The Amgen Tour of California’s sixth stage starting gun sent racers on their way to Mountain High at 11:45 a.m. Friday in Old Town Newhall.

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The racers participating in stage 6 made the long ride to Mountain High on Friday, and will be back in Santa Clarita on Saturday at the Westfield Valencia Town Center mall for the start of stage 7.

For more pictures, vist KHTS’ Facebook page, here. 

Prior to the race beginning, attendees had the chance to tour the team trailers set up along Main Street in Newhall, check out the racing bikes and wait for the chance to catch some of the biggest names in cycling for a pre-race autograph.

Santa Clarita Mayor Laurene Weste was in attendance at the event, along with Mayor Pro Tem  Marsha McLean and councilmembers Bob Kellar, Dante Acosta  and TimBen Boydston.  

““We are a biking community with over 70 miles of trail in Santa Clarita,” Weste said. “We are looking forward to seeing everyone at stage 7 tomorrow.“

Lined up behind the starting line, team cars had multiple bikes attached to their roofs, ready to follow the racers along their steep climb to Mountain High, with temperatures reaching nearly 100 degrees.

At the main stage, two announcers discussed the race prospects for the hot California day and interviewed riders as they came to sign in for the event.

Many of the racers gave short interviews at the main stage before heading to their bikes, including Taylor Phinney, winner of stage 5, and Bradley Wiggins, overall race leader and past winner of the Tour de France.

Several local vendors and organizations had booths set up at the event. The Old Town Newhall Association and SUNPOWER by Green Convergence were sharing information with visitors on Main Street.

Santa Clarita will be hosting the beginning of stage 7 Saturday at the Westfield Mall in Valencia. This is the first time in Amgen Tour history that two separate race starts will take place in the same city, according to a press release from the city of Santa Clarita.

Road Closures, May 17 

The following road closures will be in effect for Saturday morning and afternoon:

11:25 am – 11:55 am

• Northbound Mcbean Parkway between Town Center and Newhall Ranch
• Eastbound Newhall Ranch Road between McBean Parkway and Bouquet Canyon

11:25 am – 12:10 pm

• North/eastbound Newhall Ranch Road between McBean Parkway and Bouquet Canyon

11:30 am – 12:15 pm

• All traffic, Bouquet Canyon Road, from Plum Canyon Road to Vasquez Canyon Road

11:30 am -12:25 pm

• All traffic, Vasquez Canyon Road between Bouquet Canyon Road and Sierra Highway

11:40 am – 12:25 pm

• All traffic, Sierra Highway between Vasquez Canyon Road and Sand Canyon Road

11:50 am – 12:40 pm

• All traffic, Sand Canyon Road from Sierra canyon Road to Soledad Canyon Road

11:55 am – 12:40 pm

• Eastbound, Soledad Canyon Road, between Sand Canyon Road and State Highway 14

For more information about road closures and Santa Clarita’s participation in the Amgen tour, visit the Santa Clarita Amgen tour website, here. 

Do you have a news tip? Call us at (661) 298-1220, or drop us a line at community@hometownstation.com.

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