Tour of California lets you be like Lance, Levi

Recreational cyclists and amateur racers who dream about riding a fully supported Amgen Tour of California stage can fulfill that fantasy.

North America's biggest cycling race, which comes to Clovis next May, will hold a L'Etape du California on April 28. The event allows amateurs to ride the mountainous Stage 7 from Ontario to Mount Baldy.

The field for the 2012 L'Etape du California will be limited to 2,500 riders, and last year's ride sold out well in advance. Details: letapeducalifornia.com.

Specific details of Stage 7 will be announced in early 2012, along with details of the entire race route.

Fresno Ski Club's ski/board swap/sale

When: 6-9 p.m. Friday, 9 a.m.-6 p.m. Saturday, 9 a.m.-2 p.m. Sunday

Where: 5365 N. Blackstone Ave. in Fresno (Barstow and Blackstone, behind Taco Bell)

The ski club's annual sale includes bargains in new and used equipment and clothing. Admission is $5, which will be applied toward purchase or donated to the Special Olympics, and includes raffle-drawing eligibility for a China Peak season pass. Children under 18 are free with an adult. Donations of used equipment and clothing will be accepted for the Special Olympics.

Pine Flat fish project

Thirty-one volunteers, most of them from the Kerman Bass Club, filled 35 gabions (large wire cages) with manzanita brush and placed them into Pine Flat Lake on Saturday.

The structures will provide cover and protection for multiple fish species and crawdads as well as serve as potential spawing areas. A similar project is planned for February except using old Christmas trees instead of manzanita, and even more gabions will be placed over the next 5 years.