Tour of California 2012: Optum Pro Cycling Begins Tour Sunday

The 2012 Tour of California begins on Sunday, May 13 and will last eight days, finishing the following Sunday.

The eight-day race features 16 of the world's top professional cycling teams, who will all compete on a nearly 800-mile course that winds through California highways and roadways. America's most prestigious cycling race, the Tour of California is one of only two American races to be a UCI 2.HC event on the international cycling schedule.

The status of the race brings top competition to the Golden State. One of the accomplished teams participating in the event, Optum Pro Cycling, includes one rider from West Chester, PA (Scott Zwizanski), and another from Pittsburgh (Mike Friedman). Optum has UCI stage race victories in four different countries and is considered one of America's finest assemblies of riding talent.

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