The Silicon Valley Tour de Cure for 2010 is scheduled for Sunday, June 13..
(Last revision to any pages on this sub-site: 2010-06-10
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The Silicon Valley Tour de Cure is a fund-raising event sponsored by the American Diabetes Association. The Tour is comprised of four bicycle tours, 25K, 50K, 75K, and 120K in length. Each rider is sponsored, and many are in company-sponsored teams. While the ADA provides a large community of scientists and health-care providers for the treatment of diabetes, its goal is the cure and prevention of the disease. The Tour de Cure takes place in over 200 locations in the United States, contributing millions of dollars to treatment and research.
This is a demanding event for radio operators. The 120K route goes through Portola Valley and the hills of the ocean side of the Peninsula. Coverage in the valleys and canyons is difficult. Volunteer operators should be prepared for cold, wet weather and hot, sunny weather. NOTE: Because operators will be out for up to eight hours, they should have plenty of battery power, food, and water, along with whatever other supplies they will need during the day. In some locations, we recommend mobile radios with at least 25 watts of power.
We will be adding an additional Rest Stop at the far end of the 75K Route. Also, we've admitted that the "25K Route" is actually closer to 18K long. We will also be moving the Rest Stop on the 18K Route. The old 18K Rest Stop (at Eleanor Pardee Park) was quite early in the route. Participants have requested that the Rest Stop be later along the route. So we have re-located the Rest Stop to Ramos Park in Palo Alto. New course maps showing the new Stops are still forthcoming.
The plan is to have box lunches delivered to operators at Rest Stops (the delivery will be made along with the Rest Stop supplies). This has worked in previous years for the other Rest Stop volunteers. Volunteers assigned to Relay should plan on providing their own lunch. However, regardless of where you are stationed, it is always a good idea to bring enough of your own supplies in case things fall apart.
Also, we are supplementing our wonderful volunteer SAG wagons with addtional SAGs from a company that has provided them for the Napa Valley Tour de Cure. They have asked that we supply Hams to accompany them, to keep them in communications with Start/Finish. The final schedule for 'accompanying' hams has not yet been finalized. Please stay tuned.
Talk-in on the morning of the event will be on 147.480 (simplex, no tone). Please make sure you have printed out all the pages you will need (frequency plan, location, and so on) before you head out for your assigned location. SAG wagons and Motor unit (motorcycles) should report to Net Control at 3000 Hanover Street, Palo Alto, ready to go at their assigned times (operator roster has the assigned times). If your assignment is out on the Route, you need not drop by Comms before heading to your assignment (of course, we're always happy to get to say 'hello' in person, but an on-air greeting will suffice if Comms is out of your way).
The event headquarters will be at 3000 Hanover Street, Palo Alto. Please use your favorite mapping program to get directions before you leave home. Print out the Start/Finish map to find Net Control at the event. NOTE: the location of Net Control has changed slightly (different area of the same parking lot). Enter (as past years) through "Gate 4."
The four courses start at staggered times:
* 120K course: 0630
* 75K course: 0830
* 50K course: 0900
* 18K course: 1000
Each course has a half-hour start; for example, the 120K course starts at 6:30 am, but competitors can continue to start the course until 7:00 am. No entrants will be allowed to leave after their 1/2-hour window. Each rider is supposed to wear a numbered bib issued by the Tour de Cure, along with a wristband. However, they often pin them to a jacket which they remove when hot. C'est la vie.
Radio operators at rest stops should shadow the rest stop captain, if possible. Operators should be alert when crossing the road, and be careful of noise interfering with your transmissions. Mobile dual-band radios with at least 25 watts are preferred at rest stops. Be familiar with the Frequency Plan and be able to switch among the radio relays as necessary. Volunteers should have their Thomas Guides with them and be passingly familiar with the pages covering the event.
The event is scheduled to end at 4:00 pm. At that time, all riders still on the course are to remove their event bibs. If they wish to continue they may do so on their own. Although the official end is scheduled, it never works out that way. To allow for communications concerning the end of the event, removal of rest stop tables, chairs, and such, transport of gear and people to the start/finish, and so on, our goal is to have all radio operators relieved of their duties by 5:30. Some Rest Stops close much earlier (specifically, those on the shorter routes).
NOTE: We may have some sites staffed with more than one operator to provide relief during the longer shifts. It may be necessary to move one of the operators to another location, so please be prepared to move to another location with little notice. Locations can be quickly referenced with Thomas Guide map numbers and grids, so please bring one with you. Some operators also have GPS, so we may have lat/lon as well.
NOTE: Count on revisions as time goes by. See the Rest Stop Locations page for times to be on the air at each stop.
We have volunteers! Thanks for signing up. We still need positions staffed, though, so drop by our Roster, decide on a location, then volunteer. (NOTE: the roster is locked, and you cannot sign up or register there. My apologies for the inconvenience.)
* Instructions -- For all volunteers; please print and bring with you (revised April 21, 2009)
* Motorcycle Information -- For our motorcycle units
* SAG Wagon Information -- For our SAG wagoneers
* Cell Phone Instructions-- For our official Tour de Cure Cell Phone Handlers (this phone number is provided to riders and course monitors)
* Tour de Cure SAG Guidelines -- To provide a safe event for the riders
* Rest Stop & Relay Locations (Updated arrival times - April 24, 2009)
* Radio Operator Roster (Read the roster for locations; please use this link to volunteer.)
* Route Mapping. The first column is a jpg of the route layout. The second column is a word file of turn-by-turn directions. The third column is GPX files for use in a GPS or Google Earth (to saveGPX file, right-click and select "Save Link As..." or "Save Target As..." make sure extension of saved file is .gpx). The last column takes you to MapMyRide.com.
| Route | Turn-By-Turn | GPX | MapMyRide |
|---|---|---|---|
75K Route (Route is correct, but still shows old Rest Stop location, and doesn't show new Water Stop) |
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o Start/Finish map (78K JPG file; Net Control has moved slightly for this year. We will be located just South of the "Service Garage 6G". You cannot enter from Page Mill Road, only from Gate 4 on Hanover St.) See also Google Earth. For the general layout of the entire Start / Finish area (not including Net Control area) see General Layout.
Mobile units will communicate on simplex frequencies to Relay as noted on the Frequency Plan; please program your radios today. Mobile units and Rest Stop communications staff should have Thomas Map guides so they can give police, ambulances, and Net Control grid locations of any incidents, accidents, and the like.
To volunteer, click here.
Eric.