Wine Festival and Cycling's Amgen Tour Come to Paso Robles

The largest cycling event in the America's is the Amgen Tour of California. Starting in the Sierra Nevada's and ending in Southern California, the Tour has a total of eight stages from May 15^th to May 22^nd. It comes to the Central Coast of California in 2011, visiting two prominent towns in wine country: Paso Robles and Solvang. On the morning of Thursday May 19th, Stage Five will start in Seaside and come down the stunning Central California coastline, ending that afternoon in beautiful Paso Robles. Stage Five will be the longest stage of the event. The following day starts the Wine Festival which goes for three days and is the largest outdoor wine tasting event in California. As they are saying, you can come here for the race and stay for the wine.

Festivals

Paso Robles is home to one of the largest, most popular and fastest growing wine regions in the world. It's also home to some of the most fun and gorgeous winding roads - great for bicycling. The Tour will stop here hosting the California Lifestyle Festival; an announcement stage with large video screens to watch the race live, a kid zone, bike valet and live entertainment. On the 18^th (the day before the Tour arrives), there's a 'Fantasy Ride' where you actually ride the last miles of the stage and cross the finish line.

The Wine Festival's center of attention is the Paso Robles Downtown City Park. The Park is typically where everyone goes for any of the many fun events in Paso Robles. The Festival will have a lot of action at the Park. Wine tasting will be front and center almost anywhere you go. By the way, recently, a Paso Robles wine was awarded the number one spot in Wine Spectator magazine's Top 100 Wines of 2010. Every kind of restaurant is within walking distance of the Park, including micro breweries.

Solvang will host the Tour's 6^th Stage on May 20^th with the short Individual Time Trial. Solvang is located in the Santa Ynez Valley, the center of wine country for Santa Barbara County. Solvang, nicknamed 'Little Denmark', is celebrating their 100^th Anniversary all year.

If you can't make it or want to view the other stages, you can watch the race on Versus with the last hours of each race day shown live. And note: due to heavy rains this past Winter, Hwy 1, which is part of the route, was damaged and there was some question as to whether it would be repaired in time.

Race, wine and more

The weather in May can bring a wide variety of temperatures but expect 80s for daytime temps with mild to cool evenings and clear breezy conditions. Similar weather for Solvang but a bit milder.

This celebration of cycling and wine is unique and offers something for everyone including beaches, lakes, country-side and more. The Wine Festival by itself brings in thousands of people to Paso Robles so when you combine the Tour of California with the Festival, well, you had better plan on getting your reservations early. Having lived in Paso Robles for a handful of years, I can tell you there's more to see and enjoy than you can put in one stay. But this is a great opportunity to visit one of the more eye-catching regions in the world. And remember; come for the race and stay for the wine.

Sources - City of Paso Robles, Amgen Tour of California