Nevada City Classic
| Race details | |
|---|---|
| Date | June (commonly on Father's Day) |
| Region | Nevada City, California, United States |
| Organiser | Charlie Allert |
| History | |
| First edition | 1961 |
| First winner |  Bob Tetzlaff (USA) |
| Most recent | Gavin Murray (USA) |
| History (women) | |
| Most recent | Eleanor Velez (USA) |
The Nevada City Classic (previously: Tour of Nevada City; Father's Day Bicycle Classic), was a one-day road cycling race[1] held in Nevada City, California. Established in 1960, the Nevada City Classic commonly occurs on Father's Day and brought thousands of visitors to Nevada County.[2] While the first race brought out approximately 1,500 spectators,[3] the numbers have swelled to 15,000 spectators in recent years.[4] Sponsored by the Nevada City Chamber of commerce, the schedule included Women's, Junior's, and Master's races, in addition to the Men's main event. Past winners include Greg LeMond.
Course
[edit]The 90-minute race included 40 laps on a twisting, hilly 1.1 mi (1.8 km) circuit[5] with over 300 feet of climbing.[6] The course, basically unchanged since its advent, was considered by experts to be the toughest one-mile criterium in the United States.[3]
History
[edit]Established in 1960, the Nevada City Classic was the largest and oldest bicycle race on the West Coast, as well as the second-oldest bicycle race in the country.[6][7] It was initiated by Charlie Allert, a native of Dresden, Germany, who had been a bicycle racer and master lithographer before arriving in Nevada City by way of San Francisco.[3] With a course laid out by Allert, the first race was held on Father's Day 1961.
The 1961 and 1962 races were won by Bob Tetzlaff, a Los Gatos school teacher. Starting in 1963 when he was 18 years old, Bob Parsons from Pasadena won the race the next five years. John Howard won in 1970.[8] Greg LeMond was the winner for the three consecutive years of 1979-81 and he was subsequently honored when the Nevada City City Council proclaimed August 11, 1986 as "Greg LeMond Day".[3] Todd Gogulski (1986, 1988), Scott Moninger (1994, 1997, 1999, 2006), Alexi Grewal (1993), and Levi Leipheimer (1998) also took the top spot.[8] Having participated in the race 19 years earlier,[1] Lance Armstrong returned in 2009, and won using illegal drugs and methods, and has been disqualified with the result voided[9] It was hailed at the time as the first victory of his comeback as it preceded his return to the Tour de France.[10] Ian Boswell was the winner in 2010.[5]
In 1997, the race was designated a National Classic Pro Points Race,[11] and thirteen years later, in 2010, its course became the starting point of the Stage 1 of the Tour of California.[12]
The race was cancelled in 2020 because of the Covid-19 pandemic and never resumed because of declining attendance in years prior.[13]
Winners
[edit]Men
[edit]
Women
[edit]
References
[edit]- ^ a b "Lance Armstrong Wins Nevada City Classic". CBS 13. June 21, 2009. Archived from the original on 25 June 2009. Retrieved 16 November 2010.
- ^ "Nevada City Classic Bicycle Race". nevadacityclassic.com. Retrieved 2009-06-22.
- ^ a b c d Wyckoff, Bob (June 14, 2010). "Father of the Nevada City Classic". The Union. Retrieved 16 November 2010.
- ^ "Armstrong takes Nevada City". ESPN. June 22, 2009. Retrieved 16 November 2010.
- ^ a b Matthews, Wil. "Bissell goes 1-2 at 50th Nevada City Classic". Velonews. Retrieved 16 November 2010.
- ^ a b "June 19th Nevada City Bicycle Classic 45th Year". historichwy49.com. Retrieved 16 November 2010.
- ^ "Nevada City Bicycle Classic". Nevada City Chamber. Archived from the original on 14 July 2011. Retrieved 16 November 2010.
- ^ a b Hamilton, Brian (June 16, 2010). "Past masters of the Nevada City Classic". The Union. Retrieved 16 November 2010.
- ^ "Lance Armstrong: Governing body strips American of Tour wins". BBC News. 22 October 2012. Retrieved 22 October 2012.
- ^ Moore, Richard (22 June 2009). "Lance Armstrong wins Nevada City Classic". The Guardian. Retrieved 16 November 2010.
- ^ Giesin, Dan (June 20, 1997). "Chain of Events Moves Race / Nevada City Classic brings cyclists to foothills on Sunday". SF Gate. Retrieved 16 November 2010.
- ^ "Amgen Tour of California: Tour of California Stage 1 Nevada City, CA". Nevada City Chamber. Retrieved 16 November 2010.[permanent dead link]
- ^ Writer, Jennifer Nobles Staff (2023-05-25). "Down but not out: Father's Day bicycle race tradition canceled for 2023". The Union. Retrieved 2024-05-06.
- ^ a b "Nevada City Bicycle Classic - Sunday June 13, 1999 - Results". bikecal.com..
- ^ a b "Results and Reports for June 24-25 - 40th Anniversary Nevada City Classic". autobus.cyclingnews.com..
- ^ a b "Results and Reports from the USA - Nevada City Classic". autobus.cyclingnews.com..
- ^ a b "Nevada City Classic - NE". autobus.cyclingnews.com..
- ^ a b Josh Kadis (18 June 2006). "46th Nevada City Classic - NE". autobus.cyclingnews.com..
- ^ "47th Nevada City Classic - NE". autobus.cyclingnews.com. 17 June 2007..
- ^ a b "Toyota-United's Justin England takes his second Nevada City crown". velonews.com. 20 June 2008..
- ^ Bruce Hildenbrand (22 June 2009). "Nevada City Classic 2009: Men Results". cyclingnews.com..
- ^ a b Mark Deterline (21 June 2009). "Armstrong wins Nevada City in solo break". velonews.com..
- ^ a b "Bissell goes 1-2 at 50th Nevada City Classic". velonews.com. 21 June 2010..
- ^ a b "Nevada City Bicycle Classic • Jun 19 2011". road-results.com..
- ^ a b "53rd Annual Nevada City Bicycle Classic • Jun 16 2013". road-results.com..
- ^ a b "54th Annual Nevada City Classic Bicycle Race • Jun 15 2014". road-results.com..
- ^ a b "Nevada City Bicycle Classic • Jun 21 2015". road-results.com..
- ^ a b Kael Newton (21 June 2016). "CYCLING: Saltzman wins 56th Nevada City Classic, adds to event's storied past". theunion.com..
- ^ a b Walter Ford (18 June 2017). "CYCLING: Riekert wins mens pro race at 57th annual Nevada City Classic". theunion.com..
- ^ a b Elias Funez (24 June 2018). "Riding on; Nevada City Classic bounces back from dismal year". theunion.com..
- ^ a b Kael Newton (2 June 2019). "59th Nevada City Classic: a day of tough racing, hard falls and hope for the future". theunion.com..