Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, May 12, 1994 TAG: 9405120199
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C3 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: New River Valley bureau
DATELINE: WYTHEVILLE LENGTH: Short
Spectators lined both sides of Main Street early in the morning as workers with the Medalist Sports-sponsored event erected block-long metal fences around the staging area. People also watched from windows and rooftops along the route.
After months of gearing up for the day, the town of Wytheville celebrated with sidewalk sales and other activities.
A new store on Main Street chose the day to open for business. Tomchin's Furniture Co., based in West Virginia, now occupies a major downtown building that was vacant for several years since its former occupant, Ball Brothers Furniture Co., moved out.
It was the first time Wytheville hosted a segment of the Tour DuPont, which also went through the Roanoke Valley and Blacksburg this year.
The hundreds of riders pushed off at 11a.m. when Wytheville Mayor Trent Crewe, wearing a Tour DuPont T-shirt instead of his regular suit and tie, fired the starting gun.
The whoosh of pedals and the clicking sounds of changing bicycle gears accompanied the cheers of crowds giving the competitors their send-off.
Two minutes later, cyclists rounded a curve onto Old Stage Road and headed for Rural Retreat, followed by support vehicles.
They went through the middle of Rural Retreat toward the Iron Mountain Hiking Trail and Grayson County, where they would push up Whitetop Mountain, Virginia's second-highest peak.
The rest of the day saw them enter North Carolina, ending up at Beech Mountain in the afternoon. The race ends Sunday.
by CNB