Tour of California 2012 - An Amazing Race

The finish at Cabrillo College

Wow, what a day for cycling fans in Santa Cruz County. From dawn to dusk on Monday, May 14, it seemed like every road was packed with race fans setting up camp to view the action, and pedaling to spots from Bonny Doon to Felton to Soquel and Cabrillo College to cheer on the Amgen Tour of California tourmen as they pounded up and down our roads.

So that you can enjoy some of the local action, here's a video of the crash about halfway up the Bonny Doon climb and some photos I shot. Also check out Caletti Cycles' photos as they were at another scenic spot in the Santa Cruz Mountains.

With some of my Bicycle Trip/Symantec teammates, I rode up to the Bonny Doon - Ice Cream Grade intersection - getting heckeled the entire way by earlybirds already chalking the road and partying while waiting for the peloton. Once the pack passed our spot, we raced the race, shortcutting down Soquel Ave to take a straight shot to the finish line at Cabrillo.

All the way, we picked up other riders and had a fast and easy access to the finish thanks to the California Highway Patrol that had closed interesections, was stopping cars and waving cyclists through. So cool.

Enjoy the pics and let's all help bring the Tour of California back for 2013!

The crash took place right where we were standing so we had a great view of the resulting chaos. Video by Mark Boolootian (below in black).