Stage four is the longest stage in the Tour of California. In the morning, the riders will leave Sonora and then wind their way through Mariposa and Oakhurst before they arrive in Clovis... 130 miles later.
Portions of Bullard and Pollasky were closed Tuesday afternoon as crews prepared for the Wednesday's all day festival. Several more roads will be closed then, including portions of Fifth, Third, and Woodworth.
"The live broadcast can be seen in 200 countries. The riders come from 25 different countries. So the planet will be looking at Clovis tomorrow for cycling -- to see what happens in the finish of stage four," said Greg Newman, the chairman of the Clovis Organizing Committee.
The excitement isn't new to Clovis. In 2009, it also hosted the finish for stage four of the race, which included Lance Armstrong. That year, the owner of Hearts Delight in Old Town Clovis hadn't even heard of the Tour of California. "It was a little bit different, a little bit scary to close the streets off in the middle of the week, just to see what was going to happen. By noon, we were happy. There were a lot of people on the street, and it was it was just an exciting, exciting day," said Cora Shipley. This year, Shipley is planning for the crowds and another busy day.
City streets will be closed to make room for dozens of vendors and food booths. It all begins at 11 a.m. "It's a big footprint; it's all of Downtown Clovis. We wanted to make sure all of the amenities are here for everybody who shows up tomorrow," said Newman.
Clovis resident Brian Michael will be one of the people in those crowds. "This is like the Indianapolis 500 or the Kentucky Derby or the Super Bowl for the U.S.A. for riding a bicycle. If you get a chance to see it, you're very lucky," said Michael.
