Women’s teams from across the U.S. have requested invitations to race at the inaugural Tour of Utah Women’s Edition circuit race at Miller Motorsports Park in Tooele, Utah on August 6. A special prize purse of more than $10,000 will be awarded to the professional women’s competitors for the midweek circuit race.
Organizers of the Larry H. Miller Tour of Utah added this 15-lap event for elite and professional women to coincide with Stage 3 of the men’s professional stage race. The Tour of Utah Women’s Edition takes place from 12:30-2 p.m. on a 2.2-mile section of the road course at Miller Motorsports Park, a state-of-the-art road racing facility in Tooele. Admission is free for spectators, who are encouraged to come at noon for rider sign-in and ceremonies. The men’s event on August 6 — Stage 3 of the Larry H. Miller Tour of Utah — will be contested from Lehi to Tooele, and is expected to conclude at Miller Motorsports Park between 3-4 p.m. The Tour of Utah is a seven-stage UCI event that takes place August 4-10.
“This is the first time in the 10-year history of the Tour of Utah that women’s elite and professional cycling will be featured. We are pleased to showcase some of the best professional women in the sport, and provide a prize purse that is equal to the men’s event for a single day of stage racing,” said Alex Kim, race director for the Tour of Utah Women’s Edition, which is sanctioned by USA Cycling.
Requests for invitations in the Women’s Edition will be accepted by the Tour of Utah through Friday, June 6, 2014, using a submission form at tourofutah.com. Formal invitations will be announced after June 16 for professional teams, domestic elite and established teams, and qualified riders who seek to join a composite team. Some of the top-ranked teams on the USA Cycling National Racing Calendar who have requested entry to date are: Colavita-Fine Cooking (ranked 3rd), Twenty16 Professional Cycling (ranked 7th), DNA Cycling p/b K4 (ranked 8th), as well as Guru Cycles p/b Haute Wheels, Pepper Palace Pro Cycling, Vanderkitten Racing and Monster Media. Two Utah-based composite teams being assembled for the event are LiVe Well p/b Bountiful Bicycle and Canyon Bicycles-Shimano.
The 2014 Larry H. Miller Tour of Utah is sanctioned by both USA Cycling and the UCI. The Tour of Utah is a 2.1-rated UCI American Tour stage race and is one of the top professional cycling events in North America. Host venues for 2014 are Cedar City, Panguitch, Torrey, Lehi, Miller Motorsports Park, Ogden, Powder Mountain, Evanston (Wyoming), Kamas, Salt Lake City, Snowbird Ski and Summer Resort, and Park City. Details about each stage will be announced in June.
