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Q&A with Tour de Nez founder Tim Healion |
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Written by Paul Raymore
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Wednesday, 14 June 2006 |
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 Tahoe World online editor Paul Raymore interviewed Tour de Nez creator and Supreme Commander Tim Healion (on right in photo with Eddie Merckx) by phone from his office in Reno last week:
TW: So this is the 14th year you have been holding the Tour de Nez right?
Healion: Yeah, 14th year, and it’s the second year we’ve had events up in the Truckee/Tahoe area.
TW: How has the race/festival evolved over those 14 years?
Healion: Lots. It started as an anniversary party for my coffee house down in Reno, the Deux Gros Nez, and we did the party for a bunch of years just to thank the community for supporting us. Then about seven or eight years into it, as a cycling enthusiast I thought, let’s throw a bike race in the middle of the party. So we did. And 80 percent of the people there had never been around a bike race and wondered what the hell was going on and found it pretty exciting, and the guys in the race said “Wow, this is cool.”
It was just a regional deal back then — Nor Cal and Nevada masters racers — and those guys weren’t used to riding in front of the big crowd we had with the party already, so it was fun for everybody. And it pretty much took off and became one of the bigger deals on the West Coast for masters racers at the time.
And then about five years ago we decided to add a pro race to the whole thing... And that became really popular too. I had always envisioned a little multi-day stage race-type thing with a number of races and cumulative points and an overall title, and we started doing that.
And at the same time there was an article in the paper down here [in Reno] that said cycling is an amazing thing that can bring a lot of money to a community. And the convention guys and the casino guys said we should create a big bike race because it works great for other cities around the country. I went to that meeting and said, “We’ve already got one. How about some money? I’ll make it go.”
So it really ramped up at that point. We did a three-day, three-stage deal — the first year we did it up in the Virginia City area and last year and this year we’ve been doing it up in Truckee and Tahoe and finishing down here in Reno. We’re now on the national racing calendar [for USA Cycling] — one of the 33 elite races out of the 2,000 that apply — and all the big pro teams come, and we’ve been getting national TV exposure...
And every year it seems to unfold in a bigger way in pretty much every aspect: our recreational events, the festivals surrounding the events, the community events... This year’s big deal is the handcyclists and we’re doing a three-race series with the handcyclists culminating in the national championships down here in Reno on Saturday.
TW: What is the attraction of the Tour de Nez for the racers?
Healion: Let’s see if I can get this right: It’s crowds, courses and cash. The guy that won the Reno Criterium last year, Alex Candelaria, said good crowds, good courses and good cash [were what brought him to the race.] And we’ve got it all: We’ve got good crowds. We’ve got great courses that are very challenging and stunning visually. And there’s good money at this race too — $35,000 on the line.
TW: What inspired you last year to expand into the Truckee and Tahoe area?
Healion: Well, I like it up there a lot. I’ve always thought it was a very beautiful area to use as a backdrop for a bike race, so it’s stupid not to do it up there. Cycling is the most popular recreational sport in the country, period. It’s the fastest growing sport, period. So why not exploit what we’ve got. It’s so beautiful up there — the big mountains, the great backdrops, Tahoe — and the people we’ve been dealing with up there have been so helpful and receptive, it’s been wonderful.
TW: What about for spectators this year: What are some of the best events to watch from the sidelines?
Healion: I think they’re all really exciting. The criteriums [a timed race in which racers cover a short course over and over again for a designated period of time] on Thursday night in Truckee and Saturday night in Reno are arguable the best spectator events in the world of cycling. They’re really popular in the United States because you get fast action and a lot of it with guys going by every two minutes or so, and you get to watch how it’s unfolding right there in front of you.
Whereas, for example, our road race this year is 108 miles over the Truckee Triangle — Tahoe City, Kings Beach, Truckee and back three times. So they go by, then an hour and 20 minutes later they go by again... And there are some strategic ways to watch that at different spots: Brockway Summit is a great spot to watch, around Dollar Hill and even in Tahoe City is pretty cool because of the way they blow through town, and coming down the hill going into Truckee is pretty cool because they’re just flying. You can actually see the [road] race in a number of different places if you travel in the opposite direction of the racers and then make it to Tahoe City for the sprint coming into the finish.
The whole handcycling things is going to be a great deal as well — the Thursday night criterium in Truckee and Saturday night criterium in Reno. I’m still pretty excited to see 30 handcyclists come barreling around the turns in those half-hour races.
TW: How have the crowds been at all of these events? Growing each year?
Healion: Oh yeah. Last year was tough because the weather really sucked. It rained in Truckee for the criterium and there was fresh snow on the pass for the road race, yet there were still a lot of people out there. And we’re anticipating killer weather this year which, along with the festivals and the family activities, means there should be a lot of people.
TW: Cool. Well, anything else you’d like to say?
Healion: There’s a lot of stuff for people to do. It’s not something just to watch. The Clunker Classic is the over-35-pound single-speed race where we do a lap on the criterium courses and then a drag race in Tahoe City, and that’s going to be a blast. Make sure people make it down to Reno for the finals of the whole deal and the handcycling national championships where the winner gets awarded the Stars and Stripes jersey, that will be pretty cool.
And unlike say the NFL or NBA or some of the other big professional sports where there is this huge wall of bodyguards between you and the athletes, after the races these bike racers are right there in your face. You can mingle around and meet the racers, get autographs... It’s a real spectator/participant sport. It’s a lot of fun.
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Last Updated ( Monday, 19 June 2006 )
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