2006 Tour of Georgia

This is our first time at the Tour of Georgia, we are set to be there
for both the Stage 4 - Dalton, Ga. to Dahlonega, Ga. and Stage 5 -
Blairsville to Brasstown Bald Mt. I would be greatful for any helpful
hints on how to get a good spot in either stage to view the race.

We are staying in Blairsville and I would expect traffic in the whole
area to be pretty bad. If that is true just how bad should I expect it
to be. How much extra time should I allow for traffic when going to the
bottom of Brasstown Bald?


Are there any other interesting events held in conjuction with the
Tour? Do the teams stay in town near the start city? How much
interaction is ther between fan and rider either before or after each
stage or in the evening?


Has anyone purchased a hospitality pass and is it worth it?


Any help in making this trip fun and exciting would be appreciated.


Cycle - I
New York

Made the trip two years ago. We got to the Brasstown Bald 4 hours
before the cyclists and parked on the road. See the maps of the area.
About 3 miles of road that goes up to the Bald (GA180 spur) was
blocked-off to auto traffic probably the day before. But, many people
walked or biked up that 3 mile stretch of road. This is where you want
to be - it's very steep. We weren't sure how far it was at the time so
we stopped before the turnoff to the spur. Here is a picture from my
web page of U.S. Postal with Hincappie, Lance, et. al. about 1/4 mile
from the GA180 spur.
http://hosie.blogspot.com/2005/02/tour-de-georgia.html

The tour terminates at West End Parkway in Alpharetta and the cyclists
make a 4 or 5 lap circuit right in front of my office Sunday afternoon
- another really good place to see the finish with plenty of parking.