Versus cycles in with more live Lance on the Tour de California

AP Photo/Aman Sharma
Lance Armstrong signs autographs before participating in the third stage of Tour Down Under cycling race in Adelaide, Australia on Thursday.

Versus, home of the Tour de France since Lance Armstrong made it must-watch TV back in the day, announced today it will go "wall-to-wall" with the fourth Amgen Tour of California starting Feb. 14 at 2 p.m.

This is the third year Versus has covered the race, which runs through the San Fernando Valley, but this year it's got a bigger profile with Armstrong using it as a prep for his return to the Tour de France this summer. As a result, Versus will air all nine days, including live in the middle stages for the first time.

The 750-mile, nine-day race from Sacramento to San Diego is covered by Phil Ligget and Paul Sherwen.

The schedule:
Feb. 7: Preview show, 2 p.m.
Feb. 14: Prologue in Sacramento (delayed), 2 p.m.
Feb. 15: Stage 1: Davis to Santa Rosa (live and delay), 3 p.m.
Feb. 16: Stage 2: Sausalito to Santa Cruz (live), 9:30 a.m.
Feb. 17: Stage 3: San Jose to Modesto (live), 2 p.m.
Feb. 18: Stage 4: Merced to Clovis (live), 1 p.m.
Feb. 19: Stage 5: Visalia to Paso Robles (live), 1 p.m.
Feb. 20: Stage 6: Solvang time trial (live), 1 p.m.
Feb. 21: Stage 7: Santa Clarita to Pasadena (live and delay), 2 p.m.
Feb. 22: Stage 8: Rancho Bernardo to Escondido (live and delay), 2 p.m.

Versus is doing the 2009 Tour Down Under event with 30-minute highlight shows at 1 p.m. through Saturday. More live streaming on the network's website: www.versus.com. The final recap is Sunday at 2 p.m.