BLUE MOUNDS, Wis. -- The first road cycling course proposed for Chicago's 2016 Olympic bid began in the city's suburbs and wound its way through some hilly terrain before building to a big finish downtown in the heart of the Olympic village.
It was roundly rejected as being too easy.
That sent former professional cyclist and Chicago-area resident Robbie Ventura back to the drawing board.
Ventura, who once rode as a teammate to Lance Armstrong, was playing a lead role in designing the cycling venues for Chicago's bid. He could think of only one place in the area fitting the difficult profile Olympic officials desired: the diabolically hilly rural roads that wind around and through a state park about 30 miles west of Madison, Wis. ESPN report
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