It’s official: this September the Tour of Alberta will have a mountain stage and that stage will take place in Jasper National Park.
The world class cycling event, which attracts the same athletes who compete in the Tour de France, takes place from Sept. 2–7.
Stage 4 of the six stage race will begin in the Jasper townsite and finish at Marmot Basin.
The exact route hasn’t yet been announced and is still, to a certain extent, unconfirmed, said Mayor Richard Ireland, who along with council has been advocating for the race since last October.
“The route to get to Marmot is still under some discussion, but it will be a long ride over some great roads in Jasper and then the finish at Marmot—so it will truly be a mountain stage with a mountaintop finish.”
The tour, which is in its third year, courted the municipality last year, expressing interest in coming to Jasper for its first-ever mountain stage.
According to Duane Vienneau, the tour’s executive director, athletes and fans have been crying out for the mountains since the first event in 2013.
“We are thrilled that 2015 is the year fans and over 45 million international broadcast spectators will be able to experience some of Alberta’s most beautiful landscapes as the world’s best cyclists race through the town of Jasper and Jasper National Park towards a thrilling mountaintop finish,” he stated in a press release.
According to Matt Staneland of the Jasper Park Cycling Association, that finish—at the top of Marmot Basin—is one worthy of any international cycling event.
“The Marmot climb, I’m especially glad they’re using that because that’s something you’d see in Europe: that length of 14 km, at that gradient, it’s just like something you’d see in a Tour de France stage. It’s almost perfect and to have that last steep kicker right up to the day lodge, if that’s where they finish, that’s the hardest part of that climb. That would be the place to go watch and cheer, bring some cow bells and yell at them.”
To participate in the event, each host community pays a rights fee. For both a start and finish line that fee is $250,000.
In November, council committed $60,000 toward that sum, in hopes that Parks Canada and Tourism Jasper would pitch in the rest.
In the end, the three organizations provided matching funds, each kicking in $60,000.
“Through negotiations with the tour, locally we are going to put up $180,000 and jointly we’re going to find sponsorship for the [remaining] $70,000,” explained Ireland.
“When you look at it from a return on investment perspective those numbers are staggering. I think the earned media value of the tour is something like $150 million, so every day is worth about $25 million and we’re walking into that kind of earned media value for an absolutely limited amount.
“For a $180,000 investment from the community, we get access to media value around the world, worth literally millions and millions of dollars.”
It was that long-term value and exposure that sold Parks Canada on the event, according to Pam Clark, visitor experience manager for Jasper National Park.
“We really think that with the broadcast exposure—the narrative that will be happening throughout the broadcast—this is an incredible opportunity to highlight the importance of protected areas, the stunning beauty within Jasper National Park and the diverse cycling opportunities that we have that really fit a wider range of ability and interest.
“We have been trying to promote our multi-use connected trail system, but this is going to really push our cycling profile, our cycling opportunities, onto the national and international stage.”
The Tour of Alberta is the highest ranking cycling event in the country, attracting the same cyclists that compete at the Tour de France. The inaugural event was held in 2013, taking cyclists from Edmonton to Calgary; in 2014, the route was reversed.
Now that the event is established, attracting 200,000 spectators and 41 million international television viewers, the route is receiving a revamp, showcasing other areas of Alberta.
This will be the tour’s first time heading north, with the race beginning with time trials in Grande Prairie on Sept. 2. The following day, the County of Grande Prairie will host Stage 2 and on Sept. 4, riders will make their way from Grande Cache to Jasper, making up Stage 3 of the race.
Stage 4, both its start and finish, will be in Jasper. Then, the riders will be driven to Edson, where they will start Stage 5, cycling to Spruce Grove.
The final stage is a circuit race in Edmonton.
“This is really going to put Jasper National Park firmly on the world stage, which is super exciting,” said Clark, of being a host community.
“We’re really very excited about welcoming the cyclists, the enthusiasts and those that will be tuning in virtually to watch the tour and appreciate some of our mountain beauty and mountain culture.”
As a host community, Jasper will be responsible for creating an organizing committee of volunteers. Check back with the Fitzhugh in the coming weeks for more information on how to lend a hand.
Nicole Veerman
[email protected]
