With the recent media coverage of people who have been caught in the act of fraud and deception, such as Lance Armstrong, who was once considered honorable at the top of his profession and above reproach, the timing is perfect to report what I believe may be the biggest deception ever by an American company. To this very day the owners of this company have not been held accountable and the big question is: Why haven't they and who is providing them the favors in keeping this deception hushed? For 40 years, Raley’s has been a major advertising force producing a tremendous amount of revenue for media outlets spread throughout every community where Raley’s has its presence. That advertising

It was an exciting day in Sacramento as Stage 1 of the Amgen Tour of California (ATOC) rolled through. It kicked-off in Nevada City and returned to the river city with cycling's biggest superstar and seven-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong (seen above). The Tour de France is the world's premier cycling tour. The ATOC is the Tour de France of North America. Besides Armstrong, the free food and free schwag at the MBT (Shoes) Lifestyle Festival wasn't bad either. I'm not a huge fan of cycling, but I'm drawn to the ATOC since I first went in 2008. Knowing that cycling's biggest star, Armstrong, would be in the race drew me back since I missed it last year. This could also be my las

The first stage of the 2010 Amgen Tour of California ended with a three-lap circuit in downtown Sacramento. These photos were taken at the corner of 18th and P Streets. Three members of the HTC-Columbia team lead the pack around the corners of downtown Sacramento. Team member Mark Cavendish won the first stage after a powerful sprint to the finish line.   Racers sprint into the four-block stretch on 18th Street.   Lance Armstrong, right, maneuvers around a corner among the riders in the first stage of the 2010 Amgen Tour of California.   Riders lean sharply as they pass through one of the turns in the circuit in downtown Sacramento. After the pack of riders passed, specatators

If you're the best sprinter in the world, your competition doesn't matter. Marc Cavendish, who won six stages in the 2009 Tour de France took his winning ways to Sacramento in the first stage of the 2010 Amgen Tour of California. His rivals however, were slowed by a crash during the final few kilometers heading up to the finish. Tom Boonen and some of the other chief green jersey contenders hit the pavement and wound up bruised and battered as they crossed the finish line. Lance Armstrong and heavy favorite three time Amgen winner Levi Leipheimer finished unscathed and received the same race time as all riders in the main peloton. The yellow jersey will be decided on a different day, but

Mark Cavendish, HTC-Columbia, donned the first leader's jersey of the Amgen Tour 2010 in Sacramento today. Following in second place was JJ Hado, Saxo Bank; third place - Alexander Kristoff, BMX Racing Team; fourth place - Robbie Hunter, Garmin Transistions and Jonathan Cantwell, Fly V Australia. Cavendish is fifth from the right as the tour travelled down Jackson Rd before reaching Folsom Blvd and the final leg of Stage One that ended at the State Capitol.   Traveling at a good clip along Jackson Rd, Maarten Tjallingii (Rabobank), Chad Beyer (BMC), Mark De Maar (United Healthcare) and Paul Mach (Bissell) had lead for most of the race. Lance Armstrong (far right) zipped by. Unidentifi

The Amgen Tour of California doesn't begin until Sunday, but Levi Leipheimer already is heavily favored to win. "I think it will be a wonderful race," cycling commentator Phil Liggett said at a news conference Friday. "Levi Leipheimer will still win, but what the hell." Seven-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong echoed that sentiment about the winner of the last three Tours of California. "If I were looking at it like an analyst, I would say that Levi, Dave (Zabriskie) and Michael Rogers are the big three," Armstrong said. "I guarantee you that Levi will kick (Mark) Cavendish's ass on hills." Cavendish would do the same to him on sprints, Leipheimer said under his breath. He note

May is Bike Month, and this weekend is the best time to celebrate. Sacramento has earned a stop on the international tour of the Bicycle Film Festival. The festival will be held Friday and Saturday, with the festivities extending into Sunday as part of the Amgen Tour of California. The Friends of Fremont Park, along with pizza and panini bar Hot Italian, will host the event. The film festival starts Friday in Fremont Park with movie shorts. They will begin at 9 p.m., but the event will kick off at 7 at nearby Hot Italian, which also will be the site of the night's after-party. And it will continue "as long as people are there and drinking," Lepore said. "The Bicycle Film Festival is a co

Amgen Tour of California teams were announced Friday morning. The roster includes seven-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong as well as Levi Leipheimer, winner of the last three consecutive Tour of California races, among others. The Sacramento Press will continue to cover the Amgen Tour of California, which rolls through the city Sunday, May 16. This will include a pre-race press conference May 14 and race day coverage. The following is a press release about the team announcement, via Bob Burns of the Sacramento Sports Commission. The world-class roster of teams and cyclists scheduled to participate in the 2010 Amgen Tour of California has been announced by race presenter AEG.

The Amgen Tour of California returns to Sacramento, bringing even more cycling competition to the Capitol in 2010. This year, Project Sport, the company behind the San Francisco and San Rafael Twilight Criterium races, and the Sacramento Sports Commission have teamed together to add the Sacramento Grand Prix. The inaugural Grand Prix event will run in conjunction with the Tour of California competition, which will feature seven-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong. The Grand Prix will act as the precursor to the May 16 Tour event, beginning at 11 a.m. the same day. The addition of the Grand Prix is an effort to extend the tour's festivities and bring out more fans. "We're trying t

"For us domestic riders, this is our Tour de France," Chris Jones said of the Amgen Tour of California. "It's the biggest race of our year," added the 31-year-old cyclist from Auburn. Jones and Michael Sayers, a retired professional rider, are Amgen tour veterans. They joined John McCasey, Sacramento Sports Commission director, at a Tuesday press conference at Mason's Restaurant. They introduced the tour's first stage -- from Nevada City to Sacramento -- with Mayor Kevin Johnson and Councilmen Ray Tretheway and Steve Cohn also in attendance. The event kicked off with a video that provided a glimpse of the scenery cyclists will see when they ride from Nevada City to Sacramento on May 16.

At about 9 a.m. Thursday, three-time Amgen Tour of California winner Levi Leipheimer announced via a "tweet" that he was going to defend his title in 2010. It was part of a high-profile Twitter conversation started by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger that went something like this: "@schwarzenegger: Great news for American cycling fans and CA. The 2010 Amgen Tour of California will be better than ever. @lancearmstrong will you join us? @lancearmstrong: Absolutely! @schwarzenegger, I've decided to ride the #Amgen Tour of California in 2010. Can't wait. What about you @levileipheimer? @levileipheimer: I'll definitely be racing the 2010 Amgen Tour of California, defending my title." Then at 4:30

At a press conference held at the Public Safety Center on Freeport Boulevard, Sacramento Police confirmed that cyclist Lance Armstrong's bicycle, stolen on Sunday, February 15, has been returned by an anonymous citizen as of 10:30 this morning. The bike, which was identified by serial number, was described by the spokesman as being '"in good condition," despite being delivered with the wheels detached from the frame. Police do not believe that the bicycles were specifically targeted by thieves. A police spokesman said, "Our one concern was that the bike would be discarded," once the thieves realized the identity of the bike's owner. Police declined to comment on the identity of the citiz

I’ve just learned that the stolen Lance Armstrong Time Trial bike, valued at $10,000 and used in the Sacramento Prologue of the Amgen Tour of California, has been located.  A race announcer breaks the story on the Live Tour Tracker.  No confirmation as of yet from local authorities, but it was rumor by the same announcer that someone from local law enforcement leaked the photos on a twitter page.  Armstrong's own twitter page claims that another bike has also be recovered, that of Team Astana Cycling's, Jani Brajkovic.  

Pulling victory from the jaws of impending thundershowers, Sacramento's weather and geography cooperated Saturday afternoon to produce a nearly-flawless "prologue" of the Amgen Tour of California. It was nearly as cold and windy as Sacramento gets, but the rain held off until the last riders were crossing the finish line around 3:30 p.m. Saturday. The clear weather continued into the evening as the out-of-town crowds estimated to be more than 50,000 partied into the night and the Grid's monthly Second Saturday events. Though the race began in earnest Sunday, with 136 racers riding through gusts of wind and significant rain - and Sunday morning was marred by the early-hours theft of Lance

  Lance Armstrong, contenders in the Tour of California, and hundreds of global media representatives filled Sheraton Hotel's conference room downtown. The riders, tour organizers, and other public figures such as Mayor Kevin Johnson and commentator Phil Ligget made statements to the frenzied media representatives. A panel representing perhaps the strongest racing team ever assembled in the United States fielded questions, mainly expressing their excitement for the race, which begins in Sacramento this Saturday.  "It's an honor to have these professional cyclists here in Sacramento," said Mayor Johnson. "You'll see Saturday in Sacramento how thrilled we are. We are pleased to have been