ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Wednesday, May 1, 1996 TAG: 9605010004
SECTION: TOUR DUPONT PAGE: 13 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: RALPH BERRIER JR. STAFF WRITER
SALT POND MOUNTAIN has made quite an impression on the world-class riders who know they must conquer it if they are to win the Tour DuPont .
A mythical figure of American cycling resides in the New River Valley.
A prominent resident of Giles County, this figure has gained a reputation of invulnerability among cyclists throughout the world and once again will be a factor in the Tour DuPont.
A world-class rider? Living in the New River Valley? Did Lance Armstrong or Greg LeMond suddenly pull up stakes and settle in Newport?
Not exactly. This storied New River Valley cycling phenomenon is a mountain, not a man.
Salt Pond Mountain rises 4,361 feet into the Giles County sky, where its tree-lined ridges shroud a mountain resort that has been showcased to the world on the TV screen. In fact, the riders in the Tour DuPont know the mountain by the resort's name - Mountain Lake, where, even though its summit pokes a hole in clouds some 600 miles from the Tour's Marietta, Ga., finish line, this race will be won or lost.
Stage 6 - a meandering, jagged 134 1/2-mile course that winds through the mountains and hills between Salem and Blacksburg in a pattern that resembles a nightcrawler dangling from a fish hook - features six categorized climbs, including the one simply called ``Mountain Lake.''
``Mountain Lake is becoming a legend in cycling,'' said Mike Matzuk, chairman of Blacksburg's organizing committee.
So much so that riders preparing to compete in the Tour DuPont will journey to the New River Valley a few days before the race to climb its steep face. European teams have driven from as far away as Atlanta to scale the summit of Salt Pond Mountain.
The past two years, the guy wearing the yellow jersey on the Virginia Tech Mall at the end of the Blacksburg stage went on to win the race. Last year, Lance Armstrong took the lead with his assault up Salt Pond Mountain toward Mountain Lake and never let up in winning the Tour. Two years ago, Viatcheslav Ekimov did the same thing.
This year, there is no mountain time trial in the Roanoke Valley following the mountainous Blacksburg leg of the race. Still, Stage 6 will be a ``race-maker or a race-breaker,'' Matzuk said.
``Mountain Lake into Blacksburg is one [important stage of the race], Beech Mountain [in Stage 8] is another,'' said Armstrong, who needs to run a strong Stage 6 if he wants to repeat his Tour championship. ``To me, this is where this race will be won or lost. With the Roanoke time trial out, this stage is more significant.''
The Blacksburg stage is significantly different from years past, when it began in Lynchburg and traversed the countryside through Alleghany and Craig counties before crossing the Giles County line.
This year's stage begins in Salem, a mere 40 miles from Blacksburg. The route heads north on U.S. 311 across Catawba Mountain and Potts Mountain (two Category 3 climbs) before taking a southwest jag that tops four categorized ascents in the final 66 miles.
``This stage is like a pure European stage the way we have so many mountains without any gaps,'' said Jim Birrell, the course's designer. ``There's not much time for relaxing. Mountain Lake is poised to be the separation point'' between the leader and the rest of the pack.
Even though the final 25 miles follow the same route as past years along Virginia 700 up to Mountain Lake and U.S.460 into Blacksburg, the riders may be riding on fumes by the time the get there. The Lynchburg-to-Blacksburg stage of past years was seven miles longer than this year's stage, but this stage has six categorized climbs compared with five a year ago.
``That [stage] is going to break some legs,'' Birrell said.
Asked why he seems to take pleasure in designing such a murderous stage, Birrell chuckles.
``These guys are racing 10 days for $250,000,'' he said. ``I ain't giving it away.''
Said Matzuk: ``Birrell likes to test riders. After he designed [Stage 6], he looked at it and burst out laughing.''
LENGTH: Medium: 77 lines ILLUSTRATION: GRAPHIC: 2 charts. color. 3 maps. color. Type first letter of feature OR type help for list of commands FIND S-DB DB OPT SS WRD QUIT QUIT Save options? YES NO GROUP YOU'VE SELECTED: QUIT NO login: cby CNB