General Cycling Discussion - Tour de France : An inconvience?

I was chatting to my parents about where I might want to live in the future. I mentioned southern France and said that I would pick a road that the TDF goes by. My mother's comment : "That would be inconvienient." I ask why, she replies "The road would be closed."

I was in disbelief, but for people who drive everwhere, it seems perfectly logical.

I would find the crowds at times more inconvenient than anything. Being in North America we don't have the absolute insane fan base europeans have. They are just ******** in the way they display their love for a team. I don't like soccer but that is a good example. Same with one of the legs in the tdf. The fans were close enough to lance to give him a shot in the head and to live near any of that. Jeez. I live in whistler and love to party but that is nuts.

That seems like it would be a great idea, living on the TDF route. You are right about the crowds too on the downside. They could do harm to you property or as they do in soccer, flip your car! Perhaps you could charge a nice fee for them to park themselves on your lawn ;).

Originally posted by Spire
I was chatting to my parents about where I might want to live in the future. I mentioned southern France and said that I would pick a road that the TDF goes by. My mother's comment : "That would be inconvienient." I ask why, she replies "The road would be closed."

I was in disbelief, but for people who drive everwhere, it seems perfectly logical.
It would be very inconvenient for me. I might have to cycle to work with a peleton passing me!

:confused:

It would be inconvenient for part of one day every few years. The Tour doesn't take the same route every year, though I'm sure that, if you lived around Mont Ventoux or l'Alpe d'Huez, you'd see it more often than if you lived in Le Puy en Velay. Roads are closed for a few hours prior to the arrival of the publicity caravan and then the race itself. They open pretty soon after the last of the cyclists pass.

Maelstrom, I wouldn't worry too much about cycling hoolifanism. Cycling crowds are, for the most part, well-behaved and they're spread out over several hundred kms of road, so you never get that critical mass. The only place where things might get out of hand -- and they rarely do -- is at the finishes and the mountaintops.

I should say that I've never actually seen the Tour in person, though I have watched it on television, and I've read a great deal about it.

I have seen the tour in person, near the town of Vitre.. The crowds were very orderly. Roads were open less than an hour after the tour passed. We cycled in the direction that the tour went. Yes, they beat by a lot... The kids went a little crazy, snatching goodies that the advance cars threw at the fans as keep sakes.. I would love to live on the road that the tour passed and sit on my front lawn and watch

I did love the one view of a small group of people have tea at the side of the road. Man that was the funniest pic I have ever seen, bunch of guys screaming past them at high speeds and 4 people sitting there raising their cups..haha

The French and the tour de France. Their celebration of this event causes our Super Bowl parties to look like Drunken crass parties. The whole country takes off the month of July to collectively celebrate their passion.
What I would like about this 'incovenience' is this tour is just their pinacle of their passion for cycling. Never have I been so at home on their roads and on the bike.
Our aspirations also are to maybe someday retire to to the SOuth of France and live the good life. My wife being a French teacher. Everyday would be a celebration of the bike from everything I have experienced from my being over there.
We have even picked out our little town in Rousillon and wonder if our dreams could come true. Only thing I don't like about our little town, they eat too many sardines..
heah, the rural. charm of the South of France is good enough for Picasso, Van Gogh, Cezenne,and the actor Johnny Deep ( wants his daughter raised in the most civilized manner possible) it is worth our dreams..
I will need a shed as many bikes as I might acquire before We get to that stage of life..

[QUOTE]Originally posted by cyclezealot
[B]The French and the tour de France. Their celebration of this event causes our Super Bowl parties to look like Drunken crass parties. [QUOTE]

I hate to tell you this, but SuperBowl parties ARE drunken crass parties....and ever notice how European sports crowds (same goes for Australian, NZ and SA and most southern hemisphere crowds) look so healthy and trim- not just cycling crowds (which feature lots of cyclists in their team garb) but rugby crowds, even soccer crowds. You never see the huge slobs that you see in baseball crowds, shoving hot dogs into their faces and shlurping huge gobs of ice cream. New Zealanders look really hardy and outdoorsy, and South africans- some of them look like models! A far cry from the shlubs we see here in North america (except of course for cycling crowds which tend to be cyclists).

Thats because in the states. The ones who don't play watch while the ones who play play a lot. In Europe everyone plays. The large people move to Toronto :D

(I'd like to be the one making the crazy signs to catch the eyes of the networks)

Hate to say this Wabbit. But among the Europeans- the one's who are known for having drunken crass parties,' after they invade the Continent are the English to watch their soccer team.? I think it is the cold dark winter and too much time spent in the pubs..
Also, biking about France and Spain the locals seem so supportive of cyclists, unlike here- where you might be lucky to escape with your life from our encounters with the motoring primates..
ps- WRONG word choice. When the tour de France passes by- there is no inconvenience- for almost everyone is partaking in that very inconvenience.. and thoroughly enjoying themselves.

I must confess that, though I'd like to cycle-tour France, I prefer the Tour (Giro, Paris-Roubaix, etc.) from the comfort of my living room. Traveling 3,000 miles to watch the peloton roar past in a matter of 10 seconds doesn't sound that appealing.

Yeah, I know, the ambiance, the sharing of cycling passion; just being there. Okay, so maybe once, but only if someone is taping Phil and Paul back home off OLN.

NORBA or World Cup XC is a different thing entirely. The riders are much closer to the spectators. The course has multiple laps. If you're reasonably fit you can run around the course and see your favorite riders ride several sections of the course each lap. If you race, and pre-ride the course a day or two before the race, there is a good chance you'll be out there with the pros. Last summer I pre-rode Mt. Snow on Thursday and Mary McConnologue (sp) was out there with me for much of my ride. She suggested lines for me to try and was polite and bubbly the whole time.

At least when you watch american football, soccer, baseball, basketball, etc. live you get to see the whole game, beginning to end.

I've been to see the final stage of the Tour twice and can tell you it was a great laugh. A mixed group of Scots (Robert Millar was racing) Irish, Dutch, Germans and French all on Champs d'Elysee, for hours before the tour caravan arrived.

the streets were cleared and open later in the evening.

Originally posted by wabbit
...and South africans- some of them look like models! A far cry from the shlubs we see here in North america...
I'm a big rugby fan. I can't help but notice that, when the camera pans through the crowd in ABSA stadium in Durban [go Sharks!] or Ellis Park in Johannesburg, the people in the stands really are incredibly good looking. Charlize Theron is, I must conclude, an average-looking South African. What are they putting in the water there?

One point to make about how the cycling tours are appreciated in Europe. At least in the TDF the local cities bid for the privilege of having the tour pass through the town. They do not think it an inconvenience. They pay for the privilege of making more work for themselves. Were the tour is more festive is the town at the end of a given stage. Each city has a little event/party for the arriving cyclists.. How can a party be an inconvenience..

It might also be worth noting that, when the Tour starts or finishes in a town or city, the local economy gets a cash infusion that can keep it going for years. There are tourist bucks to me made...

I have seen the 2000 and 2002 edition (twice) in person, and would just as soon not live directly on the route. It can get pretty wild, especially if the people at your door are not locals.

That's why we bought a house in La Paillette (la Drome Provencal) which will probably never be on the route, though it is possible. But being close, within easy cycling distance, is going to be nice. :)

Cheers...Gary