The USA Cycling National Championships will be in Augusta from June 22 – 26. Races will be held at venues including: Fort Gordon, J. Strom Thurmond Dam and downtown Augusta. The following outlines information pertaining to road closures and detours.

Wednesday, June 22
Races will be held at Fort Gordon on Wednesday, June 22. Race traffic will be entering Fort Gordon through Gate 1. Traffic entering Fort Gordon will be heaviest between 6am and 10am.

Thursday, June 23
The USA Cycling National Time Trial Championships will be held at J. Strom Thurmond Dam on Thursday, June 23. US-221 (Clarks Hill Rd) will be closed from SC-28 to Washington Rd to non-race traffic from 7am to 6pm. Law enforcement from McCormick County will oversee traffic management on the South Carolina side of Thurmond Dam. Motorists wishing to use US 221 from Pollards Corner to McCormick, SC will be detoured along State Route 47 to Lincolnton and on to McCormick from there.

SR-150 from Washington Rd to Ray Owens Rd will be closed to non-race traffic from 8am to 2:30pm. Traffic will be detoured along Ray Owens Rd.

Officers from the Columbia County Sheriff’s Office will be controlling the intersection at Pollards Corner (US-221 and SR-47) and Ray Owens Rd. and SR-150. Expect short delays between 8am and 2:30pm.

On the day of the time trials the following U.S. Army Corps of Engineers-operated parks located along the bike route will be closed: Clarks Hill Park in McCormick County, SC, and West Dam and Lake Springs in Columbia County, GA. Petersburg campground, which is also located on the bike route, will remain open but have limited ingress/egress during the event.

A big “thanks” goes out to the Corps of Engineers' spillway gate contractor, AMC, who willingly offered to move off-site for the duration of the event. For any questions concerning Corps of Engineers recreation areas please contact Chief Ranger Chrissy Westerberg at (864) 333-1121.

Friday, June 24
The National Criterium Championships will take place in downtown Augusta on Friday, June 24. The east bound lane of Broad St. will be closed to all traffic at 12th St. Other road closures include 12th St. from Broad St. to Ellis St., 9th St. from Broad St. to Ellis St., and Ellis St. from 12th St. to 9th St.

No parking will be allowed on the following streets after 5am on June 24:
Broad St. (east bound lane) from 12th St. to 9th St.
Ellis St. from 12th St. to 9th St.
9th, 10th, 11th and 12th St. from Broad St. to Ellis St.

Saturday, June 25 and Sunday, June 26
The final day of racing will take place on the Major Matthew P. Burke, M.D. Championship Course on Range Road. Race traffic will enter Fort Gordon at Gate 1.

For more information, please contact the Augusta Sports Council at 706.722.8326.

Contact:
Michelle Naval
Augusta Sports Council
michelle@augustasportscouncil.org
706.722.8326 x231

Volunteers Needed for USA Cycling National Championships

Augusta, GA (June 6, 2011) - The Augusta Sports Council is seeking volunteers for the upcoming USA Cycling National Championships that will be held the week of June 21- June 26.  According to event organizers over 300 volunteers will be needed for the event.  Opportunities to help will begin mid-week prior to the three race venues at Fort Gordon, J. Strom Thurmond Dam, and downtown Augusta. 

This is the first year  that Augusta will host one of USA Cycling’s most popular and competitive events, the Juniors, U23, Elite & Paralympic Road National Championships June 22 through June 26th.  With over 1000 athletes expected to compete for national championships in road, individual time trial and criterium disciplines some competitors will also ride for spots for the 2011 UCI Road World Championships team. The 2011 National Championships will be used in the selection process for the World Championship team for the Elite Women’s category and the US Paralympics races. The 2012 National Championships will select the Women’s “long team” for the 2012 Olympics in London, as well as identify the selection for the US Paralympics team for the 2012 London Paralympic team.

For more information call 706.722.8326 x231 or download the waiver and volunteer form here:

Waiver.pdf (111.08 kb)

USA Cycling, the national governing body for bicycle racing in the United States, has selected Augusta, Georgia to host the 2011 and 2012 USA Cycling Elite/U23/Juniors Road National Championships and Paralympic Road National Championships.  The 2011 event is scheduled for June 21-26, 2011. The 2012 races will take place the week of June 18 – 24.

Over 700 men and women athletes are expected for the weeklong championship event.  National titles will be awarded in each category for the road race, criterium, and individual time trial competitions. Bend, Oregon hosted the championships this year and in 2009.  This is the second time Augusta has hosted national cycling championships.  In 1994 the city hosted the Masters National Championships.   The 2011 event will mark the first major bike races in Augusta since hosting a stage-finish for Tour de Georgia in 2008. 

The selection of Augusta to host the cycling national championships marks the second year in a row the area has been chosen to host a major bicycling event.  Last summer the International Mountain Bike Association chose Augusta to host its 2010 IMBA World Summit. The mountain biking industry and advocacy conference was held here this past may.

“We’re truly honored to have been selected by USA Cycling to host the 2011 and 2012 cycling championships”, stated Tammy Stout, the Sports Council’s executive director.   “We strive to secure at least one high profile championship event a year and this certainly falls within that mission.”  In addition to the great public relations value the USA Cycling Elite/U23/Juniors Road National Championships and Paralympic Road National Championships will bring to the area, the economic impact should be pretty significant as well. According to an economic impact study commissioned by the University of Oregon, the national championships in Bend, Oregon generated nearly $2 million for their local economy.