Lance Armstrong won the Nevada City Classic on Sunday, using a strong solo effort to ride to victory in the 49th annual race through the Northern California mining town.

Armstrong, meanwhile, joined an early three-man break with Astana teammate Levi Leipheimer and Ben Jacques-Maynes (Bissell) that eventually lapped the field, cheered on by a crowd that race director Duane Strawser estimated at about 20,000.

Clad in Livestrong livery, the seven-time Tour de France champion went it alone with six laps to race, taking a lead of a dozen seconds as he churned out 2.5-minute laps on the 1.1-mile, seven-turn circuit with 120 feet of climbing per go-round.

With one lap to go, Armstrong had nearly doubled his advantage as Leipheimer and Chris Horner monitored the pursuit. And just a couple minutes later he shot down Broad Street and crossed the line alone, arms raised, to claim the first victory in his comeback from retirement.

Asked why he was racing Nevada City with the Tour just around the corner, Armstrong replied that it was partly due to the event’s history, course and fans. He added that Nevada City remains a tough race, something that can only help at this point in the year. Being 37 years old — and having spent nearly four years off the bike — has made his return to racing something of a challenge, he acknowledged.

Some wondered whether his appearance at Nevada City was an indication that he was taking the Tour de France less seriously. It was a notion he quickly put to rest.

“No,” replied Armstrong, “it was important to get in an intense day today; it happened to fall on this day. Ninety minutes of the kind of watts we were putting out were what we needed to remind the body of what we need to do.”