There are lots of good places to watch the RBC GranFondo Whistler this Saturday, but one of the best is the finish line at Lot 4. Last year the top seven male riders crossed the line within a second of each other, and the next three riders within a second after that. The next 20 riders finished within the next 10 seconds.
The women's race was also tight, with less than six seconds separating the top 10.
That's pretty impressive considering that all those riders stuck together for the entire 122km course, from the start in downtown Vancouver to the Whistler finish.
The Giro race will get underway at 6:40 a.m. this year, and last year the top riders were finished in about 3:15. If you want to see the finish you'll need to be there by at least 9:30 a.m. and probably earlier to be safe. The main group starts riding at 7 a.m.
The majority of riders are in it for personal goals, whether it's to better their time from 2010 or just to finish.
The GranFondo is part of a weekend-long festival in Whistler. On Friday, September 9 there will be a free concert by Kuba Oms at Whistler Olympic Plaza at 6:30 p.m., followed by a screening of the classic roadie movie Breaking Away at around 7:30 p.m.
The awards will get underway at noon, even as riders are still coming in, with the last riders expected before the cutoff at 4 p.m.
That night there will be a free 54-40 concert at Whistler Olympic Park, getting underway at 7 p.m. The La Festa After Party gets underway at 9 p.m. and is sold out.
For more on the race, visit www.rbcgranfondowhistler.com.
