It’s a bunch of Euro dudes with shaved legs riding around in funny looking outfits.

That’s the uneducated view of professional cycling, which makes a colorful splash in Clovis today with the Stage 4 finish of the Amgen Tour of California.

Take a closer look though, and you’ll discover a sport that combines incredible stamina, complicated tactics, gorgeous scenery and the constant threat of danger. When you hit pavement at 40 mph wearing nothing but a thin layer of Lycra, the results aren’t pleasant.

Some thoughts and ideas as America’s biggest bike race wheels into town:

Best place to watch

For today’s expected sprint finish, anywhere in downtown Clovis will do fine. With four right-hand turns in the last 1.5 miles, it’s a fairly technical finale. If you can’t be near the finish line on Pollasky Avenue between Bullard and 7th, head to the final corner at Pollasky and Sierra. At one kilometer (0.6 miles) to the finish, positioning will be critical. There’s almost certain to be some chaos.

It takes a team

Peter Sagan (Liquigas-Cannondale) has dominated the race by winning all three stages, and today could well be No. 4. No slighting Sagan’s incredible talent, but the 22-year-old Slovak isn’t doing it alone. In the sprints, Sagan relies on his lead-out man, Daniel Oss, to position him at the front of the peloton inside the last half-mile. Sagan then uses Oss’ draft as a slingshot on his final surge. Oss is easy to spot on television replays. He’s the guy with his arms in the air celebrating another Sagan triumph.

What about the climbs?

Today’s 130.2-mile stage from Sonora to Clovis features six categorized climbs, all of which award points that count toward the red polka-dot jersey. The first five are on Highway 49 through the foothills of Mariposa. Once at Oakhurst, the route heads uphill as the field tackles the final climb up Crane Valley Road to Teaford Saddle. It’s more than 40 miles to the finish, ample distance to absorb any breakaways.

See the carnival

The AToC is more than a bike race. It’s a traveling festival. Downtown Clovis will be packed with more than 60 vendor booths stuffed with things like with cycling gear, health and fitness aids, bike safety info, family activities, food and beer. There’s a parade of Breakaway From Cancer walkers, a bagpipe band, and a horse troupe, and Save Mart is bringing out the world’s largest shopping cart. To avoid road closures, park at the Sierra Vista Mall and take the free shuttle. It runs every 15 minutes from noon until an hour after the race.

Spectacle of cycling

Bike racing wouldn’t be possible without support from cars and motorcycles. The AToC brings over the same camera crews the Tour de France uses. It takes amazing skill for a motorcycle driver to avoid hitting a bike across all types of terrain while staying close enough for the cameraman (who rides on the back) to capture the action. Without these guys, there would be no race footage to televise in more than 200 countries. Trailing the peloton is a endless procession of race officials, team cars and support vehicles. What’s that whirr up above? Oh, a helicopter. For a bike race, it adds up to a lot of gasoline.

By Marek Warszawski

It’s a bunch of Euro dudes with shaved legs riding around in funny looking outfits.

That’s the uneducated view of professional cycling, which makes a colorful splash in Clovis today with the Stage 4 finish of the Amgen Tour of California.

Take a closer look though, and you’ll discover a sport that combines incredible stamina, complicated tactics, gorgeous scenery and the constant threat of danger. When you hit pavement at 40 mph wearing nothing but a thin layer of Lycra, the results aren’t pleasant.

Some thoughts and ideas as America’s biggest bike race wheels into town:

Best place to watch

For today’s expected sprint finish, anywhere in downtown Clovis will do fine. With four right-hand turns in the last 1.5 miles, it’s a fairly technical finale. If you can’t be near the finish line on Pollasky Avenue between Bullard and 7th, head to the final corner at Pollasky and Sierra. At one kilometer (0.6 miles) to the finish, positioning will be critical. There’s almost certain to be some chaos.

It takes a team

Peter Sagan (Liquigas-Cannondale) has dominated the race by winning all three stages, and today could well be No. 4. No slighting Sagan’s incredible talent, but the 22-year-old Slovak isn’t doing it alone. In the sprints, Sagan relies on his lead-out man, Daniel Oss, to position him at the front of the peloton inside the last half-mile. Sagan then uses Oss’ draft as a slingshot on his final surge. Oss is easy to spot on television replays. He’s the guy with his arms in the air celebrating another Sagan triumph.

What about the climbs?

Today’s 130.2-mile stage from Sonora to Clovis features six categorized climbs, all of which award points that count toward the red polka-dot jersey. The first five are on Highway 49 through the foothills of Mariposa. Once at Oakhurst, the route heads uphill as the field tackles the final climb up Crane Valley Road to Teaford Saddle. It’s more than 40 miles to the finish, ample distance to absorb any breakaways.

See the carnival

The AToC is more than a bike race. It’s a traveling festival. Downtown Clovis will be packed with more than 60 vendor booths stuffed with things like with cycling gear, health and fitness aids, bike safety info, family activities, food and beer. There’s a parade of Breakaway From Cancer walkers, a bagpipe band, and a horse troupe, and Save Mart is bringing out the world’s largest shopping cart. To avoid road closures, park at the Sierra Vista Mall and take the free shuttle. It runs every 15 minutes from noon until an hour after the race.

Spectacle of cycling

Bike racing wouldn’t be possible without support from cars and motorcycles. The AToC brings over the same camera crews the Tour de France uses. It takes amazing skill for a motorcycle driver to avoid hitting a bike across all types of terrain while staying close enough for the cameraman (who rides on the back) to capture the action. Without these guys, there would be no race footage to televise in more than 200 countries. Trailing the peloton is a endless procession of race officials, team cars and support vehicles. What’s that whirr up above? Oh, a helicopter. For a bike race, it adds up to a lot of gasoline.

By Marek Warszawski

Four Clovis fishermen who got lost Saturday while hiking back to camp from Upper Twin Lake, in the Kaiser Wilderness, were found early this morning by the Fresno County Sheriff’s Search and Rescue team.

The search began around 6 p.m. Saturday when the fishermen called for help, said sheriff’s Lt. Patrick Hanson.

The trails were difficult to find because of melting snow and the fishermen got turned around, Hanson said.

The search and rescue team found the men around 3 a.m. Sunday, he said.

By BoNhia Lee

They stood as one early Friday evening, cradling their third Central Section championship badminton plaque in four years at Clovis East High, and it mattered none whatsoever the variance in height and athletic background between 5-foot-2 Maikor Xiong and 5-foot-8 Hannah Sodersten.

Such is the beauty of badminton, a growing 12-year-old sport in the Fresno/Clovis area.

“In so many words,” Clovis East athletic director Pete Price says, “every girl can play no matter what athletic ability they have. It’s an exploding sport; competitive and fun.”

No one has played it better than Xiong, Sodersten and the Timberwolves, who closed a second straight unbeaten season by defeating Buchanan 11-8 on their home court.

Xiong, as 15-0 Clovis East’s No. 1 singles player and headed for a third straight Bee All-Star honor, won 11-0, 11-0 in her first match and 11-0, 11-1 in her second. Carrying a 3.9 grade-point average, she will attend UC Davis on an academic scholarship.

Sodersten, a returning Bee All-Star in badminton and The Bee’s 2011 co-Player of the Year in golf, where she is headed to Fresno State on athletic scholarship, coasted in her matches 11-0, 11-0 and 11-1, 11-1.

On a day the Timberwolves were not pushed in singles as Buchanan coach Bene Azali, as expected, dropped his top singles players into doubles, Clovis East also received 11-1, 11-2 and 11-0, 11-1 wins from its No. 4 player, Gao Nou Vang.

By stacking his doubles, Azali rolled the dice while hoping to sweep all 10 doubles points. The Bears won eight as Clovis East’s Yula Thao and Ka Thao (no relation) torpedoed the strategy by winning twice.

For seniors Xiong, Sodersten and Vang, it was a fitting curtain call, having contributed to teams that went 57-3 in four years.

“It’s really amazing we won the three Valley championships,” Xiong said. “But I’m kind of sad I’m leaving, though.”

She is a prime example of a Southeast Asian-American student-athlete who has seized the opportunity to compete in a sport launched in the area 12 years ago in part to better connect students of her descent on campus. At Clovis East, coach Janine Sodersten, Hannah’s mother, counts 51 Asian-Americans among the 55 players in her program.

Now the question: Will Janine Sodersten continue to direct the school’s girls tennis and badminton programs with three younger children — one girl, two boys — coming up through the district and active in sports?

“I don’t know,” she said. “I’ll talk to my husband this summer, sit on it and take a look.”

Hannah Sodersten, while looking forward to plowing into golf fulltime as a Bulldog, is not about to walk away from badminton entirely.

“Fresno State has an open gym for recreation badminton,” she said, “so I’ll play there.”

By Andy Boogaard

Clovis West and El Diamante high schools — the cream of the Central Section crop all season — were awarded top seeds Saturday for the Division I baseball and softball playoffs.

Other top seeds went to Clovis North (D-II), Fresno (D-III), Kerman (D-IV), Corcoran (D-V), Mendota (D-VI) in baseball, and Garces (D-II), Ridgeview (D-III), Taft (D-IV), Exeter (D-V) and Sierra Pacific (D-VI) in softball.

The baseball playoffs begin Tuesday and continue Thursday, with semifinals on May 22 and championships on May 24. Softball runs Wednesday, Friday and May 23 before the finals on May 25. The D-VI finals are May 22 (baseball) and May 23 (softball).

The Golden Eagles baseball team won a section-best 28 games, captured the Tri-River Athletic Conference title and went a combined 13-3 against teams in the D-I bracket.

The Miners softball team went a section-leading 29-1, won the West Yosemite League title and went a combined 10-1 against teams in the D-I field. El Diamante split two games against second-seeded Central.

Defending champs are Buchanan (D-I), Frontier (D-II), Hanford West (D-III), Bakersfield Christian (D-IV), Corcoran (D-V) and Mendota (D-VI) in baseball, and El Diamante (D-I), Frontier (D-II), Ridgeview (D-III), Chowchilla (D-IV), Liberty-Madera Ranchos (D-V) and McFarland (D-VI) in softball.

The Fresno Bee

• First, let’s get something straight: The author takes no credit (or blame) for raising the issue of Margie Wright’s future on the day Fresno State’s longtime softball coach announced her retirement.

If we had any pull in this town, pints of Tioga-Sequoia would cost a nickel and the stoplights would be eternally green on Shaw Avenue.

• Frankly, it’s a surprise. And judging by the response, Bulldogs fans are surprised, too. Few expected Wright to walk away, particularly with a five-year extension on the table.

But Wright always did things her way — even when her way rubbed people the wrong way — up until the very end. Hard not to respect that.

• Looking at Thomas Boeh’s recent coaching hires, it’s evident the athletic director doesn’t put much stock in Fresno State ties.

But this search feels different. Surely there’s a candidate who played or coached for Wright who could continue her legacy.

• Then again, if Lisa Fernandez truly is interested, as the three-time Olympic gold medalist indicated to Comrade Boogaard, Boeh’s job is done.

Fernandez is the one hire (and the only one) that moves the needle in terms of both local and national attention.

• Devon Wylie, turning heads in the Kansas City Chiefs’ mini-camp, insists he didn’t request jersey number 83.

Sounds like Wylie might be getting a little tired of the Wes Welker comparisons. Now’s the time to remind him Welker will make $9.5 million this fall.

• No surprise Boise State is rethinking its exit from the Mountain West Conference.

With a four-team playoff coming, why join a league that’s on shakier footing than the one you’re leaving?

• Bryce Harper’s teammates are calling him “Bam Bam” after the 19-year-old sensation gave himself 10 stitches over the eye in a self-inflicted injury with a bat.

“Dumb Dumb” must’ve been taken.

• Here’s what Josh Hamilton said after blasting his ninth home run in six games: “It’s been a good week.”

Yeah, and McDonald’s had a good century.

• For no particular reason: Jermaine Jamison.

• That wasn’t a misprint, or an exaggeration. Fourteen thousand people really turned out Friday night at Chukchansi Park.

Heck, it wasn’t even $1 beer night. Nor did the Swedish bikini team reserve the pool area.

• What are the chances the boss lets us Take the Day Off on Wednesday to enjoy the Amgen Tour of California Stage 4 finish in Clovis?

About the same as a fat guy winning the sprint.

By Marek Warszawski

BASEBALL

• Logan Carter gave up one run in six innings, and Ryan Clark, Joseph Garabedian and Scott Silva each tripled as Clovis West — No. 4 in the state — roared toward an expected No. 1 seed in the Division I playoffs with an 8-1 rout of Clovis. The Golden Eagles have but one legitimate threat for the D-I top seed — Bullard — and Clovis West beat the Knights 12-1 in February. The baseball and softball seeds will be determined today in the office of section commissioner Jim Crichlow in Porterville.

SOFTBALL

• Lindsey Clarkson pitched a three-hitter with 10 strikeouts as Central defeated Clovis East 8-0 to clinch outright the TRAC title. Kaylynn Burt was 4-for-5 with four RBIs for the Grizzlies, who will battle El Diamante for the top D-I seed. Central and the state’s seventh-ranked Miners split two games.

Valley high school graduations

Ceremonies on campus unless noted

FRESNO UNIFIED

Bullard, 8 p.m., June 11, Save Mart Center

Cambridge Continuation, 6 p.m., June 11, Roosevelt Auditorium

Design Science, 7 p.m., May 21, FCC Old Administration Building

DeWolf Continuation, 6 p.m., June 6, Fresno High, Royce Hall

Duncan Polytechnical, 6 p.m., June 13, Saroyan Theatre

Edison, 4 p.m., June 12, Save Mart Center

Fresno High, 4 p.m., June 11, Save Mart Center

Fresno Adult GED, 1:30 p.m., June 13, Saroyan Theatre

Fresno Adult, 3 p.m., June 13, Saroyan Theatre

Hoover, 8 p.m., June 12, Save Mart Center

J.E. Young, 11 a.m., June 13, Saroyan Theatre

McLane, 7:30 p.m., June 12

Roosevelt, 8 p.m., June 13, Save Mart Center

Sunnyside, 4 p.m., June 13, Save Mart Center

CLOVIS UNIFIED

Buchanan, 7:30 p.m., June 7, Veterans Memorial Stadium

Clovis, 7:30 p.m., May 30, Lamonica Stadium

Clovis East, 7:30 p.m., May 31, Lamonica Stadium

Clovis North, 7:30 p.m., June 5, Veterans Memorial Stadium

Clovis West, 7:30 p.m., June 6, Veterans Memorial Stadium

FRESNO COUNTY

Caruthers, 7:30 p.m., May 25

Central East & West, 7 p.m., June 6, Selland Arena

Coalinga, 8 p.m., June 7

El Puente Continuation, 6 p.m., June 6, Firebaugh Middle School Multipurpose Room

Firebaugh, 7:30 p.m., June 8

Fowler, 7:30 p.m., June 7

Fresno Christian, 7 p.m., May 24, Peoples Church Sanctuary

Hallmark Charter, 6 p.m., June 9, Saroyan Theatre

Heartland Continuation, 7 p.m., May 29, Abraham Lincoln Middle School

Kerman, 7 p.m., June 7

Kingsburg, 7:30 p.m., June 7

Laton, 8 p.m., June 8

Mendota, 7:30 p.m., June 7

Orange Cove, 8 p.m., June 8

Parlier, 7:30 p.m., June 6

Reedley, 8 p.m., June 7

Riverdale, 7 p.m., June 8

San Joaquin Memorial, 8 p.m., May 31, Saroyan Theatre

Sandy Bluff Alternative Education Center, 7 p.m., June 4

Sanger, 7:30 p.m., June 8, Washington Middle School/Tom Flores Stadium

Selma, 7:30 p.m., May 31

Sierra, 8 p.m., June 7

Tranquillity, 7 p.m., June 7

Washington Union, 7:30 p.m., June 1

KINGS COUNTY

Avenal, 8 p.m., June 8

Corcoran, 8 p.m., June 1

Donald C. Jamison, 7 p.m., May 30, Lemoore High Event Center

Hanford Adult, 7 p.m., May 29, Presentation Center

Hanford High, 8 p.m., June 1

Hanford West, 8 p.m., May 31, Neighbor Bowl

Lemoore, 8 p.m., May 31

MADERA COUNTY

Chawanakee Academy, 7 p.m., June 4, Spring Valley Elementary School

Chowchilla Union, 8 p.m., June 8

Glacier High/Charter, 4 p.m., June 1, Mountain Christian Center

Liberty, 7 p.m., May 31

Madera, 7:30 p.m., May 31

Madera South, 7:30 p.m., June 1, Memorial Stadium

Minarets, 7 p.m., June 7

Mountain Oaks, 5:30 p.m., June 6,

Yosemite Unified alternative education, Ahwahnee, Campbell, Evergreen, Foothill, Raymond Granite, Yosemite Falls and Yosemite Adult, 7 p.m., May 29, Mountain Christian Center

Yosemite, 7:30 p.m., June 1

PORTERVILLE UNIFIED

Butterfield Charter, 4 p.m., May 22, Buck Shaffer Memorial Auditorium, Porterville High

Citrus, 6:30 p.m., May 24

Granite Hills, 7:30 p.m., May 24

Harmony Magnet Academy, 6 p.m., May 25, Buck Shaffer Memorial Auditorium

Monache, 7:30 p.m., May 25, Jacob Rankin Stadium, Granite Hills

Porterville Adult, 7 p.m., May 22, Buck Shaffer Memorial Auditorium, Porterville High

Porterville High, 7:30 p.m., May 23, Jacob Rankin Stadium, Granite Hills

Strathmore, 8 p.m., May 25

TULARE JOINT UNION

Mission Oak, 8 p.m., June 6, Bob Mathias Stadium

Tulare Union, 8 p.m., June 8, Bob Mathias Stadium

Tulare Western, 8 p.m., June 7, Bob Mathias Stadium

VISALIA UNIFIED

El Diamante, 7:30 p.m., June 6, Mineral King Bowl

Golden West, 7:30 p.m., June 5, Mineral King Bowl

Mt. Whitney, 7:30 p.m., June 8, Mineral King Bowl

Redwood, 7:30 p.m., June 7, Mineral King Bowl

Visalia Adult, 7:30 p.m., June 4, Visalia Community Stadium

Visalia Charter Independent Study, 6 p.m., June 5, Visalia Community Stadium

TULARE COUNTY

Dinuba, 7 p.m., May 24

Exeter, 8 p.m., June 1

Farmersville, 7:30 p.m., June 14

La Sierra Military Academy, 7:30 p.m., June 6

Lindsay, 7 p.m., June 1

Orosi, 6 p.m., June 7

Woodlake, 8 p.m., June 8, Twilight Park

NORTH VALLEY

Dos Palos, 7 p.m., June 8

Mariposa County High, 8 p.m., June 6, Mariposa County Fairgrounds

Garrett Noell’s habit of letting his speeding tickets go unpaid jeopardized his job driving the slow-speed Zamboni at a Fresno ice rink.

So when he heard about a state ticket amnesty program, the 26-year-old hot-footed it down to the courthouse to make good on the tickets.

The program allowed him to pay only half of the $1,625 he owed on three speeding tickets from 2006 and 2008 and get his driver’s license restored — not to mention his Zamboni privileges at Gateway Ice Center.

Noell said he was willing to risk driving on a suspended license and avoid paying the tickets when he was younger. But “it’s a lot less stress” to drive legally again, he said.

But relatively few scofflaws out of the tens of thousands in the central San Joaquin Valley owing millions of dollars in fines have taken the half-off deal, which expires June 30.

The process is simple: fill out a one-page form and write a check to the local Superior Court.

In Fresno County, 214 people wiped the slate clean as of last week. In Kings County, 253 cleared their records; in Madera County, 58; and in Tulare County, 625.

Why so few takers on the state’s offer? “People either don’t want to pay their fines or don’t have the money,” said Todd Barton, court executive officer in Kings County.

All the counties have put up posters, sent out news releases and added information to their websites.

The Tulare County numbers are higher because it hired a collection agency, court administrative manager Deanna Jasso said. The agency, which collects a fee when a fine gets paid, has been “proactive” in notifying those who are eligible for the discount, she said.

Kings and Madera counties also hand off their unpaid traffic ticket cases to a collections agency.

Fresno County does its own collections, said court division manager Irene Gonzalez. She said she can’t explain why Fresno County’s numbers are lower than Tulare County’s, but said each county will vary and not every application gets approved due to restrictions.

The Legislature launched the amnesty program to raise money fast in the recession. The last time legislators authorized an amnesty was 1997.

Statewide, the amnesty is forecast to bring in $46 million, with the bulk going to counties and cities, and 4% going to the courts, the state Administrative Office of the Courts said.

As of April 30, Fresno County Superior Court had collected about $92,000, Tulare County about $266,000, Kings County about $64,000, and Madera County about $17,000.

The amnesty covers fines due before Jan. 1, 2009. Reckless driving, DUI and parking tickets aren’t covered, and anyone owing restitution or wanted on a warrant is ineligible.

Tom Osuna, 44, of Clovis paid half of the $543 he owed on a 2007 speeding ticket and a 2008 seatbelt citation.

He said he wanted to clear his record to get his suspended driver’s license restored, so he is making payments on more recent traffic tickets that don’t qualify for amnesty and hopes he can get his license back in October — and put away his bicycle.

“I’m grateful, I really am,” Osuna said. “If you are guilty, you are guilty, that’s all there is to it.”

Where to apply

Tulare County Superior Court: 221 S. Mooney Blvd., Rooms 124 and G28, in Visalia. Also: Tulare and Porterville courts

Kings County Superior Court: 1426 S. Drive, Traffic Division Dept. 5, in Hanford. Also: Corcoran, Lemoore and Avenal courts

Madera County Superior Court: Traffic Division, 201 W. Yosemite, in Madera. Wednesdays only, or call 1-800-727-5848

Fresno County Superior Court: 1100 Van Ness Ave., Room B-1, outside walk-up window, in Fresno

Qualifications:

Ticket fine due before Jan. 1, 2009.

Failed to appear or failed to pay in full (date of last payment on or before Jan. 1, 2009).

No victim restitution owed in county where case filed.

No outstanding warrants in county where case filed.

Last day to apply is June 30.

By Lewis Griswold

One hundred and twenty-eight of the world’s best professional cyclists will line the streets of Santa Rosa today for the start of Stage 1 of the Amgen Tour of California.

In reality, though, only about six or seven of them have realistic hopes of standing atop the podium when the eight-day, 750-mile event concludes next Sunday in Los Angeles.

But once you narrow things down to that select group, things are pretty wide open. On one front, it’s a battle between old and young Americans. On another, it’s the U.S. vs. the World.

Americans have won five of the first six editions of the AToC, and the lone foreign winner, Australian Michael Rogers in 2010, was riding for a team based in San Luis Obispo.

That’s not by accident. Because of the publicity it generates, the AToC is hugely important to American riders and U.S.-corporate sponsored teams. So unlike their European counterparts, many top Americans design their training programs to peak for this race.

“If you’re an American and you don’t win the Tour de France, you better win the Amgen Tour of California,” defending champion Chris Horner said in an interview with NBC Sports Network, which will provide live TV coverage to more than 200 countries.

Based on last year, Horner (RadioShack-Nissan) enters as the favorite, even at age 40. But this year’s course, with one fewer summit finish and a flat time trial, doesn’t suit him as well.

Horner laid the foundations for his 2011 victory by stomping the field by more than a minute up Sierra Road outside San Jose. He cemented the win on the brutally steep slopes of Mount Baldy, finishing shoulder-to-shoulder with then-teammate Levi Leipheimer.

Leipheimer (Omega Pharma-Quick Step) is the enemy now, but the three-time winner broke his leg six weeks ago and has said he won’t be a factor in the General Classification. Instead, Horner’s main challenge likely will come from among Americans Tejay van Garderen, Tom Danielson and Andrew Talansky, and Italian star Vincenzo Nibali.

The 23-year-old van Garderen (BMC Racing) has been knocking on the door of a stage-race victory since finishing third in the 2010 Criterium du Dauphine. He was fifth in last year’s AToC, losing 1:29 to Horner on Mount Baldy.

Danielson and Talansky are teammates on Garmin-Barracuda, and it remains to be seen whom the Colorado-based squad will anoint as leader. Danielson, 34, was third last year and is more proven in the mountains. But the 23-year-old Talansky has shown better recent form, including a second-place finish in last month’s Tour of Romandie.

Nibali, 27, is the most accomplished stage racer in the field. The Liquigas-Cannondale leader won the 2010 Vuelta a Espana and was second at the 2011 Giro d’Italia. In March, at the one-week Italian race Tirreno-Adriatico, Nibali overtook Horner in the final-stage time trial to snatch the overall victory.

While the Bakersfield time trial (Stage 5) and Mount Baldy summit finish (Stage 7) figure as the primary GC stages, three or four others should result in bunch sprints. That includes Wednesday’s Stage 4 from Sonora to Clovis, where the final climb up Crane Valley Road near Bass Lake is more than 40 miles from the finish line.

“The course is less ideal for my type of rider,” Horner said, “but it’s the hardest course we’ve experienced here — and that might play into my favor.”

WATCH THE RACE

Clovis Tour of California local organizers are holding a series of viewing parties each day before the race arrives for Wednesday’s Stage 4. The parties are 5 to 7 p.m. and include games, contests and prizes while watching the race on TV. Monday is at Cool Hand Luke’s (Shaw/Clovis avenues), Tuesday is at Red Robin (Shaw/Clovis avenues) and Wednesday is at Michelangelo’s (on Pollasky).

Details: tourofcalifornia-clovis.com

TOUR STAGES

Stage 1: Today, Santa Rosa, 115.9 miles

Stage 2: Monday, San Francisco to Santa Cruz County, 117.1 miles

Stage 3: Tuesday, San Jose to Livermore, 115.3 miles

Stage 4: Wednesday, Sonora to Clovis, 130.2 miles

Stage 5: Thursday, Bakersfield Time Trial, 18.4 miles

Stage 6: Friday, Palmdale to Big Bear Lake, 115.7 miles

Stage 7: Saturday, Ontario to Mount Baldy, 78.3 miles

Stage 8: Sunday, Beverly Hills to Los Angeles (L.A. Live), 44.7 miles

MEET THE PELOTON

A closer look at the top general classification (GC) contenders and other big names lining up for the Amgen Tour of California:

Chris Horner, RadioShack- Nissan: Defending champ’s form has been up-and-down since crashing hard in last year’s Tour de France. Will lose seconds in the time trial, so chances of a repeat hinge on whether 40-year-old can drop everyone on Mount Baldy.

Levi Leipheimer, Omega Pharma-Quick Step: Six weeks after breaking his left fibula, it’s a small victory the three-time winner (2007-09) is racing at all. Too bad he won’t be in contention.

Vincenzo Nibali, Liquigas-Cannondale: Rising Italian star already has one Grand Tour victory. He’s probably using the AToC as training for July, but who knows?

Tejay van Garderen, BMC Racing Team: He’s got a Dutch name, but the 23-year-old is one of the American young guns. Well suited for the time-trial course, so don’t be surprised if he pulls on the leader’s jersey in Bakersfield.

Tom Danielson, Garmin- Barracuda: Ninth in last year’s Tour de France following a third-place finish in the AToC, Colorado climber should excel in mountains. Hasn’t shown as much this year.

Andrew Talansky, Garmin-Barracuda: Here’s another young American hotshot coming off eye-opening second-place finish at last month’s Tour of Romandie. This could be his big breakthrough.

Tom Boonen, Omega Pharma-Quick Step: Belgian superstar and one-day classics king will enjoy the warm weather and sunny, blue skies. And if he’s feeling frisky, the sprints.

Peter Sagan, Liquigas-Cannondale: Perhaps the biggest young talent in cycling, 21-year-old Slovak already has three AToC stage wins. Look for the green blur at the finish line.

George Hincapie, BMC Racing Team: Elder statesman of U.S. cycling best known for helping Lance Armstrong to seven Tour de France titles. Has been hinting at retirement.

Jens Voigt, RadioShack-Nissan: Beloved for his attacking style and infectious enthusiasm — even at 40 — the affable German remains one of the finest “roleurs” in the peloton.

Robbie McEwen, Orica-Greenedge:The 12-time Tour de France stage winner will retire following the race. Say farewell to one of the greatest sprinters ever.

By Marek Warszawski