{"id":754,"date":"2008-04-20T19:12:55","date_gmt":"2008-04-21T00:12:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blacknell.net\/dynamic\/2008\/04\/20\/tour-de-georgia-stage-one-from-tybee-to-savannah\/"},"modified":"2008-04-21T21:54:40","modified_gmt":"2008-04-22T02:54:40","slug":"tour-de-georgia-stage-one-from-tybee-to-savannah","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blacknell.net\/dynamic\/2008\/04\/20\/tour-de-georgia-stage-one-from-tybee-to-savannah\/","title":{"rendered":"Tour de Georgia: Stage One – From Tybee to Savannah"},"content":{"rendered":"

The 2008 Tour de Georgia will kick off its first stage with a run between Tybee Island and Savannah. The stage takes something of a lollipop-shaped out-and-sort-of-back<\/a> approach over 70.4 very flat<\/a> miles.<\/p>\n

The peloton will start at Tybee Island* at 10:30a. They’ll head toward Savannah through the salt marshes on the only road connecting the island with the rest of the state. They’ll pass through downtown, make a loop through the western suburbs, and return for a downtown finish on Tatnall Street between 1 and 1:30p.<\/p>\n

From start to finish, there will be three sprint points and four time bonus opportunities. The course does involve a number of railroad crossings (and at least one drawbridge), but I don’t expect them to play much of a role in the race. The weather seems to be cooperating, with expectations that it will be a sunny day yielding temps in the high 70s\/24-26. More importantly, it’s not expected to be too windy. However, those coastal winds can change in a heartbeat, and if it picks up, it could be a real factor in the open area between Tybee Island and Savannah.<\/p>\n

Given the relatively even footing that a flat stage puts the teams on, this may turn out to be a stage in which one of the lesser known domestic teams can make a statement. Local boys Jittery Joe’s<\/a> can always be counted on to give it a go, and Canadian team Symmetrics Cycling<\/a> sure could use a high profile win in its search for a new sponsor. Personally, I’d love to see the GE-Marco Polo team<\/a> surprise us all.<\/p>\n

*Part of Georgia’s Coastal Empire region, and one of my own favorite places on the planet.<\/p>\n

-Crossposted to PodiumCafe.com\u00c2\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The 2008 Tour de Georgia will kick off its first stage with a run between Tybee Island and Savannah. The stage takes something of a lollipop-shaped out-and-sort-of-back approach over 70.4 very flat miles. The peloton will start at Tybee Island* at 10:30a. They’ll head toward Savannah through the salt marshes on the only road connecting […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"activitypub_content_warning":"","activitypub_content_visibility":"","activitypub_max_image_attachments":4,"activitypub_interaction_policy_quote":"anyone","activitypub_status":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-754","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-cycling"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t