Sept. 15 pro bike racing event to finish in Peshawbestown, feature vendors' Expo.

RACERS WILL once again have to get up Tower Road Hill as part of the 2007 Tour de Leelanau bicycle race on Sept. 15. The tour will have international teams and new start times for this year’s event.

The third annual Tour de Leelanau next month will feature fan-friendly changes, and the possibility of an international flair as elite bicyclists set their sights on the county’s challenging roads.

New this year is a vendors’ Expo near the finish line at the Eagles Ridge Conference Center, different start times, and the potential entry of teams from Canada and Mexico. The Tour de Leelanau is sponsored by Priority Health and presented by Leelanau Sands Casino.

The one-day race will take place on Saturday, Sept. 15. Event originator Steve Brown said organizers moved back starting times for the men’s and women’s races. Men will start their 1091⁄2-mile race at the Leland Harbor again this year, but the starter’s gun will sound at 1 p.m., four hours later than in 2006. The women’s race will begin at 2:40 p.m. Start times were moved to reduce the slow time between the end of the race and post-race events.

“We found with the 9 a.m. start for the men’s race there was quite a bit of lag time between evening events and the end of the race,” Brown said.

Brown said the women’s start has been moved from the beach area at The Homestead to the Welcome Center at the resort’s entrance. “We had problems with our radio communications down at the beach, so we had to do a lot of shuttling from the Welcome Center down to the beach,” Brown said.

Brown said the Expo will be located next to the course as it comes up the final hill to the finish line behind Eagles Ridge. “People will be able to see the finish of the race and see some of the products and services provided by the racing teams and their sponsors,” he said.

The Expo is free and open to the public, and runs from noon to 7 p.m. Bicycle manufacturers including Specialized, Trek, Scott, Blue, and Giant will show their equipment and accessories, and Specialized will have technicians and experts on hand to answer bicycle-related questions. Priority Health, Suzuki Automotive, Bissell Homecare, Advantage Benefits Group, Leelanau Sands Casino and Rooted to Nature, an Elk Rapids-based clothing manufacturer, will also have displays at the Expo.

Race organizers are excited about the possibility of teams of racers from Canada and Mexico participating in the Tour. Brown said it is still tentative, but a group of professional racers from Quebec is putting together an elite team to test their mettle in Leelanau County.

“The Canadian championship is being held the following weekend (Sept. 22-23), so they have expressed an interest in coming here and racing,” said Brown, adding that having international racers would be a great boost for the event. “With these big races, especially this time of year, the racers are used to seeing the same people over and over. If we can get some cyclists from other countries in here, that makes it more interesting for the racers,” he said.

Brown said teams from Windsor and Toronto are also interested in competing in Leelanau. The Mexican National Team has also expressed an interest as well, though Brown said much will depend on whether the riders can raise enough money to get here. He said the Mexican team is supposed to compete in Philadelphia the weekend before the Tour.

“If they make it to Philadelphia, they will most likely make it here,” he said.

Brown is also looking for volunteers to do everything from being course marshals – the folks who stand at intersections and direct racers on the course – to caravan drivers, and motorcycle marshals. The event will need about 300 volunteers and while many of the road marshal volunteers from year to year, Brown said organizers always welcome more help. Anyone interested in volunteering for any position may call the race office at (231) 922-5962, or visit to www.tourdeleelanau.com to register directly into the volunteer database.

Another need Brown is looking to fill for this year’s race is housing for the women’s racing teams. Jackie Morrison of The Business Helper in Suttons Bay is organizing housing for the teams. She said housing is being sought for teams, and volunteers should have enough room for four to six women. Most teams will be staying Friday through Sunday, with a couple of international teams needing Thursday through Sunday accommodations.

“We’re also asking that hosts provide a breakfast for everyone as well,” Morrison said. Anyone interested in hosting a team stay can contact Morrison at 271-4404.

Meanwhile, Brown has already submitted an application with the International Cycling Union to move the Tour de Leelanau to May 24 in 2008. The reason: a new bike race starting in Missouri this year.

“The Tour de Missouri is an eight-day endurance race that will attract all the top racing teams. For next year the Missouri race would start the weekend before and conclude the same weekend as our race if we kept it in September,” Brown said. He has already heard from many of the racing teams that if they had to chose, they would chose the Missouri event.

Brown said though nothing is set in stone yet, he is fairly confident the date change will be approved for 2008.