The Amgen Tour of California for 2011 looks to be quite a show. The first 3 stages were announced today, and they are all within reach of the greater Sacramento area.

The start this year will be in South Lake Tahoe. The route will take a clockwise tour of the lake and will exit after one and a half trips around the lake. On the second ride up Highway 89 to Tahoe City, the peloton will again turn right onto Highway 28 and continue on to Highway 267 out of Kings Beach. They will then head up to Northstar-at-Tahoe for the finish, 118.7 miles later.

There will be 3 King of the Mountain climbs along the route. Spooner Summit and the cork screw climb to get up past Emerald Bay will be great to see. The climb over Brockway Summit will come not long after the turn onto Highway 267. Brockway Summit is 7200 feet. The last climb of the day will be the last 1.5 miles into Northstar-at-Tahoe.

Stage 2 will launch out of Squaw Valley the next day and take a very beautiful route to Sacramento for the finish. The two lap finish around the capitol is an impressive site. Last year's Sacramento finish was literally something that didn't allow for any blinking. This stage will require a good dose of endurance. It is 133.2 miles from start to finish.

Stage 3 will begin in Auburn and head down to Modesto. Along the way the Tour will go through Folsom, Ione, and will skim past the shore of Lake Comanche. This stage is 121.9 miles long.

Another spot of very good news is that Versus will once again cover the tour. Phil Liggett, Paul Sherwen, and Bob Roll, the same team that does such an incredible job covering the other Tour, the one in France, will be back. These commentators make the race doubly exciting and understandable for everyone who watches it.

The Tour of California begins on May 15 this year. Amgen Tour of California is steadily becoming one of the top road cycling events on the international stage. Stay tuned.