Jefferson City, Mo. (Jan. 30, 2008) - Twelve cities around the Show Me State have been selected as Start or Finish cities for the second edition of the Tour of Missouri, an elite, point-to-point cycling stage race to be held September 8-14, 2008.
The second Tour of Missouri has been extended from six to seven days after an extremely successful inaugural event in 2007, and will showcase some of the state's most beautiful roads and rolling terrain, rich history, and diverse scenery, from the start in St. Joseph, site of the Pony Express, to Kansas City, to the Ozarks, to the bourgeoning wine country, culminating with a blockbuster weekend again with stops in historic St. Charles and the ultimate finish in St. Louis with the Gateway Arch as a backdrop.
"Missouri is a beautiful place to call home, filled with countless natural and historic sites of interest to visitors both near and far," Gov. Blunt said. "Lt. Gov. Kinder and I took the initiative to bring this race to our state because we recognized the many benefits it could bring to Missourians and our economy. Our state is prospering with the pro-growth, pro-jobs initiatives we have enacted together with our commitment to tourism with new signature events like the Tour of Missouri."
Eight of the 2007 Tour host venues will return for this year's edition, including Kansas City, Springfield, St. Charles, and St. Louis, which will each host a stage finish, Clinton and Lebanon which will each host a stage start, and Branson, second-time host of the individual time trial. A pass-through and start city last year in 2008, Jefferson City will host a stage finish with race circuits for the first time.
Joining the Tour of Missouri roster of hosts as a finish city is Rolla, and St. James and Hermann will each participate as a start venue, providing their communities the opportunity to see the exciting buildup to each day's stage race, where racers sign in for the day's stage, give interviews, and sign autographs for the public. St. Joseph, previous host of the 2004 U.S. Olympic Trials for weightlifting, is a new start city.
"This event proved, in only its first year, to be hugely successful for all involved, most importantly the great host communities of the Tour," Lieutenant Governor Peter Kinder, chair of the Tourism Commission of Missouri. "It was very successful for the state, as tourism vehicle, people from 73 countries caught part of the event via live webcasts and more than 350,000 showed up on roads of the event."
The 2008 Tour of Missouri will take place as follows:
STAGE 1 / Monday, Sept. 8 St. Joseph to Kansas City , road race with circuits (90 mi / 144.81 km)
STAGE 2 / Tuesday, September 9 Clinton to Springfield , road race with circuits (125 mi / 201.13 km)
STAGE 3 / Wednesday, September 10 Branson , individual time trial (18 mi / 28.6 km)
STAGE 4 / Thursday, September 11 Lebanon to Rolla, road race with circuits (105 mi / 168.95 km)
STAGE 5 / Friday, September 12 St. James to Jefferson City , road race with circuits (100 mi / 160.9 km)
STAGE 6 / Saturday, September 13 Hermann to St. Charles , road race (110 mi / 177 km)
STAGE 7 / Sunday, September 14 St. Louis , circuit race (75 mi / 120.68 km)
"The Tour of Missouri is perfectly positioned between the Olympic Games in Bejing and the World Championships in late September," said Chris Aronhalt, Managing Partner, of the event organizers Medalist Sports. "We can expect the field to include some of the top cyclists who have either competed in the Games or are preparing for the Worlds. This will be a good course for them."
The Tour of Missouri will field 120 of the world's top cyclists, many of whom raced in last year's inaugural race and were very happy with the terrain.
"Winning the Tour of Missouri was one of the highlights of my season. I received tremendous support from everyone and the fans along the route were awesome. The Tour of Missouri goes through some beautiful countryside, and I hope to return in September." George Hincapie, 2007 Tour of Missouri Overall Winner.
About the Tour of Missouri
After an exceptionally successful inaugural Tour of Missouri in 2007, the Show Me State will again welcome 120 of the world's elite cyclists on a 600-mile point-to-point race, to be held September 8-14, 2008. The second edition of the Tour will include seven days of racing, from Kansas City to the Ozarks, over the Katy Trail, along Route 66 and the historic Missouri River, with a fantastic finish under the Gateway Arch in St. Louis. The race is sanctioned by the UCI and USA Cycling, the international and national governing bodies for cycling, respectively. It is ranked as a 2.1, second in ranking to only the Tour de Georgia and Amgen Tour of California in North American cycling. The event's management group is Medalist Sports of Tyrone, Ga., the organizers of both the California and Georgia races. KOM Sports Marketing of Colorado Springs, Colo., is the event's marketing agency.
The press conference for the official announcement of the Tour of Missouri start/finish cities for 2008 is set for tomorrow (Jan 30th, 10:30AM, Truman Hotel, Jefferson City, if you can make it--the Gov. & Lt. Gov will also be reporting on the economic impact of the 2007 Tour, which reports have as a very respectable $26 million).
The SteepHill.tv web site claims to have the inside scoop on the proposed route for 2008. No guarantee that their information is correct, but it seems pretty reasonable:
1 Monday, September 8th 90 mi Saint Joseph Kansas City
2 Tuesday, September 9th 125 mi Clinton Springfield
3 Wednesday, September 10th 18 mi Branson Branson TT
4 Thursday, September 11th 105 mi Lebanon Rolla
5 Friday, September 12th 100 mi St. James Jefferson City
6 Saturday, September 13th 110 mi Hermann St. Charles
7 Sunday, September 14th 75 mi St. Louis St. Louis Circuit
Note that the announcement tomorrow is for start/finish cities only and precise route details will be announced later. Steephill.tv is going on the assumption that those stages with the same start/finish cities will probably follow the same route again--which is likely the case, but not absolutely certain.
[Thanks to Eric for the heads-up about this info . . . ]
As I sit warm and cozy here at the breakfast table looking out my kitchen window gazing at snow and ice that has accumulated over the past month, my mind anxiously awaits Governor Matt Blunt and Lt. Governor Peter Kinder's news conference Wednesday January 30th, announcing this year's Tour of Missouri 2008. But, spring is coming soon and so will the local Missouri and surrounding state cycling competition season begin and with it the grandest cycling event of the year, The Tour of Missouri.
In the next few weeks I'll be writing a series of articles in preparation for TOM 2008 including the teams and riders who participated in TOM 2007 and where they are now. From time to time I'll be updating this page with information about Cycling News and Places to visit while you prepare for the 2008 Tour of Missouri. Those of you not familiar with Missouri coming from all over the world will want to know where to go and stay while visiting here.
Cycling is an international past time and one of the greatest ways to get outside and enjoy the out-of-doors. Its also a great family activity. People all over the world who bicycle like to meet other physically active people who enjoy being in touch with nature and visiting places where other bicycle friendly people live.
Posted by Wesley Revels President, Saint Michael's Meadow Trail Foundation, Inc. Quad States Trails of St. Joseph, Inc. "The Parade" Beginning of the Tour of Missouri in Kansas City on the Plaza, September 2007. Click on the left play button to see the video clip.
Tour of MO 2008 start/finish cities to be announced January 30th
Wednesday, January 23, 2008
MoBikeFed received the following announcement today:
The Tour of Missouri will be hosting a press conference on Wednesday, January 30th at the Truman Hotel, Hermitage Room, Jefferson City, 10:30AM to 12 Noon.
Governor Blunt and Lt. Governor Kinder will be reporting the economic impact numbers from the 2007 tour as well as announcing the dates and host cities for the 2008 tour.
Gina Poertner, the president of KanBikeWalk and one of our 2007 Tour of Missouri "supervolunteers" writes:
I keep hearing from cyclists still wishing for a DVD of the 2007 Tour of Missouri. Big Shark Bicycle Company in St. Louis, MO offers a 2-hour DVD of official race footage! Find it here.
Gov Blunt to hold Tour of MO press conferences CANCELLED
Thursday, January 10, 2008
UPDATE: We just received a note from the Governor's office, and these press conferences have been canceled.
On Friday, January 11th, Governor Blunt will be holding press conferences around the state to talk about the success of the Tour of Missouri cycling race and to make a funding announcement related to Tourism
The ceremonies will be brief, and those interested in the Tour are welcome to attend:
9:30 a.m. CANCELLED Cycle Extreme 19 South Sixth Street Columbia
11:30 a.m. CANCELLED Trailnet Office 1533 Washington St. Louis
3 p.m. CANCELLED Suite 3000, The Cordish Company 1100 Walnut Kansas City
4:45 p.m. CANCELLED Upper Lobby of the Ice Park Jordan Valley Park 635 East Trafficway Springfield
This month's edition of Road Magazine includes an 18-page feature on the Tour of Missouri. The full-page cover photo shows the peloton negotiating the famous s-curve in downtown Parkville on Stage 1.
Tour of MO start/finish cities to be announced soon?
We understand that start/finish cities for the 2008 Tour of Missouri will be announced sometime in the reasonably near future. We hear the date may be January 30th, 2008.
Stay tuned for more information as it becomes available!
The 2008 Pro Tour features five major multi-day stage races across the country, giving spectators around the nation an opportunity to witness the sport at its highest level of competition. With Tours of California, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Colorado and Missouri on the calendar, cycling enthusiasts from the West Coast, the Deep South, the East Coast, the Rockies and the Midwest can follow cyclists as they race through local communities across the country. . . .
Finally, after a successful debut in 2007, the Tour of Missouri will again close the calendar, September 8-14, as many of the world's top international teams are expected to return to America for the season finale. After racing from Kansas City to St. Louis in the inaugural edition, riders will again pass through many of the state's major communities while hoping to secure the final points necessary for an overall USA Cycling Professional Tour title.
The press conference for the official announcement of the Tour of Missouri start/finish cities for 2008 is set for tomorrow (Jan 30th, 10:30AM, Truman Hotel, Jefferson City, if you can make it--the Gov. & Lt. Gov will also be reporting on the economic impact of the 2007 Tour, which reports have as a very respectable $26 million).
This month's edition of Road Magazine includes an 18-page feature on the Tour of Missouri. The full-page cover photo shows the peloton negotiating the famous s-curve in downtown Parkville on Stage 1.
"Missouri is a beautiful place to call home, filled with countless natural and historic sites of interest to visitors both near and far," Gov. Blunt said. "Lt. Gov. Kinder and I took the initiative to bring this race to our state because we recognized the many benefits it could bring to Missourians and our economy. Our state is prospering with the pro-growth, pro-jobs initiatives we have enacted together with our commitment to tourism with new signature events like the Tour of Missouri." 
STAGE 1 / Monday, Sept. 8