Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: WEDNESDAY, April 26, 1995                   TAG: 9504270009
SECTION: TOUR DUPONT                    PAGE: TD-15   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: 
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

TOUR TERMS

The Tour DuPont is a 12-day stage race that incorporates three types of cycling: the prologue, the road race and the time trial. A stage race can be as short as a weekend or as long as three weeks. Each stage is one race, and there usually is one stage each day. The Tour DuPont has 11 stages, plus the prologue. Who wins? The cyclist with the least accumulated time through all stages.

PROLOGUE

The first competition of a stage race. It is not considered a day of racing under sanctioning rules, but is figured into the racer's overall time. The prologue is a very short time trial (usually less than five kilometers or 3.1 miles) that determines which rider will wear the leader's yellow jersey during the first stage. Generally, this race notifies the field who is in the best shape and also is said to relieve a rider's prerace nerves. Who wins? On difficult courses such as the one in Wilmington, Del., site of the past five Tour DuPont prologues, the strongest overall rider usually has the best time.

ROAD RACE

A mass-start event from one point to another. In the Tour DuPont, there are nine road races, including the 141-mile Stage 4 ride from Lynchburg to Blacksburg on April 30. Team members will work together to gain an advantage over other riders, usually designating one person as the leader for the day based on terrain, fitness and competition. The leader's teammates will help in any way possible, from carrying food and water, to letting him rest in their draft, to giving up a wheel or an entire bike if the leader has mechanical problems. Who wins? It depends on the terrain. Strong climbers usually win mountain stages, while sprinters tend to win flat stages.

INDIVIDUAL TIME TRIAL

In the time trial, such as the one May 1 in the Roanoke Valley, each rider races alone against the clock for the fastest time. Known as the ``race of truth,'' the time trial begins with each cyclist leaving a designated start line at an interval and receiving no help from teammates. It is where the most time in a stage race is won or lost. The other time trial in the Tour DuPont is the 11th and final stage, from Burlington, N.C., to Greensboro, N.C. (30 miles). Who wins? Cyclists with a blend of speed and endurance and those who are psychologically strong.