The 40th Anniversary Tour of the California Alps – Death Ride originally scheduled for July 11, 2020, will be postponed to July 17, 2021 due to ongoing uncertainty of the COVID-19 crisis.
“Based on current health forecasts, we do not feel it is in the best interest of the cycling community nor the health of our families, friends and neighbors, to hold the event on July 11,” commented Becky DeForest, Executive Director of the Alpine County Chamber of Commerce, organizers of the annual ride.
Pre-registered riders for the 2020 event have been invited to roll over their registrations to ride in 2021, or request refunds. Details are posted on the event’s website: www.deathride.com
The Tour of the California Alps – Death Ride has traditionally been recognized as one of the most challenging endurance events steeped in cycling history. Participants can choose to climb and descend up to five mountain passes, for a total of 15,000 vertical feet of climbing over the 129-mile course; all under the backdrop of the California Alps. Under a management agreement with Bike the West, the 40th anniversary ride was set to be fully supported, with strategically placed rest stops and services for participants throughout the course.
Curtis Fong, owner of Bike the West and original ride director of the Death Ride from 1984 – 1995, has a 28-year reputation of producing high-quality, fully-supported bicycling events at Lake Tahoe. Bike the West has committed to continue working with the Alpine County Chamber to direct the 40th Death Ride Resurgence Tour in 2021. “The Death Ride has always had a special place in my heart,” says Fong, “having helped start it and build it in its early years, and now with the opportunity to once again direct this awesome ride, I feel I have come full circle.”
Considered the “Woodstock” of cycling events, the annual Death Ride has drawn as many as 3,500 participants worldwide to Alpine County. One of the draws is that most of the course is on closed highways, working with Caltrans and the California Highway Patrol to allow participants to negotiate the scenic mountain passes with limited traffic. For the community, it is a major event that brings positive economic impact to many businesses, non-profit organizations, and agencies that provide services for the event.
The Alpine County Chamber of Commerce and Bike the West look forward to continuing to refine and produce the 40th Death Ride Resurgence Tour, inviting bicyclists from all over the world to participate in 2021. For updates, please visit the website: www.deathride.com or join their Facebook page: Death Ride – Tour of the California Alps.
It wasn’t postponed, as July 17, 2021 was the likely the scheduled date for 2021. The event for 2020 was CANCELED…there’s a difference.
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