A sprint in Imperial Beach, a challenging climb up Honey Springs Road near Jamul and a mad dash to the finish line in Mission Bay Park will highlight this May’s Amgen Tour of California, race officials announced Thursday

San Diego’s stage of the eight-day race -- known as America’s version of the Tour de France -- will also include a spectator-friendly stretch along Friars Road, short spurts through Old Town and Balboa Park, and scenic stretches covering most of the South Bay.

Other highlights of the 106-mile local stage, which will be broadcast worldwide on May 15, include undulating rides through rural areas near Otay Lake, west of Barrett Lake, just south of Alpine and through El Cajon.

(Beto Alvarez)


The big finish will take the world’s best cyclists down Mission Gorge Road to Friars through Mission Valley, up Morena Boulevard through Clairemont, west on Garnet Avenue through Pacific Beach and down Ingraham Street into Mission Bay Park.

The route will provide excellent spectating opportunities from open-air restaurants, along sidewalks and hillsides, and from grandstands that will be erected at the start and finish lines in Mission Bay Park, said Denise Mueller of the local organizing committee.

“Because we are in such a populated area, we are going to have so many people watching this and participating on the sidelines,” said Mueller, a professional cyclist living in Carlsbad.

This is the first time the 11-year-old race will be held in the heart of San Diego. Escondido hosted a stage in 2013 and Escondido and Rancho Bernardo co-hosted a stage in 2009.


The race will be part of a remarkable stretch for San Diego that will also include hosting baseball’s All-Star Game and the annual Comic-Con convention in July, Mayor Kevin Faulconer said in October when race officials announced they would be coming to San Diego.

The 800-mile race will start here on May 15 and finish in Sacramento on May 22, passing through 12 California cities along the way including South Pasadena, Lodi and Santa Rosa.

Because San Diego will be the starting line host, everyone associated with the race will be in the city for several days before it begins for press conferences and other lead-up events, including an upscale gala.

The race will bring an army of TV trucks, large hospitality tents along the route, giant video screens at key spots and dozens of reporters and photographers from overseas.


Each stage of the race typically lasts about five hours, beginning in the late morning and ending in the late afternoon.

The starting line will be at Ski Beach in Mission Bay Park and the finish line will be relatively nearby in Quivira Basin.

Spectators pay nothing to watch the race, requiring the tour to receive financial contributions from host cities to cover hotel rooms, street closures, events and other expenses.

Mueller, honorary chair of the local organizing committee, said one reason the race hasn’t been in San Diego proper before is all the effort required.


“It’s difficult to get all the permits in populated areas so they usually like to have it out in places where it’s easier to shut roads down,” she said. “So they have a lot of challenges there, but obviously they’re taking care of those.”

She said one of the best places to watch this year will be Mission Valley.

“The Rock and Roll Marathon also goes along Friars and it’s really a great opportunity because tons of people can line the route,” Mueller said.

But restaurants along the route are also popular spots.


“If I were going out to view, which I will be, I will be sitting at some restaurant along the route because that’s the way to do it,” she said. “This will showcase all of San Diego.”

Local cycling clubs and other groups of fans will also set up areas along the route to watch, she said.

“They’ll pick a corner and make it a party,” Mueller said.

For the ambitious spectator, trekking out to Honey Springs Road to watch the cyclists climb could also be fun, she said.


“It’s a great place for people to watch because when they are going up they are obviously going much slower,” she said. “They’ll get to see the pain and suffering that’s going on.”

That highlights one thing that makes cycling a less friendly spectator sport than most.

“From a spectator standpoint it’s tough, because they only see them for a few moments as they pass a certain area,” she said. “A lot of times it’s in a flat area so it’s really fast”

But race officials plan to place big screen TVs featuring the action throughout the route.


Mueller said San Diego’s focus on health makes it a perfect fit for the race.

“To have this caliber of race come to such a healthy-active-lifestyle city is great,” she said.

Mueller said she hopes the race coming here can help repair cycling’s reputation, which was damaged by the Lance Armstrong scandal involving performance-enhancing drugs.

“The whole Lance situation really put a huge stain on the sport,” she said. “We need to have a fresh outlook on bike racing and take that scar and hopefully put it in the past.”


For details, visit amgentourofcalifornia.com.