Images from Stage 4 Tour de France with West Maui Cycles

Wow! Attending the 100th running of Tour de France in person is nothing short of a dream come true! This past Tuesday we were in Nice France where the 4th Stage Time Trials took place. Along with West Maui Cycles (seen in the image), our hotel was near the finish line on the course in Nice.

Specialized bicycle are the performance road bike of choice for many the best cyclists in the world. If you want more info on the 100th running of the Tour de France, take a look at the highlights we shared last week or visit the official Tour de France website for the latest updates.

If you enjoyed these cycling pics, then take a look at more images from the 100th running of the Tour de France on Facebook. Plan a Maui cycling vacation of your own! Ready to make a reservation for a Maui bike rental? Pick a performance road bike, a mountain bike rental or a beach cruiser (by Electra bikes). Then enter the dates of your rental along with a few other details and your rental bike will be ready and waiting at the Lahaina bike shop in West Maui. It's that easy. Make a bicycle rental reservation NOW:

Maui Bike Shop Facts for 100th Tour de France Cycling Race 3D Route

Le Tour de France Official Race Headquarters ship.

If you can’t make it to Maui for the Cycle to the Sun Ride up Haleakala, join millions of other cyclists around the world celebrating the 100th running of the famed Tour de France cycling race! To get ready for my trip to Europe for the cycling event of the year, before departing Maui I compiled a list of information about the Tour de France. Though I’m here representing cycling on Maui and West Maui Cycles bike shop, the list below should help you enjoy the tour almost as much as being here! The world’s best riders and cycling teams from around the world have already arrived on the island of Corsica and a ship has been commandeered as the headquarters for the Tour de France officials and press. The cyclists are housed elsewhere around the starting point. Read more and watch our Facebook page for updates from the race over the weekend or afterwards.

Bikes in Tour de France image.

100th Running of the Tour de France

When – The first stage of the race begins on Saturday, June 29 in Corsica. The last stage of the 2013 Tour de France bicycle race finishes in Paris, France on Sunday evening, July 21.

Route Map of the 2013 Tour de France Cycling Race.

Highlight of the 2013 Tour de France:

• 6 mountain stages with summit finishes
• 5 hilly stages
• 7 flat stages
• 1 team time trial stage (11)
• 2 individual time trial stages (4 and 17)
• 2 rest days

Distance – 2,088 miles or 3,360 kilometers is the total distance.

Where – Throughout France, of course! Take a look at the 2013 Tour de France Map pictured below for more details of the route. Or, take a look at the interactive map on the Official Tour de France website.

Course Route Overview – See the Tour de France Map for complete details of the Tour de France route and details for each stage of the race. The 100th running of the Tour de France begins on the island of Corsica on the 29th of June. After the 22 teams of 198 cyclists Grand Depart of 2013 from Porto Vecchio, the first stage will be a sprinters delight! With the Tour making it's inaugural appearance in this region of France, the first 3 stages of the 2013 the Tour de France will take place on the island of Corsica before the cyclists transition to Nice on the French mainland for Stage 4 where they’ll compete in the first team time trials.

The start of the 100th Tour de France on Corsica.

Next, cyclists make their way on Stage 5 riding through breathtaking scenery in the south of France with a finish at Marseille in the second longest stage of the race. Stage 6 on July 4 and Stage 7 conclude another 238 miles of riding when the riders finish up in Albi before climbing Stages 8 and 9 in the Pyrenees Mountains on Saturday and Sunday, July 6 and 7. The riders take a break on Monday the 8th before undertaking the 122 mile flat Stage 10 ride beginning in Saint-Gildas-des-Bois and ends at Saint Malo.

Stage 11 consists of two individual time trials on the 10th of July before another mostly flat Stage 12 ride covers the 135 miles in western France on Thursday, July 11. Stages 13 and 14 burn through another 226 miles with a couple days of hard climbing to Lyon before the long 151 mile stage 15 ride on Bastille Day, July 14 finishes with the grueling climb up Mont Ventoux. Cyclists rest on Monday, July 15 before the Tour de France resumes on Tuesday, July 16, for the 104 mile 16th stage ride followed by time trial Stage 17 on July 17. Difficult altitude climbing in the Alps will be featured in stages 18, 19 and 20. On Sunday, the 100th Tour de France cycling race comes to a finish with the 83 mile Stage 21, riding from Varsailles to the finish line at Paris Champs-Elysees after a ride around the famed Arch de Triomphe with an evening finish at dusk in the City of Lights!

Watch this 4 min, 3 sec video of the 2013 Tour de France Route with 3D Imaging:

Tour De France Website – The official 2013 Le Tour de France website, http://www.letour.fr/le-tour/2013/us/

How Many Mountain Stages in the Tour De France – This year’s Tour features 6 Mountain Stages with varying degrees of difficulty. 28 of the climbs are rated Category 2 or above. The six mountain stages are listed in order below:

• Stage 8 – Castres to stage finish at AX-3 Domaine in the Pyrenees.
• Stage 9 – Saint Girons to stage finish at Bagneres-de-Bigorre
• Stage 15 – Fitting for the Bastille Day stage, the stage includes the most difficult climb of the 2013 Tour de France! The day of cycling begins in Givor and the stage finishes at Mont Ventoux. This stage features a a finish with an 11% grade at the summit and riders are likely to find the section similar to what cyclists endure on a bike climbing Haleakala on Maui!
• Stage 18 – Gap to stage finish at Alpe-D’Huez.
• Stage 19 – Bourg-D’Oisans to stage finish at Le Grand Bornand.
• Stage 20 – Annecy to stage finish at Semnoz

Television Coverage – Much of the 100th running of the Tour de France will be televised on NBC Sports TV, beginning with the start in Corsica on June 29 and ending with the finish on July 21 in Paris at the Champs Elysees and Arc de Triomphe. All stages of the race are being live streamed on NBCSports.com. Did you know the Tour de France is the third most watch sported event worldwide, just behind the Olympics and the FIFA World Cup Soccer matches?

Time Difference Between Maui and France - 12 hours. When it is noon here on Maui, it is midnight in Paris. Set the DVR so you don't miss any of the cycling action!

More Resources for the 2013 Tour de France - Review this comprehensive daily highlight summary of what to look for at the 100 th running of the Tour de France by Gayle Falkenthal for Communities Digital News at Washington Times.

See pictures of the riding routes and read more about the Mountain Stages of the 2013 Tour de France on the Podium Café at SBNation, where some of the above information was referenced from.

Tired of reading about biking and ready to make a reservation for a bike rental on Maui? Head over to our bike rentals page, choose the bike you want to rent for your Maui cycling vacation and then select the dates you need the bicycle rental. After you arrive on Maui, just stop by the bike shop in Lahaina to pick up your rental bike. It really is that easy! Make a bicycle rental reservation now:

The Endless Summer Biking on Maui and Around the World

Kicking off an endless summer of cycling, BMX bike fans enjoyed the XGames in Los Angeles and the 99th running of the Tour de France is underway! The cycling world will toast a glass of fine French champagne when the winner is crowned on the 22cnd. Keep an eye on your favorite road bike riders and teams while you check out the latest performance road bikes from the major bike manufacturers, including our Maui bike dealer brand, Specialized. The latest in bicycle technology is always on display at the tour de france. The first few days of racing already saw some nasty crashes even before the riders get into the mountains!

While some were busy keeping up with the XGames, mountain bikers got to witness another installment of the Cross Country Mountain Bike World Cup races in Windham New York. Specialized S-Works team rider won the race on a StumpJumper 29’er HardTail, just like the mountain bikes we rent on Maui. Watch a couple mountain bike video clips from the factory Specialized bike team and the Monster Energy Specialized Team at Windham:

World Cup Bike Video:

Monster Energy Specialized Team at Windem for the Mountain Bike World Cup Video:

Credits: Specialized Bikes - West Maui Cycles is a Specialized Bike Dealer on Maui!

As noted above, the annual Tour de France bike race is roaming about the beautiful French country and mountains, completing the 6th stage earlier today. Do you think it’s still too early to pick a race winner? Do you have a favorite? Use the Maui bike blog comments section below to let us know who you think will win the 2012 Tour de France! New to the road bike racing or have Tour de France questions? Get answers to your Tour de France questions on the bikerader.com forum and visit The Guardian’s Tour de France 2012 Interactive Guide.

Later in July, the Olympic bike races get underway with the Men’s road bike race on the 28th of July and the women’s race the next day. After the road bike racing events, the Olympic cycling events continue in August with mountain biking, BMX and Track bicycle racing all from England. The Track cycling events start on Aug 2 while the BMX events run from the 8th to through the 10th. The mountain bike riders won’t race at the Olympics till August 11 for the women and August 12 for the men. The Olympic mountain bike races are being held on Salvation Army land at Hadleigh Farm and Hadleigh Country Park in the grand old English countryside.

Not to be forgotten, we have our own Maui cycling competition with 36 miles of climbing the 10,000 foot Haleakala bike ride in the 2012 Cycle to the Sun on August 25. Bring your bike or reserve one of our performance road bike rentals. You’ll be competing against some of the best climbers bike riding up the steepest and longest paved road on the planet! And, you’ll be in Maui bike riding! What could be better? Ok, maybe you need a bike rental for the 2012 XTerra world championships at Kapalua in West Maui in October? Either way, mountain bike or road bike, West Maui Cycles caters to performance biker riders. We only rent the best bikes on Maui!

Can you tell I’ve been nursing my broken finger back to health unable to enjoy mountain biking in the West Maui Mountains? I usually get out at least a once a week and its already been over a month since my last mountain bike ride! To help me with my lack of riding time, please share your Maui bike ride pics and videos on our Facebook page.

Maui Bicycle Blog and Maui Adventure Activities blog, West Maui Cycles RSS

Sacred Hearts Bazaar Gets Electra Bike Donation from Maui Bike Shop

Even after being in the Maui bicycle business for more than 20 years, our West Maui bike shop never tires of giving back to the community by participating in various local fundraising events or extending discounts to those serving our local community. Raising a family of our own on Maui, we understand the challenges local families face and know how important it is for local businesses to participate in the Maui community. As locally owned family bicycle shop, West Maui Cycles continues to be involved and give back whenever possible. One such opportunity presented itself last weekend when we were able to help Sacred Hearts School in Lahaina with their annual fund raising bazaar.

This year was the 41st Annual Sacred Hearts Bazaar! The community event has become a fun local tradition for the entire community as the 150 year old Lahaina school count on the two day event to supply funding for many for their student activities and very worthwhile educational programs. This year, the annual Sacred Hearts Bazaar was held on Friday and Saturday, March 1st and 2cnd. In addition to supplying two Electra Bike beach cruisers for the charity auction, we also converted our mobile bike shop into a popup shaved iced station. The shaved ice stand was staffed by West Maui Cycles owners and employees with proceeds contributed to the event. The shave ice station was set up in the school courtyard for revelers to enjoy while playing the traditional carnival games. Everyone had a great time and our bike shop is honored to contribute to the school and this very worthwhile family fun event in Lahaina! Mahalo for the opportunity.

Donating bicycles for the 2013 Sacred Hearts charity auction and supplying the shaved ice station are just a couple ways we participate in the Maui community. Throughout the year, we help our local fireman, police, lifeguards and other Maui County First Responders stay in shape for the rigors of their difficult physical jobs by extending a 15% discount at our bike store in Lahaina. And, we are always happy to see one of the TS restaurants employees in our bike shop being rewarded for their hard work with a 10% discount at West Maui Cycles. TS Restaurants employees at Hula Grill and Leilanis on Kaanapali beach as well as those working at Duke’s Beach House in the Honua Kai Resort on Kaanapali North Beach or Kimo's restaurant in Lahaina are eligible for the discount at West Maui Cycles. Have a business on Maui and looking for ways to give your employees an incentive to stay in shape? Get in touch with us and we’ll work with you to figure out a way to give your employees a break on their Maui bike gear! We love giving back to our local Maui community. Thanks for the more than 20 years of continued support for our family owned Maui bike shop! Your continued support will keep us around for another 20 years.

Reserve a mountain bike or road bicycle rental for a fun cycling vacation on Maui?

2012 XTerra World Championship Updates from Maui

2012 XTerra run course kapalua maui

Before you know it, the XTerra World Championship will be happening on Maui on the 28th of October. With athletes like four time world champion Conrad 'the Caveman' Stoltz already on Maui training, you can bet the competition for the $20K prize for winnning the 2012 XTerra world championship will be intense! With the off-road triathlon in the second year at Kapalua, the 2012 XTerra championship courses have been modified and tweaked to challenge the athletes. Check out the new 2012 XTerra running course at the right!

With many of the XTerra athletes and fans beginning to arrive on Maui after competing in last weekend’s Ironman over on the Big Island of Hawaii, XTerra excitement in West Maui is growing by the day! Below, you’ll find more news and information about the 2012 XTerra championship.

For the XTerra World Championship athletes competing on Maui for the first time, the ocean swim can be a little intimidating when compared to the usual fresh water XTerra swimming courses. A water safety briefing has been made available from the Maui county lifeguards. You’ll find an updated XTerra course map with a run course profile after the Water Safety video:

Take a look at last week’s Maui bike blog article for details about how to watch the XTerra running and bike racing via the on course cameras and where to park (DT Flemming beach) for the XTerra. Use our list of 8 Tips for the 2012 XTerra World Championship and stop in our West Maui bike shop in Lahaina (click the link for directions with map).

The latest 2012 XTerra World Championship course with bike and running course profiles:

Maui XTerra 2012 world championship course map showing the run, swimming and biking courses.

The 2012 XTerra Run Course Profile:

Maui XTerra running course profile at Kapalua for 2012 world championship.

Use the comments section below to let us know who you think will win the 2012 XTerra. For a little help, take a look at Kahuna Dave’s predictions of who the Maui XTerra World Championship winners will be. Curious which athletes competed on Kona and are competing on Maui? Take a look at the Hawaiian Airlines ‘Doublers’ to find out!

Will you be on Maui for the 2012 XTerra World Championship? Bike rentals are going fast! For the best choice of XTerra bike rentals on Maui, be sure to reserve your rental bike ahead of time. Choose your bike rental, specify the bike size and dates you’ll be renting. Your bike rental will be ready and waiting for you to pick up at our bike shop in Lahaina, West Maui Cycles. Make a Maui bicycle rental reservation NOW:

Reserve a Bike Rental

Early Birds Going After the Same Worm Mountain Bike Video

My head is still brimming with all the info about the new bikes and bike gear after returning from the Specialized bicycle dealers preview event in Utah last week. Specialized is certainly not resting on laurels when it comes to mountain biking innovation on their StumpJumper mountain bikes! While the Specialized StumpJumper has already enjoyed 30 years as a leading mountain bike, Specialized continues buildling upon the rich history with the latest mountain bike technology. Our performance mountain bike rentals include the full suspension Specialized Stumpjumper FSR and the Specialized StumpJumper Comp 29'er Hardtail. For 2013, Specialized kept to their StumpJumper mountain bike traditions by introducing new bikes and including innovative enhancements to the existing models!

Specialized made almost every model of their StumpJumper mountain bike available for the dealers to get acquainted with and experience demo rides during heir annual bike dealer event at Snowbird. There were plenty of Specialized StumpJumper Expert Carbon mountain bikes on hand, some equipped with 26 in wheels. Thats right, one of the options some riders will need to decide is whether to buy their bike equipped with 29 inch wheels or use the 26 inch wheels. That could be a tough choice to make! Either way, if you are thinking about buying a mountain bike, you couldn’t make a better decision than buying a Specialized mountain bike!

To help you decide on your wheel size and get aquainted with the StumpJumper FSR, check out the Specialized bike video where team riders Brad ‘The Hair’ Benedict climbs aboard a 2013 Specialized StumpJumper FSR Expert Carbon EVO 29 and Curtis ‘The American Dream’ Keene takes a mountain bike ride aboard the 2013 Specialized StumpJumper FSR Expert Carbon EVO 26. As you’ll see in this fun short 3 min 30 sec video, both riders are early birds out to catch the same worm:

Thanks to VitalMTBVideos for creating the awesome mountain bike video!

Whats the verdict? Do you think you would prefer a bike ride down Haleakala skyline trail on a StumpJumper equipped with 26 in wheels or 29 in wheels? Use the comments below to share your preference. Either way, head over to West Maui Cycles Lahaina bike shop for insightful bicycle buying advice and tips to help make an informed bicycle purchase decision. Being a Specialized bike dealer and equipped with the latest info from the Specialized bike event puts our Lahaina bike shop in the unique position of being able to offer you the best bicycle sales on Maui. And our course, our bike shop offers bike repairs and maintenance services along with Maui cycling gear. Our Maui bicycle rentals fleet includes mountain bikes, performance road bikes, hybrids and cruiser bike rentals! What could be better than figuring out your bike buying decisions while riding bikes on a Maui cycling vacation! Hit the link below to make a Maui bike rental reservation: