Cycling

More than 15 years into a career scattered with victories from Langkawi to Georgia and Switzerland to Monterey, Chris Horner saw his racing life change dramatically last year.

CYCLING

Levi Leipheimer of Santa Rosa has waited six years, but he finally got the first road stage win of his Amgen Tour of California career Saturday.

Thousands of commuters are expected to pedal to work today and participate in cycling events around the Sacramento region as part of Bike to Work Day.

So much for the notion of young riders leaving their elders behind in the Amgen Tour of California.

Thousands of spectators gathered under dark skies Tuesday in Auburn to watch the start of Stage 3 of the Amgen Tour of California.

Greg Henderson was not supposed to win Tuesday's Stage 3 of the Amgen Tour of California.

The pro cyclists screamed into town Monday, a blur of loud colors and the soft sounds of skinny tires on wet asphalt, did more laps than expected around the state Capitol and thrilled fans lining the streets, if only for mere seconds.

As the peloton reached the finishing circuits around the state Capitol, the rain falling as if on cue, three powerful teams fought for position in the Amgen Tour of California's second stage.

STAGE 2 RESULTS

The Amgen Tour of California's visits to Sacramento are taking on a British flavor.

Glum faces dominated the podium Sunday at a news conference following the Amgen Tour of California's cancellation of its first stage.

It was supposed to be a beautiful thing with a big payoff Sunday: a challenging 118-mile route around Lake Tahoe for an international field of pro cyclists and a picture postcard for tourism officials they could broadcast around the world.

As the weather worsened early Sunday afternoon, the wind and snow and cold producing a winter-like postcard from Lake Tahoe, safety concerns prompted a last-minute cancellation of the Amgen Tour of California's first stage.

Lorena Beightler has combined all her loves to produce not just a blog featuring candid shots of fabulously dressed and coiffed bike commuters, but also to host a monthly Sunday ride.

The big bike race is coming to town for its fifth successive year, and for you, the would-be spectator teeming with anticipation, that could mean one of two things.

At age 37, Levi Leipheimer represents cycling's old guard. The three-time Amgen Tour of California winner hopes to school the up-and-comers when the sixth annual race begins today.

With Mark Cavendish competing in the Giro d'Italia, HTC-Highroad will look to Matt Goss for sprint success in this year's Amgen Tour of California.

The Amgen Tour of California's first stage circles Lake Tahoe 1 1/2 times Sunday, with the race starting in South Lake Tahoe and concluding at the Northstar-at-Tahoe Resort.

The consensus among riders ready to test the sixth annual Tour of California: This is the toughest course in the event's history.

With snow forecast for Sunday's first stage, and the tragic death of Belgian cyclist Wouter Weylandt still rocking the cycling world, Amgen Tour of California officials said safety would be their top priority.

Climbers love the mountains. Time trialists savor one-day tests of strength and speed. General classification contenders cherish the challenge of a multi-day stage race.

With snow a possibility for the first stage at Lake Tahoe on Sunday, Amgen Tour of California officials are considering a variety of options for the opening day of the eight-day pro cycling race.

Even after he graduated from college, Christopher Jones didn't have designs on the kind of cool lifestyle he's enjoying now – getting paid to ride his bike.

The world's best cycling races drip with tradition. The Tour de France started in 1903, the Giro d'Italia in 1909 and the Vuelta a España in 1935.

On the bike, during lonely rural training rides when the imagination takes hold and flights of fancy soar, Trent Klasna would gaze longingly at parcels of farmland stitched along his Sierra foothills routes.

Andrea Lepore thought it would be great to have a local film in the upcoming Bicycle Film Festival.

Last year's inaugural Sacramento Bicycle Film Festival and its surrounding events met all Brian Clifton's needs for a night out: food, drink, free parking, recreation, escapism.

After the climb up Donner Summit, the long descent toward Sacramento strongly suggests a familiar finish Monday in the second stage of the Amgen Tour of California.

While there's no one safest method of towing children on bikes, most important is to find the style that works best for the family.

Cycling's version of free agency plays out every year. As riders seek their best opportunities, team management searches for the right mix in building rosters.

Jim Felt's career as a design guru and geek who owns an international bicycle manufacturing company may have begun with a run he never finished, a lunch he didn't hold down and the best $100 he ever lost.

A 17-year-old bicyclist was transported to the hospital with serious injuries after a traffic accident Tuesday morning in Land Park, Sacramento police said.

Folsom's Historic Sutter Street will be the site of a city-sponsored "viewing party" as the Amgen Tour of California passes through town May 17.

East Sacramento residents gathered Sunday for a forum on bicycle safety just blocks from where two "ghost bikes" memorialize cyclists killed in collisions with motor vehicles.

Imagine having eight days to showcase California to friends or relatives who come visiting every year.

A "ghost bike" memorial has been left at Sacramento State, reminding students of the death of one of their own.

More than 400 orphaned bicycles are set to be auctioned April 30 at UC Davis.

The rolling hills and the largely quiet country roads in and around Auburn make this area one of the most reliable for a great cycling experience.

Sacramento Area Bicycle Advocates will be handing out free bike lights in the wake of Friday's accident, in which a Sacramento State student was killed while riding without a light, a spokeswoman for the group said Saturday.

Arlene Sasse had hoped to land a job as an occupational psychologist after receiving her degree next month from California State University, Sacramento.

The Amgen Tour of California's field is scheduled to feature 19 teams, including Team RadioShack, HTC-Highroad, Team Garmin-Cervelo, Sky ProCycling, Saxo Bank-SunGard, Rabobank Cycling Team and BMC Racing Team.

Somewhere east of Hoxie, Kan. – barely two months into his 10-month, 11,000- mile loop by bicycle around the country to raise awareness of childhood obesity – Teddy Herrera hit the brakes.

Performance Bicycle, which bills itself as the nation's largest specialty bike retailer, has opened a store in Roseville.

A 64-mile road bike course that starts and finishes in the lovable little Amador County town of Ione may be one the best all-around rides you ever tackle.

Our "Great Rides" have taken us on long, moderate climbs around Folsom Lake. We've tackled punchy climbs in and around the Loomis-Newcastle area.

Triple digits loomed, so I opted to do what many wise Sacramentans do every summer weekend – flee to the cooler, often fog-shrouded Bay Area.

Want to burn 3,000 calories? Looking to travel by bike from the crowds and cars and traffic signals to a place that belongs in a travel brochure for Belgium or the north of France?

If you live in or around Sacramento and you're a cyclist, you can ride hundreds of miles a month and never encounter a hill.

The road bike journey around Folsom Lake is a classic: a great big circle with three tough climbs, two technical descents, plenty of scenery, a good bit of history and a fast, straight shot to the finish.