Tour de France and the Vuelta a España.
Some give and take vis a vis the July/August dates to accommodate the Tour of Utah in the States and other pro-cycling races around the globe would be in order…and outside my area of expertise.
Nuts & Bolts: The Lincoln Highway traverses twelve states coast to coast:
New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, Nebraska, Wyoming, Utah, Nevada and California.
Twelve Stages: There’s about one mile of the Lincoln Highway in New York City…tailor-made for the Prologue.
Road races in most of the other states, throw in a Team Time Trial, a Rest Day, an Individual Time Trial, and finish on my AMGEN ToC Mountaintop Finish at California’s Donner Summit, and I think I have a New Grand Tour…well at two weeks not three, I’ll settle for a New Great Tour!
Waddya think?
My mind continues to race…my idea for a Centennial Stage on the 2013 AMGEN Tour of California to commemorate the Lincoln Highway’s 100th Anniversary is at least doable…
This next one qualifies as a pipe-dream for sure. I don’t think there’s room for an American Two Thirds-Grand Tour on Pro Cycling’s calendar.
Presented without expectations:
The Lincoln Highway Tour Across America
…sure to be shortened to the “Lincoln Tour of America” or just “Lincoln’s Tour” “Tour de Lincoln”?
Twelve Stages: Over two weeks between Le Tour de France and the Vuelta a España.
Some give and take vis a vis the July/August dates to accommodate the Tour of Utah in the States and other pro-cycling races around the globe would be in order…and outside my area of expertise.
Nuts & Bolts: The Lincoln Highway traverses twelve states coast to coast:
New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, Nebraska, Wyoming, Utah, Nevada and California.
Twelve Stages: There’s about one mile of the Lincoln Highway in New York City…tailor-made for the Prologue.
Road races in most of the other states, throw in a Team Time Trial, a Rest Day, an Individual Time Trial, and finish on my AMGEN ToC Mountaintop Finish at California’s Donner Summit, and I think I have a New Grand Tour…well at two weeks not three, I’ll settle for a New Great Tour!
Waddya think?
I think you need to "put down the freaking binoculars, dude" post hast.
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