Press Release
2006 SUNNY KING CRITERIUM SELECTED FOR NATIONAL SERIES, ADDS
RED DIAMOND, INC. AS TITLE SPONSOR, EXPANDS TO FESTIVAL
December 8, 2005
ANNISTON, Al - The Northeast Alabama Bicycle Club confirmed today that its 2006 downtown professional bicycle races—the Sunny King Criterium—and restaurant event—the Red Diamond Restaurant Tour (formerly known as A Taste of Noble)—will be Saturday, May 6. In addition to bike races and restaurants, the 2006 event will grow to include live music, an artist market, and even more activities for children, creating a diverse festival. This growth has prompted the organizers to establish the Noble Street Festival, which will be comprised of the Sunny King Criterium, the Red Diamond Restaurant Tour, the Noble Street Music Festival, and the Peddling Art Show. Much of historic Noble Street in downtown Anniston will be open only to pedestrians and bicycles for the day. The Noble Street Festival’s extensive web site, www.noblestreetfestival.com will be launched today.
Sunny King Automotive Group, one of the oldest automobile dealerships in the country, has confirmed its continued title sponsorship of the Sunny King Criterium for 2006. As a headline event of the Noble Street Festival, this bicycle race attracts more than 500 top pro and amateur athletes from around the world to downtown Anniston to compete for cash and prizes. USA Cycling, based in Colorado Springs, CO recently selected the Sunny King Criterium to be included on its National Racing Calendar (NRC) series for 2006. The NRC features 45 events in 22 states and represents a collection of the most prestigious road cycling races on American soil, including the Tour de Georgia and the recently announced Amgen Tour of California. The Sunny King Criterium is free to spectators and benefits Calhoun County Relay for Life, a local American Cancer Society fund-raiser. The 2005 race donated over $7,800 to this worthy cause.
Red Diamond, Inc., one of the three oldest family-owned coffee & tea companies in the nation, will be the title sponsor for the restaurant event formerly known as A Taste of Noble, creating a new name—Red Diamond Restaurant Tour. As a headline event of the Noble Street Festival, the Red Diamond Restaurant Tour will feature more than 20 of the finest local restaurants and caterers in the Anniston area. The restaurants and caterers will provide a diverse & delicious menu for festival attendees, serving from attractive tents along several blocks of Noble Street. Red Diamond will supply its famous tea, coffee, and bottled water. Restaurants will price each menu item, allowing attendees to purchase food and dine outdoors on Noble Street while enjoying the festival.
“We are very pleased to have another well-respected company like Red Diamond to join Sunny King Automotive Group as a title sponsor for this festival. Thanks to the support of all of our sponsors, the Noble Street Festival will be greatly enhanced in 2006,” said Mike Poe, one of the festival’s volunteer organizers.
Live music and a regional artist market will be added attractions for 2006. The Noble Street Music Festival will feature local and regional live music throughout the day and will produce a free headline concert on Noble Street after the final pro bike race. The Peddling Art Show will feature more than 20 local and regional artists who will offer works for viewing and purchase in the closed streets. Featured art will include painting, watercolor, sculpture, printmaking, glass, jewelry, clay, and more. There will be hands-on art activities for children, as well.
About Red Diamond, Inc.:
Begun in 1906 by William Fitz Donovan, Red Diamond, Inc. has been continuously operated over the past nine decades by members of the same family. Today it serves its customers with over 6,000 beverage and food service products. The company is based in Birmingham, Al. and will celebrate its 100 year anniversary in 2006.
About Sunny King Automotive Group:
Sunny King Automotive Group operates Ford, Honda, Toyota, and Mitsubishi franchises. The company was founded in Anniston in 1922 and remains one of only a few dealerships in the country still owned and operated by the founding family. Patty King currently serves as its president and CEO.
About the Northeast Alabama Bicycle Club:
The Northeast Alabama Bicycle Club (NEABC) exists to promote safe road and mountain biking. We strive to promote the healthy benefits of cycling by planning and sponsoring quality cycling-related events, and by encouraging both recreational cycling and cycling as a viable means of transportation. The club is comprised of approximately 100 members from across northeast Alabama.
About the festival:
The NEABC has organized and hosted the Cheaha Challenge Century, a 102-mile recreational bicycle ride in Piedmont, Al., for 13 years. This ride attracts more than 500 recreational cycling tourists from more than 20 states. In an effort to enhance this event and attract more tourists, the NEABC sought to provide these Cheaha Challenge cycling guests with more weekend entertainment. As a result, the Cheaha Challenge Criterium bike races, along with A Taste of Noble restaurant festival were born in 2003. The races grew and added Sunny King Automotive Group as a title sponsor in 2005. The restaurant festival grew from four restaurants in 2003 to 11 in 2005. The 2005 race and restaurant event attracted more than 3,000 festival attendees.
About USA Cycling:
The company was organized in 1920 as the Amateur Bicycle League of America and was incorporated in New York in 1921. In 1975, the name was changed to the United States Cycling Federation. In 1995, a new organization, USA Cycling, was incorporated in Colorado, and on July 1, 1995, the two corporations merged, with USA Cycling being the umbrella corporation.
USA Cycling is the official cycling organization recognized by the USOC and is responsible for identifying, training and selecting cyclists to represent the United States in international competitions. USA Cycling, doing business as the USCF, NORBA and USPRO, controls nearly two dozen major events each year and issues permits for up to 3,000 more.
The major activities of USA Cycling ensure the ongoing development and safe participation in the sport of cycling. Membership services and a full spectrum of other responsibilities account for the functions of USA Cycling.
Since the creation of the modern bicycle, the United States has been a dominant force in cycling competition. Before World War II, cycling was second only to baseball as a national sporting pastime. Following a period of decline in the 1950s and '60s, cycling regained its popularity and today is the fastest-growing amateur participation and spectator sport. Studies show that more than 99 million Americans are active in cycling. Research further indicates that these people spend more than $4 billion annually to participate in the sport of cycling, and that these expenditures will likely double over the next several years.