Viewing Stage 8 of Tour of California

[GaryK]

you are planning to view the 8th stage of the Tour of California on Palomar Mountain, or anywhere on Highway 76, there are a few items you need to be aware of.  I attended an organizational meeting for Ham Radio operators and CERT members this morning at the Palomar Mountain Volunteer Fire Department and picked up some information that will affect you.



They have been told to expect anywhere from 40,000 to 100,000 ?guests? on the mountain on Sunday, Feb 22.  Seems overly optimistic, but that is what they are planning on.


The S. Grade Road will probably be closed around 9 AM, although this has not been firmed up.  They expect crowds to start staking out viewing spots along the road as early as Friday night, with most arriving Saturday.  All campgrounds are fully booked already.


THERE ARE NO SERVICES PROVIDED.  There is a restaurant (Mother?s Kitchen) but it will be open by reservation only on Sunday.  They plan a beer garden so as to make traffic back down the road even more interesting.  There will be 6 (that is right ? 6) porta potties on the top of the mountain. This to serve 40,000 people.  There will not be any food or water available but what you bring. You must take out your own trash.  Due to California budget constraints, there is no money to provide even trash cans. A big thumbs down to our legislature.


THE S. GRADE ROAD WILL BE CLOSED AT HIGHWAY 76 UNTIL ALL RACERS HAVE EXITED HIGHWAY 76 AT COLE GRADE ROAD.  This could be as much as 2 hours after riders have passed S. Grade Road.  You will not be able to get to Escondido to see the end of the race.  They are expecting massive traffic problems until 9 PM.  Highway 76 will be closed as will.  You can possibly continue up S Grade and take the East Grade to Lake Henshaw and then catch Highway 79.


Dress appropriately for the weather. SNOW IS COLD. Apparently many San Diegans venture up the mountain to enjoy the snow wearing t-shirts and flip flops. It could also be hot, and the weather can change quickly.


The race will be held rain or shine.  In case of snow, riders will not go up to Palomar but will just make a loop on 76 out to Lake Henshaw and back


W6GDK

Gary Kent

[jabantik]

thanks for the info.   i don't think it's fair to entirely blame our legislature or race organizers for lack of facilities.   it's pretty sad if people aren't responsible enough to pack out their garbage.   6 porta potties for that many people is a grim prospect for sure.   probably best to avoid using them if possible.

go flandis!

[GaryK]

The following email was recevied from Eric Smith, Race Director for AMGEN regarding the Palomar Mountain viewing.
Thought this might clarify the situation as AMGEN sees it.


From: Eric Smith [mailto:redbike@earthlink.net]
Sent: Sunday, February 08, 2009 3:22 PM
To: 'thomas.treynolds@gmail.com'; 'gary.kent@cox.ne'
Cc: 'sdrando@googlegroups.com'
Subject: Viewing Stage 8 of Tour of California



Greetings everyone,



There are a lot of wild rumors floating around right now about Stage 8 of the Amgen Tour of California and in particular, Palomar Mountain. Let me address each of the six points in Gary?s e-mail and I will tell you if they are true or an ?Urban Myth?.



They have been told to expect anywhere from 40,000 to 100,000 "guests" on the mountain on Sunday, Feb 22.  Seems overly optimistic, but that is what they are planning on.
URBAN MYTH - The actual number is closer to 5,000 to 7,000. That is what all of our plans are based on. It could go as high as 10,000, but that is doubtful. Some people within the County of San Diego started the talk of high numbers. 40-100k is ridiculous.

2.       The S. Grade Road will probably be closed around 9 AM, although this has not been firmed up.  They expect crowds to start staking out viewing spots along the road as early as Friday night, with most arriving Saturday.  All campgrounds are fully booked already

TRUE ? South Grade will in fact be closed at 9:00am. If CHP deems that the road is totally ?saturated? before 9:00am, they will shut it down earlier.

THERE ARE NO SERVICES PROVIDED.  There is a restaurant (Mother's Kitchen) but it will be open by reservation only on Sunday.  They plan a beer garden so as to make traffic back down the road even more interesting.  There will be 6 (that is right ? 6) porta potties on the top of the mountain. This to serve 40,000 people.  There will not be any food or water available but what you bring. You must take out your own trash.  Due to California budget constraints, there is no money to provide even trash cans. A big thumbs down to our legislature.
URBAN MYTH ? Again, think 5-7,000 and not 40,000+. There will be six porta johns on top of the mountain, three at Hwy 76/South Grade, and three along the climb. There are 12 in total?not six. There is a general store near the KOM. It will be open and has food and beverages. There is also going to be a small expo set-up near the KOM. I suspect that food and beverage will be available. The Palomar Volunteer Fire Department (just past the KOM) will be selling beverages and food and will be broadcasting the race on a big screen TV. The race will provide trash containers, but please do your best to pack out what you bring in.

THE S. GRADE ROAD WILL BE CLOSED AT HIGHWAY 76 UNTIL ALL RACERS HAVE EXITED HIGHWAY 76 AT COLE GRADE ROAD.  This could be as much as 2 hours after riders have passed S. Grade Road.  You will not be able to get to Escondido to see the end of the race.  They are expecting massive traffic problems until 9 PM.  Highway 76 will be closed as will.  You can possibly continue up S Grade and take the East Grade to Lake Henshaw and then catch Highway 79.
True and False ? If you are watching the race from South Grade, you will not be able to watch the finish or get to Cole Grade. Traffic will not be allowed onto Hwy 76 until the End of Caravan passes South Grade on the way to Cole Grade. We expect everyone to be off the mountain by 5:00pm. You cannot continue up South Grade to East Grade. Everyone on South Grade will need to descend South Grade. We don?t want a bike vs. car situation.

5.       Dress appropriately for the weather. SNOW IS COLD. Apparently many San Diegans venture up the mountain to enjoy the snow wearing t-shirts and flip flops. It could also be hot, and the weather can change quickly.

Very True

The race will be held rain or shine.  In case of snow, riders will not go up to Palomar but will just make a loop on 76 out to Lake Henshaw and back.
Somewhat true. If we cannot make it up Palomar (and it is the descent that is the problem more so than the ascent), we will continue east on Hwy 76. The race will turn right onto Mesa Grande and then make a left on Hwy 79. We will then make the left back onto Hwy 76 and pick-up the original route.

Please do not use any type of paint on the roads. If you want to leave a message for the riders, please use chalk. The paint ban also applies to chalk spray paint. It takes months for that paint to wear away. In 2008, we spent $60,000 on paint removal. Our ability to return to San Diego County in 2010 will hinge upon what happens on Palomar Mountain. We want to come back. Please do your best to help us.



Regards,



Eric Smith

Medalist Sports

Course Director

Amgen Tour of California

626-571-0152

626-389-5425 Fax

[Sanford Aniya]

I was thinking about watching the ToC at the King of the Mountian point on Lake Wohlford, and getting a short ride in.

11:00am Park at the bottom near Valley Center and Lake Wohlford, Ride my bike 2-3 miles up Lake Wohlford.
12:50pm Watch for Lance on the way up the hill
1:30pm  Take a leisurely 15 mile ride north on Lake Wolhford to Valley Center and back to the corner of Valley Center and Lake Wohlford.  Maybe stop for a quick lunch
3:15-4:00 Watch the racers come back through

If anyone else is interested, let me know.

I found this list of road closure times for all the roads in the race.
http://www.sandiegonorth.com/amgen/docs/ClosureEstimates.pdf

-Sandy