Tour of New York 2016 Part I

Introduction
Currently, the growing number of UCI ranked events in the US have neglected the East Coast preferring to cover the Western US in well attended stage races filled with exciting climbs and European racers. But why is the East coast being ignored? It wasn't always the case, for many years the Tour of Georgia was the only excursion a pro-rider made to the US however with the end of that race came the emergence of more events across the other side of the country. It is easy to see why, the west coast offers bigger European style climbs and, it certainly seems like, a more outdoorsy population.

The East Coast cycling future is looking more promising. The 2015 World Championships will be held in Richmond, Virginia - just the second time it has been held in the USA. The time is now right to introduce a stage race to the East and specifically New York. New York has the 4th largest population of any state but it also has plenty of space, specifically in the North, which is still very rural. In the far North East there seriously high mountains however this race largely avoids that region in favour of the more rolling terrain in the West.

Race Details
The race is seven days long featuring a split stage on the penultimate day. Weather considerations mean that it would have to be held between April and October. As you can expect the calendar is well filled during this time so fitting a seven day long stage race in here is difficult. Potential slots could be in the first week of May where it wouldn't clash with any World Tour event and could act as a warm up for the Tour of California. The last week of May would also be a possibility although it would clash with the Dauphine (when travel times are included) so it's unlikely to attract the main Tour contenders. Mid July could be a good time as well, due to the time difference it wouldn't clash with the Tour TV coverage and would likely capitalise on cycling's popularity. With this in mind I would suggest the race starts on the 11th July and run until the 17th - Monday to Sunday. Although this would mean that the biggest names in cycling would be absent the race would still be able to attract the biggest teams and a large number of top quality riders.



Stage 1 - Syracuse Criterium - 10 x 9.47km

A classic American criterium late Monday evening to start the race. Although it looks like the only difficulty will be the twists and turns of the course, requiring constant acceleration, there is actually a significant amount of climbing. Each lap throws out 95m of vertical climbing so almost 1,000m by the time they cross the finish line. Despite this we would still expect to see a bunch sprint on the fast downhill run in to the Oncentre War Memorial.

Accepting for a crash, no one is going to lose the Tour of New York today but for the collection of smaller US teams it represents an excellent opportunity to bag an early victory.





Stage 2 - Syracuse - Rochester - 165.8km
At 70km more than the previous stage but with around 200m less ascent this is a custom built sprinter's stage. The finish consists of laps of downtown Rochester which are much less technically demanding than the Syracuse circuit. Although the final circuit does feature a climb up the State Highway 31, it is drag strip straight and and only rising gradually.

One potential difficulty early in the stage is the proximity to Lake Ontario. If the wind is blowing then expect a much much tougher stage.




Stage 3 - Niagra Falls - Silver Creek - 147.24km
Another short flat stage, this time starting in Canada for 7km. The early part of the stage is absolutely flat as it traverses the Niagra river down to Buffalo. South of Buffalo the race enters some short sharp hills which, given their mid stage positioning, are unlikely to test the riders.

After the mid stage difficulties it's back to the flat plains. The difficulty here is the proximity to Lake Erie which could bring a stiff breeze off the water, firstly as a headwind and secondly as a sidewind for the final 12km.








Stage 4 - Jamestown - Springwater - 229.5km
The longest stage of the race. An epic, lengthwise, but the difficulties only start within the last 25km. It should be a really quick start to the stage with a helpful tailwind coming off the Erie. When the wind stops the difficulties start, with just under 25km to go the riders turn skywards on the 4.4km Main Street climb. It could be a good opportunity for a group to go clear, although the false flat after the climb will dissuade lone attackers.

The 2 laps of Springwater appear to be without difficulty but upon closer inspection you can see the 1km of dirt road hidden there and the small rises that will sting tired legs. The questions are; can you organise a leadout train on a dirt road and will there be any sprinters left by that point?

Stages 5, 6a, 6b and 7 will follow. For more information on the stages go to plotaroute.com and type ToNewYork into the search bar.