The Amgen Tour of California will be cycling through Pacifica along Highway One on Monday, Feb. 16, which is President’s Day. This is a rigorous, 750-mile, nine day event, beginning on Saturday, Feb. 14 and ending on Monday, February 22.

Starting in 2005, this is the fourth year of the annual cycling race to promote cancer awareness. The trek begins at Sacramento moving downwards to Escondido; it consists of eight stages, a shorter prologue, and the courses vary. One day, the competitors will ride across the Golden Gate Bridge. The next, they will struggle up the 5,123 foot Palomar Mountain near San Bernardino.

Top cyclists from around the world, including Seven time Tour de France champion Lance Armstrong the defending Tour de France champion, Carlos Sastre, as well as Olympic gold medalist Fabian Cancellara will be competing in the event. The competitors will be breezing along the Highway for close to an hour, from approximately nine o’clock to ten o’clock in the morning. They will only be in Pacifica for an estimated ten minutes or so, as they make their way to the day’s destination in Santa Cruz.

It goes without saying that southward bound lanes on Highway one will be closed off to traffic during the time from nine to ten o’clock on that Monday morning. Check back in future issues for more on this historic event.