Tour of the Valley winds through Columbiana County

Cyclists get look at Columbiana

By Brandon Judeh

sports@vindy.com

Columbiana

The fifth annual Tour of the Valley is well under way as more than 300 bicyclists took part in Stage 2 of the three-day event, starting at Columbiana High School.

Saturday’s event was perhaps the most grueling of the three races, as the 35-mile, two-lap course took cyclists through the challenging hills of Columbiana County as the riders were vying to get one step closer to a $12,000 cash prize.

“Last year was the first year we held the race here at Columbiana High School,” said J.R. Petsko, director of Appalachian Bicycle Association. “I’m known for putting on hard courses and this area is known for its hills that continue to climb and put riders through the pain.”

The morning racing attracted spectators from near and far. One of those fans, Pittsburgh’s Greg Flood, says he comes out to watch because he himself is a long-time racer and wants to support his friends.

“I’ve been racing on and off for 15 years, but decided to take a break this year, “ Flood said. “I’m volunteering at this event to help out and be close to the action. It will be nice because I’ll have a front row seat to everything because I’m driving the wheel truck.”

Petsko says the reason many competitors and spectators make it out to these events is because of the explosion of social media such as Facebook and Twitter.

“Social media is where it’s at for bike racing,” he said. “Anymore, everything is online so it helps spread the word of races. Today we have riders from Canada, Florida, Arizona and many more states.”

With more than a third of the competitors coming from out of town, Petsko says this helps the local economy and brings interest into the area.

“There’s a lot of people here from Ohio as well since it’s local, but a lot of these racers came a long way to participate,” Petsko said. “It brings in a lot of money to the community. We estimate that each racer averages $175 per day so times that by 300-plus people and we are bringing in more than $150,000 for the three days we’re here.”

The Tour of the Valley brings in many racers, both experienced and beginners.

Phil Barnes made a nearly six-hour trip from Maryland to participate in his first Tour of the Valley event. It is also just his third race.

“I’m relatively new to racing — I started about a year ago,” Barnes said. “I heard about this race after being in one last week, I got an email notifying me about this race and decided to make the trip out.”

The race’s final stage, known as the Criterium, will take place today in downtown Youngstown.

Visit Tourofthevalley.com for more information.