"The 33"-Road Bike Racing - Crit in the Tour?

I was thinking the other day that it'd be cool if the first stage of the TdF (or any stage for that matter) was a crit around the Monte Carlo Grand Prix circuit. But then I realised they never have crits in the Tour anyway. Why not? Have they ever?

Crit's are an American thing. Proboably too dangerous for the Tour.

There are lots of crits in Europe. Especially after the TDF.

Proboably too dangerous for the Tour.

I doubt whether 'dangerous' means 'unsuited for the Tour'. The Tour is one nervous race, with lots of crashes. The bunch sprints can be very spectacular; and those high-speed downhills are not for us mortals either.

the post-tour criteriums are mostly pro-cycling's equivalent of pro wrestling. they are exhibition races, where the big stars are paid huge whacks of cash to ride real fast around the centre of a town with some of the local boys. the finish order is usually fixed at the start, and everyone has a good time.

there are other criteriums and kermesse races [the latter mostly in nortern european market towns] that aren't fixed, of course, and these can be big gambling events. racers race for prize money at bonus sprints, and some can make a pretty good living off the crit circuit. but criteriums have a kind of seedy association in europe. it's like local prizefighting. i'm not sure the bog team and event sponsors want to be associated with that scene.

however, circuit races are not uncommon in stage races. the giro, for example, usually has at least one circuit race in a city centre every year, and the tour de france's last stage on the champs elysees is almost always a circuit race. the main difference between these events and criteriums is that the laps are rather longer [usually aound 10-20 km, rather than 1-5 km].

velocipedio's right. I have a friend/training partner who used to do the six day circuit in Germany, Its rigged a bit there too, espeically the Derny races. The local guys almost always win, but it keeps the crowds coming.

So how about they have a stage round the Le Mans 24 Hour circuit then? lol

So how about they have a stage round the Le Mans 24 Hour circuit then? lol
what's the surface like?

the truth is that grand prix circuits are frequently used for major international road races. the worlds was run on the belgian grand prix circuit at zolder in 2002, and there used to be a major race [grand prix des ameriques] on the gilles villeneuve circuit in montreal... and isn't the course at plouay a converted racetrack?

I thought I remember reading about some bicycle races at Laguna Seca too?

I thought I remember reading about some bicycle races at Laguna Seca too?That'd be the Sea Otter Circuit Race.

The way I understand it a Crit is usually a flat short course under 1 mile with 3-6 corners. A curcuit race is over 1 mile but under 5 miles and can be flat or rolling. A road race is over 5 miles but can be laps. The crits after the tour would really be curcuit races in the USA. It is kind of like the US calling Football "Soccer". Crits in Europe are Quite different than Crits in the USA. For instance The "Critierium International" is a 2 day 3 stage race and does not resemble a USA crit at all.

the truth is that, internationally, i don't think there's a hard-and-fast definition of either a criterium or a circuit race. my understanding -- which might be wrong -- is that a circuit race is any mass-start road race on a closed course [that is, not strictly point-to-point], and that a criterium [in its usual sense] is a subset of the circuit race.

dws5b is quite right, though, that "criterium" also means a short stage race, like the crit international and the critérium du dauphiné libéré. it seems that the meaning, in bike racing, is quite fluid, although i suspect that the stage-race meaning is an archaism.

i think the best way to define a criterium is that it is usually a race of 50-100 km on a closed course of 1-5 km. the definition is more strict in the us, where you have a national criterium championship, but less so elsewhere in the world.