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Bakersfield among Thirteen HOST CITIES ANNOUNCED FOR 2012 Amgen Tour of California
Challenging Route to Take Cyclists Over More Than 750 Miles of Striking California Terrain During America’s Premier Cycling Race from May 13 – 20, 2012 

[PHOTO ABOVE: LOCAL CYCLISTS GIVE THE THUMBS UP TO BAKERSFIELD'S ANNOUNCEMENT OF THE EVENT]

ANNOUNCEMENT IN BAKERSFIELD, CALIFORNIA
Convention and Visitors Bureau made the announcement Thursday November 3, 2011 that Bakersfield would host the Stage 5 Individual Time Trial for the 2012 AMGEN Tour of California. The press conference held at the Convention and Visitors Bureau included comments from the honorable Mayor Harvey L. Hall, Supervisor Mike Maggard, Chairman of the Kern County Board of Supervisors and Jay Rosenlieb, Vice President of the Bakersfield Sports Foundation.  Several City officials and dignitaries were present to help welcome the AMGEN Tour of California back to Bakersfield in 2012.

[Photos of Bakersfield's Announcement of Event]

AMGEN TOUR OF CALIFORNIA PRESS RELEASE     

LOS ANGELES (November 3, 2011) – After reviewing more than 100 submissions from cities throughout California hoping to be named official start or finish locations, AEG, presenter of the Amgen Tour of California, has announced the 13 official Host Cities for the 2012 race. Considered America’s largest and most prestigious professional road cycling stage race, the seventh consecutive edition of the 2012 Amgen Tour of California will travel more than 750 miles from May 13 – 20, 2012.  

 “Our goal for the Amgen Tour of California has always been to create a route that not only provides a challenging race for the world’s top cyclists, but one that highlights the beauty and diverse terrain that make up the great state of California as well,” said Kristin Bachochin, executive director of the Amgen Tour of California. “Every year we challenge ourselves to raise the bar once again and create a route more challenging than the last, but that’s the great thing about planning a race in California, there is so much from which we can choose. From epic climbs to fast and flat stages to rolling hills and thrilling finishes by the sea, California has it all.”
As announced earlier this year, Stage 1 of the race will start in Santa Rosa, hometown of three-time Amgen Tour of California Champion Levi Leipheimer. The race will then take the riders from San Francisco to Santa Cruz County for Stage 2, starting with the Golden Gate Bridge as a backdrop and once again bringing the route back along the picturesque coast of the Pacific Ocean. Heading inland, Stage 3 of the race will begin in San Jose (the only city to be a Host City each of the previous six years of the event) and end in Livermore, traversing an entirely new part of the State not showcased in previous editions of the race. A new city for 2012, Stage 4 will start in Sonora and wind its way south, featuring several new climbs, before what’s sure to be a dramatic sprint finish in Clovis. [Read full press release]

[source: Amgen Tour of California]