Amgen out of NC for 2012

Subject: Amgen out of NC for 2012. Oh, well. There's always 2013.

Amgen 2012 not coming to NC –

You’ve all seen the ATOC route announcement Thursday, and/or been forced to stare at my mug on all of the Sac and Bay Area TV news channels the past two nights explaining why we were excluded (along with Lake Tahoe, Sac & many others – maybe even Chico) from the ATOC for 2012.

I’ve know about this outcome for several weeks but wouldn’t openly discuss it due to hand-shake “non-disclosure” agreements with AEG et. al. They’ve been a great partner the past two years so it’s only fair to play by the rules and let them make their announcement when they were ready.

Once I found out that the Tahoe region was axed, it became obvious that we had become a “start without a finish,” for lack of a better term. Just “demographically challenged,” nothing we did wrong or could have done differently.

Losing Tahoe’s participation has also potentially left Chico out (not realistic to head East/inland from Santa Rosa when stage-2 now starts in SF) in the cold after 4+ years of trying to land a stage and already having it announced this Summer that they were “set” as the stage-1 finish. Bummer! Sacramento is out this coming year also for the same reasons, even though they’ve pitched in millions to the ATOC the past several years to ensure stage participation. We were a piece of the puzzle that fit the past two years, but for 2012 we were a square peg that just didn’t fit into a round hole. Just reality, no hard feelings.

We’re already working towards 2013, but also realizing how amazing it was to have been included the past two years. With our financial limitations (Santa Rosa paid $580k to receive the 2012 Day-1 start, like we had in 2010 for about $60k), I never in my wildest dreams thought we would have had the chance to participate at all. We’re sure that Jim Birrell of Medalist has sentimental attachments to the “Coors Classic” route we were pushing for, and I’m confident that in future years we can find a way to convince AEG/Medalist that it’s not only viable to use within their event, but would provide one of the most epic and visually stunning stages ever for the ATOC – just like it did for the Coors Classic in the 80’s.

For those that keep making comments like, “Amgen owes us, we saved their butts this year” – I wholeheartedly disagree. I don’t believe that when you do a friend a favor, you expect anything in return. You help out because it’s the right thing to do, and that’s what we did for ATOC this Spring, and the sport of bicycle racing which helps expose cycling of all types to the general public. They needed help so we made it happen, and in return Nevada City received tremendous world-wide marketing exposure that we rely on to keep the store-fronts open that you all patronize and which make NC such a great place to live and visit.

Thanks again to everyone that stepped up this past May to “Save Amgen” and keep Nevada City on the map, a win-win proposition for Nevada City, ATOC and the sport of cycling for sure!

We’ll refocus on making the 2012 NC Classic a great national-level event, and I can enjoy training and racing this coming May instead of stressing on organizing another ATOC stage. Hopefully all of our local volunteers can catch their breath also, take the time to enjoy the 2012 ATOC as spectators (or volunteers @ stages in other great cities), and come back re-energized for 2013 if we’re fortunate enough to get them back up here again.

California is a BIG state with hundreds of qualified communities looking for the same opportunity we’ve received the past two years. We should be thankful for what we received, and happy to let other cycling communities around the state take their turns.

Regards, Duane & Connie