Roseville 23-year-old will make history in his Tour de France debut this weekend
Neilson Powless, a 23-year-old from Roseville, was one of only three Americans to ride in the Tour de France, which kicked off Saturday in Nice. The world’s most prestigious bike race, whose start was delayed by nearly two months because of the pandemic, will conclude September 20 in Paris.
After his Saturday ride left him tied with 166 riders on the lead pace, Powless is the first Native American to take part in the Tour de France.
“We’re just so, so excited for him,” said Neilson Powless’ dad, Jack Powless. “It was a lifelong dream for him.”
This is Powless’ first Tour de France. Those who’ve kept up with his athletic career for years said they’re proud but unsurprised he made it this far.
Erin Gorrell said she first met Powless when he was about 5 years old. Her store, Folsom Bike, sponsored him for years.
“We just believed in Neilson and his athletic ability and we strongly felt he had what it takes to go really far,” Gorrell said.
“He’s so motivated,” said Bruce Hendler, the owner of the cycling and triathlon training center AthletiCamps, which Powless attended. “It wouldn’t surprise me that he continues to improve and continues to learn and continues to win.”
As a young professional, Powless’ primary job during the Tour is to help his eight-person team, EF Pro Cycling. Teams work together following a plan aimed at both boosting their performance as a group and helping their strongest individual rider try to win the whole race. That could mean Powless will attack during climbs to try to wear out other key riders, or it could mean he rides in front of EF Pro’s strongest rider to give him an aerodynamic advantage.
Powless comes from an athletic family. His sister, Shayna Powless, is also a professional cyclist, his mom ran the marathon in the 1992 Olympics and his dad was a successful triathlete.
Twenty-two teams participate in the Tour de France each year. They traverse France, covering more than 100 miles per day, on average, for 21 days. This year’s race organizers tried to keep traditions alive while adapting to pandemic safety guidelines. Playing off of the numbers in 2020, they’ve said fans must stay 2 meters away from the riders, collect zero autographs, keep two key possessions — a mask and hand sanitizer — and take zero selfies.
Other aspects of the event, like its signature colored jerseys, will remain the same. Viewers can look for the yellow jersey to spot the rider with the lowest cumulative time at any given moment. Whoever wears yellow at the end of the last stage wins the race overall.
Sacramento-area fans like Gorrell and Hendler won’t be able to travel to France or organize big watch parties because of the pandemic, they said, but they will keep up with the event all the same. Sacramento is home to a vibrant cycling community that looks forward to watching one of their own in the Tour de France.
Viewers can follow along live via NBC Sports coverage, on the FloBikes app and on the GCN Race Pass app.
This story was originally published August 29, 2020 at 4:00 AM.