SNOWBIRD, UTAH (Aug. 12, 2019) – Canadian James Piccoli of Elevate-KHS Pro Cycling was the fastest man at Snowbird Resort in Monday’s opening day for the 2019 Larry H. Miller Tour of Utah. Piccoli won the 3.2-mile (5.3-kilometer) Prologue presented by Zions Bank in a time of 8 minutes, 37 seconds.
“We’re really happy that we came away with the first stage of the Larry H. Miller Tour of Utah. It’s a great confidence boost going into the week. For sure, seven seconds is not going to be the difference this week between winning and losing with some of the climbs coming up, which are quite beautiful, but also quite hard. But it’s a great way to start the week,” said Piccoli. He will wear the Larry H. Miller Group of Companies Overall Leader’s jersey on Tuesday.
On a picture-perfect day with a backdrop of Mount Superior in the Wasatch Mountains, Piccoli bested 112 other riders on the opening day of racing for the weeklong stage race. Pacing was key on the out-and-back course, half of it on the steep pitches in Little Cottonwood Canyon.
Starting at one-minute intervals, the riders went vertical from the start before flying down the fast 1.5-mile descent to the finish line, hitting speeds of 50 miles per hour.
True to its nickname as “America’s Toughest Stage Race,” the 2019 Tour of Utah will provide 37,882 feet of elevation gain over 477 miles of racing on Aug. 12-18. Racing continues Tuesday with Stage 1 presented by Larry H. Miller Group of Companies, taking place in North Logan City. Stage 1 features a completely new 86.9-mile (139.9-km) course that traverses the western slopes of the Bear River Mountains for 4,310 feet of elevation gain. The peloton will make two circuits around Little Mountain, passing less than 10 miles south of the Idaho state line before returning to North Logan City for five fast and furious finishing laps. Click HERE to follow the race live.