The Amgen Tour of California starts tomorrow and will continue until Saturday 18 May, with the seven stages of the men's race travelling through the Californian landscape with a mix of flat and climbing stages.
The women’s race runs from 16–18 May and uses many of the same routes. At 296.5km, the three-stage event will make history as the longest ever women’s race.
Running alongside the Giro d’Italia, the Tour of California provides a North American counterpart that is drawing some big names in cycling. We've compiled this handy guide for you to keep up with all of the action.
The 2019 Tour of California
The 2019 race starts on 12 May, and covers seven stages that total a distance of 1,253km with a mix of flat stages suited to the sprinters and hills and mountains for the climbers.
There are a number of big names involved this year with the likes of Peter Sagan, Marcel Kittel and Tejay van Garderen in the mix, as well as the return of last year’s winner, George Bennett.
Follow the Tour of California 2019 with the live tracker
You will be able to follow the stages live on the official Tour of California app and live tracker. This includes live coverage of the final two hours of the men’s race each day, nightly video recaps of each stage of the women’s race, full GPS tracking, up-to-the-minute text commentary and much more.
How can I watch the Tour of California 2019 live in the UK?
Eurosport is covering the Tour of California, although only the last two hours of the racing will be broadcast live each evening, meaning you will get similar coverage through the Tour of California tracker.
Later in the season, Eurosport will also cover the Tour de France and Vuelta a Espana along with several other races.
Amazon Prime subscribers can sign up to a seven-day free trial for the Eurosport Player through Amazon Channels. After the seven-day trial, the Eurosport channel is £6.99 per month. Amazon Prime is £7.99 per month but can be accessed with a 30-day free trial.
If you want to access the Eurosport Player direct it's £9.99 per month or £39.99 a year, again with a seven-day free trial at the beginning of your subscription.
Alternatively, if you want a bit more versatility, you might consider subscribing to the TVPlayer Premium package for just £6.99 per month, which gives you access to the Eurosport 1 and 2 channels along with several others.
How can I watch the Tour of California 2019 live in the US?
In the US, NBCSN is providing full live coverage of the race. You may already have access to the NBC sports channels through your cable package.
If not, you can subscribe to the NBC Sports Gold package as a standalone streaming service, which is currently on offer for $19.99 for a subscription until 10 June. (A yearly subscription usually costs $49.99.)
A FuboTV subscription also provides access to NBC Sports. The basic subscription costs $44.99 per month and the cycling channel add-on is $14.99.
For full timings for coverage, check the NBC and NBCSN schedule.
How can I watch the Tour of California 2019 live in Australia?
As for Australia, TV coverage is only available on Eurosport, so it may be worth just using the free Tour of California live tracker.
Eurosport channels are available on Foxtel, which currently has a deal where you can get the sport, drama, entertainment and HD pack for AU$58 per month on a 12 month plan.
Tour of California 2019 men's race schedule
Stage 1: Sacramento–Sacramento, 143km, 12 May
Stage 2: Rancho Cordova–South Lake Tahoe, 214.5km, 13 May
Stage 3: Stockton–Morgan Hill, 208km, 14 May
Stage 4: Laguna Seca–Morro Bay, 214.5km, 15 May
Stage 5: Pismo Beach–Ventura, 219.5km, 16 May
Stage 6: Ontario–Mt. Baldy, 127.5km, 17 May
Stage 7: Santa Clarita–Pasadena, 126km, 18 May
Tour of California 2019 women's race schedule
Stage 1: Ventura–Ventura, 96.5km, 16 May
Stage 2: Ontario–Mt. Baldy, 74km, 17 May
Stage 3: Santa Clarita–Pasadena, 126km, 18 May
For more details about the individual stages, as well as details of the women's stages of the race, visit the Tour of California website.
What comes next?
The next major event on the calendar is the Tour de France, which rolls out on 6 July, arriving at the Champs-Elysées on 28 July. Then, from 24 August until 15 September, the Vuelta a España will take place.
There's plenty more live coverage to come this summer, so stay tuned for our updates on where to follow these events live.
