Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, April 16, 1994 TAG: 9404180133
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV-1 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: BY STEPHEN FOSTER STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: BLACKSBURG LENGTH: Medium
The straining grunts of 16 teams of bicyclists as they climb the brutal road to Mountain Lake. The scream of the bikes careening down the mountain. The cheers of the crowds as the leader rides to the finish line of Stage 6 of the Tour DuPont.
With the start of the nation's biggest cycling event less than three weeks away, Tour organizers are picking up the publicity pace. Friday, they were in Blacksburg.
Speaking at a news conference overlooking the Virginia Tech Mall, where the riders will race to the finish, were representatives from Medalist Sports, the race's organizer; Virginia Tech; the Greater Blacksburg Chamber of Commerce; and Holdren's, the title sponsor for the Blacksburg finish.
Surrounding the race - the Lynchburg-to-Blacksburg stage will be run May 10 - will be a festival-like atmosphere. Organizers hope to see fans lining the streets, or perhaps watching "Big Mo," a giant television that will broadcast the final two hours of the race as the riders get close to town.
Also connected to the event will be "Tour de Tech," three days of events leading up to race day that will be highlighted by a science and engineering exposition, a family bicycle rally and rides, a fish-fry and a talk by Davis Phinney, the first American to win a stage of the Tour De France.
"Expose your mind to science and engineering" will be the theme of Tour de Tech, said Craig Rogers, director of Tech's Center for Intelligent Material Systems and Structures, which is sponsoring the event along with Montgomery County Schools.
As for the race itself, the finish will be quite unlike last year's start, said Steve Brunner, vice president of Medalist Sports. Whereas last year's start saw a pack of riders tear around Tech's Drill Field then head out of town in a speeding flurry, a finish will be drawn out.
The stage is the race's longest - 138 miles - and the many climbs near the end will separate the contenders from the rest, he said.
"Only the strongest riders will probably survive," Brunner said.
After Blacksburg, the riders will be transported by car to Wytheville for the seventh stage of the race.
"Blacksburg had a fantastic start last year," said Kitty Grady, local organizing committee leader for Wytheville. "We're going to outdo them."
Replied Beth Ifju, outgoing president for the Greater Blacksburg Chamber of Commerce: "You can just try, honey."
Beyond the organizers, one other expert spoke about what the stage will mean to the riders.
"It's so hard, there might be pretty big gaps between the first and 10th place [racer] ... [that] might be 10 minutes," said Scott Mercier, who'll be racing for the Saturn Cycling Team. Mercier ought to know; he was last year's winner of the King of the Mountains jersey, awarded to the top climber.
"Lots of people will be spit out the back," said Mercier, who planned to ride the course after the news conference. "Hopefully not me."
by CNB