One year after running the inaugural Maryland Cycling Classic, the race will return Labor Day weekend with the same course, a similar weekend of festivities and likely a number of the same riders.
What changes? State and local officials are simply hoping for more: more fan turnout, more local fanfare and, at the bottom line, more dollars.
Baltimore City, Baltimore County and Maryland sports officials came together in a show of solidarity Tuesday at the Baltimore Visitor Center, touting a race that organizers say drew 70,000 spectators to the roadsides last year. The hope is that the race, which is the top-rated men’s pro cycling road race in the U.S., can become a mainstay sporting event that spans the rolling hills of Baltimore County before twisting its way through the city blocks.
Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott and Baltimore County Executive Johnny Olszewski Jr. stood side by side, holding a crab-themed cycling jersey and stressing how sporting events like the Classic, the annual Preakness Stakes and the CIAA Basketball Tournament can help attract visitors.
“You hear me talk a lot about the renaissance that’s going on in our city and how we’re transforming Baltimore into a premier destination for world-class entertainment and sporting events,” Scott said. “It feels great to see the manifestation of our words and all of our hard work.”
The Sept. 3 race will cover 124 miles and climb 6,664 feet of elevation, starting in Sparks and winding down to downtown Baltimore, where it concludes with four finishing laps in a circuit of hairpin turns through a cluster of city neighborhoods. In the county section, there will be three “King of the Mountain” climbs, and the finish line will wrap at the Inner Harbor. The race is expected to take up to six hours. Last year, Belgium’s Sep Vanmarcke won the race.
UCI, cycling’s international governing body, recommended the course stay the same, in part for safety, but in part so riders can know what to expect.
Terry Hasseltine, president of Maryland Sports and Entertainment, said: “Now they know: Baltimore County, they got some hills out there.”
In comparison to European headlining races like the Tour de France and the Giro d’Italia, interest in American pro cycling is relatively modest. In recent years, multiday, multistage events like the Tour of California and Tour of Utah have been discontinued, making Maryland’s event the highest-rated UCI race in the coming year. Organizers said they hoped for a boost in crowds: Visit Baltimore president and CEO Al Hutchinson said at least 2,500 hotel nights are already committed in the city, with hope for more.
While the racing will take up only one day, four days of events are scheduled, including visits to local schools, a bike jam in Patterson Park and a charity ride for Bridges of Hope.
