Amgen Tour of California stage 6 re-routed

The planned start of the sixth stage of the Amgen Tour of California from Pasadena will be changed due to poor road conditions, the race organiser AEG announced today.

The route was to be one of the most challenging of this year's Amgen Tour, which begins on May 16, incorporating some 7,000 feet of elevation gain between the start at the Rose Bowl and the highest point along the Angeles Crest Highway.

Pasadena will no longer host the start of the stage, the route for which is still to be determined.

“Due to severe road damage on the Angeles Crest Highway (Route 2) above La Cañada Flintridge caused by the recent winter storms, we have been forced to change the route for Stage 6 of the 2010 Amgen Tour of California," AEG announced Wednesday.

"This change is being made at the direct request of Caltrans, which has notified us that due to the potential safety hazards, the road will be unable to accommodate our race. Stage 6, scheduled for May 21, 2010, will no longer start in Pasadena and we are working to secure a new stage start, which we are hopeful of announcing in the coming days.

"Stage 6 will still finish in Big Bear Lake as planned and we look forward to a challenging stage in the San Gabriel and San Bernardino Mountains."

Pasadena has hosted a stage of the Amgen Tour for the past two years using the challenging circuit around the Rose Bowl for the race finale in 2008 and the end of the penultimate stage of last year's event. This was to be the first year the town had hosted a stage start.

"As long-term partners with Pasadena, we appreciate how graciously they have handled this difficult situation. We look forward to returning to Pasadena soon," said AEG Sport's president Andrew Messick.