The route of the Tour de France's opening three stages in the UK gets announced shortly. Excellent having this race so close to home :) .
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The route of the Tour de France's opening three stages in the UK gets announced shortly. Excellent having this race so close to home :) .
Let the Wiggomania be unconfined!Quote:
Originally Posted by Mark
The UK route of the 2014 Tour de France
Stage one
Leeds - Harewood - Otley - Ilkley - Skipton - Kettlewell - Aysgarth - Hawes - Reeth - Leyburn - Ripon - Harrogate
Stage two
York - Knaresborough - Silsden - Keighley - Haworth - Hebden Bridge - Elland - Huddersfield - Holmfirth - Sheffield
Stage three
Cambridge - Epping Forest - the Olympic Park - the Mall
I can not wait already, seeing so many town and city names that we cycle though already. Hopefully more details will be revealed at the Leeds event tonight. :D
It would be good to see a map of the route on Google maps.
Eee lad, escargotts, mools n' frits at 'arry Ramsdens. Sacrie Blur!!
With the obligatory stop for a cuppa at Sid's cafe?Quote:
Originally Posted by Mark
Will Howard and Marina be taking part..... :laugh:
I've challenged Ibby to do the route of Day 1 (120 miles) but he's wussing out already!
Back in my student days, I stayed with a mate up at Huddersfield Uni, and we took a trip (once we'd sobered up :D ) to Holmfirth and had a cuppa in SId's cafe - it is tiny!!!! ANd you have to talk dirty to the taps in the gents - there is a sign;Quote:
Originally Posted by Mark
"please turn taps on slowly"
;)
Looks like a good excuse for a hoon around The Dales!
I see Marina is wearing the yellow jersey........Quote:
Originally Posted by Mark
It's OK Mark, I will do it with you. Ibby can drive the support car. :pQuote:
Originally Posted by Mark
Some classic road rally sections on Day 1
Hmm. I am not that far from Epping Forest. Would it be worth trying to get a glimpse of the tour? Maybe
Certainly! They might go past in a flash but the experience of the event is going to be worthwhile :) .Quote:
Originally Posted by aki13
Myself, like I would think many others hoping to turn it into a cycling event. On stage 1 the start in Leeds is well within cycling distance of the finish at Harrogate!
Definitely. Saw it in Folkestone in 94 and it was gone in about 10 seconds! The show they put on beforehand is really good, creates a carnival atmosphere. Well worth going to say you've seen it. Definitely going down to see it next year, just south of Scotch Corner, so why not.Quote:
Originally Posted by Mark
http://sphotos-h.ak.fbcdn.net/hphoto...95962051_n.jpg
I do hear the best advice of those who have been to see the race is don't take any pictures of the peleton as it goes past, as you'll miss them, and get a crap photo to boot.
Yeah it's pretty quick! Especially when I saw it, as it was a downhill, then uphill section in town. We actually had a lot of the teams staying at the hotel that night. Lots of Italians, who were getting very emotional because Italy were 2 mins from losing to Nigeria at USA 94. :p :Quote:
Originally Posted by Mark
Found a home video somebody's taken in Folkestone. 19 years ago, but look at the size of the entourage before and after the cycles. I can't imagine how big it must be now! TourDeFrance1994.mpg - YouTube
I'll be out watchine somewhere. Plenty time to recce to find a decent spot.
You should cycle the stage with us. So far we have, me & GirdGirl with Ibby driving the support car ;)Quote:
Originally Posted by J4MIE
Sorry, I'm busy that day. Maybe another time.
Unless you are at the steep mountain climbing part of the stage, they zoom by so fast - but the color blur and the sound of the wheels and the commotion are a treat for the senses.Quote:
Originally Posted by Mark
In my home country Colombia, cycling has been big since I can remember - we have them Andes mountains to deal with.
I even made a documentary of our national tour in 1980 and managed to follow my all time favorite cyclist (Martin Cochise Rodriguez) in his last Colombian tour event - Great memories. :)
Bumping a massively old thread, but this is now just a couple of weeks away.Quote:
Originally Posted by steveaki13
I have obviously since found out that the tour not only comes through my home City Chelmsford, but is passing on a road, which is exactly 2 roads away from me.
I can walk to the Tour in 5 minutes, and cycle to the route in about 2.
So I guess I might as well try and see the guys come past. :D
Steve,
If you are that close it would be worth seeing, even if you watch the motor vehicles much longer than the bikes! But at a couple minutes away, hard to not go see it.
That video that Iain posted was quite revealing of the traffic involved. But not quite as revealing as one of GridGirls comments about her and Mark getting physical.... at least her SO is driving a support car! :laugh:
Mark, Grid Girl...
Did you guys ever ride that stage?
Absolutely Airshifter I definitely will be going to see it. Its so close I can get my own bike and cycle along the Chelmsford section and find a non crowded place to watch. :)Quote:
Originally Posted by airshifter
Something historic to say I have been too. I have followed the Tour de France for about 10 years now, although the last 2 I have lost contact with again.
Anyway. It will be amazing to see it.
Airshifter, funny you should ask whether we did ride the stage. I haven’t been able to as I haven't done much cycling this year due to work commitments and have only just got back into my cycling in the past couple of weeks now I’m back working in Leeds. Mark, however, just yesterday did a 109km ride which took in a good proportion of Stage 1. I’ll let him fill you in on his progress …
We went to watch the Giro d’Italia in early May in Northern Ireland. It was abrilliant weekend, with lots of pink, heartache for Dan Martin, and some great cycling. On the Belfast to Belfast stage we watched from the feed zone near the Giants Causeway so managed to watch them at low speed, had to duck a few times for the projectile missiles being thrown by the riders who decided they didn’t want their lunch or assorted drinks. Managed to get an OPQS bottle and our friends got various other bottles. One OPSQ rider made a special effort to give my friend his musette complete with most of his lunch.
Very much looking forward to the Tour coming to the city I live in, quite exciting to think that it will be starting less than a mile from where I’m currently sat at my desk. We are going to all three days of the tour. We are watching the start in Leeds, will be somewhere near Huddersfield on day two and in central London on day three. :D
I wasn't quite up to the full 130 miles, plus the extra to make it into a circular ride, but I did do a 68 mile ride with 50 of those miles on the route of the tour but it's fair to say that those 50 miles contained all the significant hills and we threw in another major climb to get to the route : http://www.strava.com/activities/156698799 . Unfortunately GridGirl wasn't up to riding the route so I did it with a local friend, we were both completely destroyed at the end, so big kudos to those who have ridden the entire route - including fizzicist, erstwhile of this parish.
Still not sure what I'm going to do for the race itself, ideally I'd drive down to somewhere close, cycle along to the side of the road somewhere and watch them go past, but as ever with these things it's never quite that simple.
Hard to believe this was announced a year and a half ago now, seems to have come around quick.
Through my home town of Otley ,and going up Addingham main street on both days ,so just a walk into town for me
It’s all getting rather exciting in Leeds now. The BMC, Lotto and Movistar teams are all staying just down the road from my house about 2 miles away. :D I’ve walked into to town for lunch the past few days and have been having to give directions to various team personnel and Tour de France officials who are trying to find the media centre although I did say that they really shouldn’t invite women into their car to ‘look at a map’ because that can get a man into a whole heap of trouble. ;)
A friend and his son have been out practising with Giant Shimano and Tinkoff Saxo teams.
Looks like Otley my home town ,then across country to West Witton on Saturday,then Sunday Blubberhouses,then to Oxenhope for the hairpin right turn towards Hebden Bridge
I'll be streaming online for sure! I'm a newcomer when it comes to watching the sport. What are some of people's favorite stages/sections?
KnareSboro today so we can get home to watch Grand Prix ,but my advice for anybody going today is view at Oxenhope ,should be great there
What have the crowds been like?Quote:
Originally Posted by driveace
I mean its coming through Chelmsford tomorrow and I reckon it will be packed. Even though I am only walking 5 minutes to view, I guess I will need to get there well early?
Crowds have been INSANE. The riders are even having problems because there's so many people lining the road they can't get through.
So yes get there early or find a spot a bit of a way outside the centre. From watching the coverage there's plenty of space on ordinary roads it's just the climbs everyone goes to.
I always remember in the mountains in France, they stand all over the road and part like the red sea right in front of the bikes. So Dangerous.Quote:
Originally Posted by Mark
Is Nibali on drugs ??? What an amazing win, he now leads by 3:37 :eek:
Anyone's following this ? ;)
Quote:
Originally Posted by pino
Of course. Nibali has been very impressive so far. We'll see what goes on in the high mountains but with no Contador, no Quintana, no Froome and Porte looking like he's riding for 2nd then who can possibly challenge him?