It was in 2002 when cycling fan Frank Arokiasamy was trying to follow the Tour de France that he first conceived the ambitious plans he unveiled this week.
Arokiasamy said American Lance Armstrong was dominating the race, but he could not watch it on television in the United States. So, Arokiasamy began dreaming of a bicycle race that would eclipse the le Tour and be held on American soil. He envisioned the Tour of America.
At the industry trade show Interbike on Wednesday he announced plans for the four-week, New York-San Francisco race. He wants it to start with a Big Apple prologue, between Central Park and Ground Zero, on Sept. 6, 2008.
The second day, Stage 1, of the race would take the riders the closest to Lancaster County. That stage would go from Newark, N.J. south to Washington, D.C. The routes are not identified on the Tour of America web site, http://thetourofamerica.com/index.php?option=com_frontpage&Itemid=1. Potentially, racers could come through here or near here. The second stage would take the race to Western Pennsylvania. That day they leave Washington, D.C. for Pittsburgh.
According to a VeloNews article, http://www.velonews.com/news/fea/13403.0.html, industry professionals and racers greeted the announcement in Las Vegas with skepticism. The Tour of America would be twice as long as the Tour de France and comes at a time when racing organizers are talking of limiting multi-week races.
The skepticism also comes from people who are aware of the enormous logistical and financial demands of a single-state race, such as the tours of California, Georgia or the just-raced Tour of Missouri. Arokiasamy, a business consultant in California with a Ph.D. in economics, wants his race to include 22 states.
We wish him well.
