King of the mountain

Times Reporter   

 

The Tour of Alberta announced another title that racers can compete for during the September, 900-km event. Each day, cyclists can win the Government of Alberta Leader jersey, the Subway Sprint jersey, the Canadian Western Bank Best Young Rider jersey, the Most Aggressive Rider jersey, the Top Canadian jersey, and now, the polka-dot KOM jersey. The King of the Mountain (KOM) will allow racers to earn more points based on their individual times, proving their pacing and endurance over speed.

“Climbers are traditionally the smaller, leaner riders in the bunch weighing 60 kilograms or less, who dance their way up the big hills,” said Tour of Alberta Chair, and former professional cyclist Brian Jolly, in a press release. 

“Their high endurance levels help them to recover quickly, and the KOM intervals give climbers a chance to propel their team’s score while adding significantly to their own personal bests.”

The King of the Mountain intervals become more and more challenging as the race goes on – the intervals are as follows with their elevations: Sept. 3 in Edmonton on km 4 to 5.4 at the Alberta Legislature (669 m); Sept. 5 from Devon to Red Deer on km 148.8 at Highway 11/Red Deer Drive (890 m); Sept. 6 from Strathmore to Drumheller on km 98.2 at Highway 9 (835 m) and km 130.9 at Highway 27/Red Deer River (827 m); Sept. 7 at Black Diamond Foothills on km 81.9 and 120.4 at 274 Avenue (same location twice, 1302 m); Sept. 8 Okotoks to Calgary on km 42.4 at Route 762 (1362 m).

Well-known climber Ryder Hesjedal of Victoria, B.C. will be competing for the USA’s Team Garmin-Sharp. The Tour begins Sept. 3.