Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, April 15, 1994 TAG: 9404150092
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: By ANDREA KUHN STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Scott Mercier was in Roanoke on a scouting trip Thursday.
Mercier, a member of the Saturn Cycling Team, previewed Stage 5 of next month's Tour DuPont, the nation's premiere cycling event.
His evaluation of the Roanoke Valley stage, the first-ever mountain time trial:
``In a word? ... Brutal.''
Mercier, the top climber in last year's event, spoke at a news conference in Roanoke sponsored by Cycle Roanoke Inc., the race's local organizing committee.
In the afternoon, he biked the route, which starts at the Salem Civic Center and winds up Twelve O'Clock Knob and Mount Chestnut before zipping to a finish at the Roanoke City Market. It sounds worse than it really is, he said.
``In my opinion, it looks harder in the car than it actually was out there riding it,'' said Mercier, a native of Telluride, Colo., who said the stage would be crucial to the overall outcome of the race.
``This is going to be a major shakeout of the race,'' said Mercier, a member of the 1992 U.S. Olympic Time Trial Team who has been competing professionally for only four years.
``It's going to be extremely tough, and most of the teams will establish who their leader will be after the [Roanoke] stage. The winner will be the clear favorite for the race,'' he said.
Mercier, who won the King of the Mountains jersey - awarded to the best climber - in last year's Tour DuPont, said the key to Stage 5 is to conserve energy without going too slowly.
``In a time trial like this, you don't want to blow yourself out at the bottom [of the mountain] and then have no energy left for the steep part of the climb,'' he said. ``It's going to be tough. You might see some people collapse at the finish" from exhaustion.
The race is 1,050 miles long - 40 miles shorter than last year's - and features 21 mountain climbs, compared with 12 last year.
``We think it's the best course we've designed,'' said Steve Brunner, vice president of Medalist Sports, the tour's Richmond-based organizer. ``We tried to balance mileage while connecting the dots on the cities and combining mountain and flat stages.''
The Tour DuPont runs May 4-15 from Wilmington, Del., to Winston-Salem, N.C.
Stage 4 is a 131-mile trek from Richmond to Lynchburg. Stage 6 starts in Lynchburg and finishes 138 miles and four mountain climbs later in Blacksburg.
SIGNATURE SPONSOR: Roanoke City Councilman Mac McCadden, president of Cycle Roanoke Inc., announced that First Union National Bank would be the signature sponsor for the Roanoke Valley time trial.
First Union has teamed up with local bicycle shops to create ``Recycle-A-Cycle,'' a program to help donate bikes to local children from low-income families.
``Area residents are encouraged to donate bikes, and they will be refurbished free of charge by four shops in the area,'' said Lisa Soltis, a marketing representative for First Union.
Residents can take used bicycles through May 15 to Cardinal Bicycle or Peddler Bicycle Shop in Roanoke or to Unicycle or East Coasters Bike Shop in Blacksburg.
TEAMS FINAL: Sixteen teams and a total of 112 cyclists have been selected for the race, according to Brunner.
``We think it is by far the best field we've had,'' Brunner said.
Of the 16 teams, six are national amateur squads, and 10 are professional teams, competing for a top prize of $40,000. The overall purse for the Tour DuPont, the top non-European race in the world, is $200,000.
Among the top names entered this year: defending champion Raul Alcala of Mexico; three-time Tour de France winner Greg LeMond; and Lance Armstrong, the 1992 Tour DuPont winner and reigning world champion.
TOUR DuPONT DAY: Roanoke, Roanoke County and Salem all have proclaimed May 9 as Tour DuPont Day.
The Tour DuPont is making its first Roanoke Valley stop this year after stopping in Lynchburg, Blacksburg and Hot Springs in the past.
``Medalist Sports has great respect for what has happened in the Roanoke Valley,'' Brunner said.
by CNB