Sacramento Hosts Next Stage of Women's Cycling Movement

While the men will garner most of the attention for what they do in the Amgen Tour of California bicycle race, women racers are making a splash of their own.

For the first time, Amgen will host a two-day race in Sacramento and Folsom and two American stars "The Two Allisons" are in the race. 

Allison Powers won the Tour de San Luis and the Redlands Time Trial and is a two-time national champion. She says she's enthusiastic about the emergence of women's competitive cycling but is reluctant to call 2014, "the year of the women."

"All the momentum started building last year on women's cycling," she says. "The women's tour, Britain is going on, we got an extra day here, we're getting more and more recognition, more sponsors, more races, more teams, like my team - United Healthcare - added us.  So, it kind of is. I hope this year isn't the year of the woman. I hope it becomes the years of the women."

Allison Tetrick with Twenty 16 Pro Cycling was a microbiologist in cancer research for Amgen when she started competing professionally five years ago.

"I'm obviously very excited about these two days to bring awareness about two things near and dear to my heart. First one being women's cycling. As a professional female cyclist, I'm very passionate about the sport," she says. "The other one of course is bringing awareness of something that should mean a lot to all of us and that's those suffering from cancer."

The women's race is scheduled to begin at noon on a 1.25-mile course around the Capitol.  The women will race in a time trial Monday through Folsom.