Tour Of California Start Wiped Out By Snow

TRUCKEE, Calif. (AP) -- The start of the Tour of California was wiped out Sunday because of snow, forcing organizers to cut the event from eight to seven stages.

Before calling off the start, organizers delayed the stage by 2 hours, 45 minutes and shortened the scheduled 118.7-mile road race from South Lake Tahoe to Northstar at Tahoe Resort to 49.2 miles.

When the weather cleared a bit, the 144 riders were signed in at the start and about to compete under a light snowfall, a temperature of 35 degrees and 12 mph wind, but organizers called it off less than a minute before the start. Originally set for 763.8 miles, the race has been cut to 645.1 miles.

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