Bike Race Will Roll into Town

It might just be the sweetest cycling race around.

This year's 17th annual Strawberry Festival will feature the first-ever Strawberry Crown Invitational Criterium cycling event, the Watsonville City Council decided Tuesday.

“I think it’s a fantastic idea," Watsonville Mayor Daniel Dodge said.

A criterium is a multi-lap, closed-circuit road course, in which cyclists compete either on a base of time or distance. It's the one of the most popular forms of bike racing in the United States.

The Watsonville event will be put on by Syzygy Sports Group of Scotts Valley. 

The races are  expected to draw up to 300 professional and elite cyclists—both men and women—as well as kids riding in the youth race and about 1,000 spectators. The pros will vie for $10,000 in prizes.

“To be able to put on an event of prestige is very exciting to me, and I'd love to have this just grow and become part of the Strawberry Festival," said Mark Davis, director of Syzygy.

Attracting kids to the sport of cycling is one big draw of the event, Davis said.

"The sport can't grow unless we have new blood," he said, adding that his 4-year-old son is thrilled about the upcoming bike race.

The Aug. 6 criterium—slated for a Saturday afternoon—will start and finish on Union Street. The loop takes riders up East Beach Street to Lincoln Street, then down Center Street for a quick jaunt on to Carr Street, down East Lake Avenue and back to Union.

"I like the route; I think it’s a no-brainer," City Councilman Emilio Martinez said.

Syzygy put on a similar race in Scotts Valley last year and had hoped to bring it to Watsonville for last year's Strawberry Festival, but there wasn't enough time to handle the logistics.

Roads will be closed for about three hours for the race, and, in the days prior to the event, volunteers will go door-to-door in the neighborhood to let residents know about the upcoming competition.

The company will spend about $38,500 on the race. No city funds will be spent on the criterium. The city also isn't expected to profit directly, but the race will likely boost Strawberry Festival attendance.

A group of local cyclists attended the meeting, including Andy Jacques-Maynes, a Watsonville native and pro cyclist for Bissell, who tweeted updates about the City Council discussion.

The Strawberry Festival will be Aug. 6-7 in downtown Watsonville.

View the Strawberry Crown Invitational Criterium Cycling Event in a larger map.