Tour de Yorkshire, Cambridge...and oh yes France as well!!

[Panwearsjaune]

T minus 35 days and counting, to the Grand Depart from Leeds 5th July, with two stages in the White County, and then a third from Cambridge to the Mall in London. It's just soo exciting!
It's the biggest biking event in the world, with approx 190 professional riders in about 20 teams racing across tarmac and cobbles, up mountains and down Dales and ending on 27th July on the Champs Elysee, Paris in the now traditional sprint finish there.
So here's the thread to share in it all, swop info about accommodation for Tour watchers, road closures, the parcours (courses), peloton gossip, potential meet ups, tv coverage, who's got the nicest legs etc.. and everything to do with the thrills and occasional spills with the event that is a game of poker played out every day on 380 wheels.
OF course if you are a newbie to all of this and are curious about the whys and hows of racing then ask and someone will pop up to answer questions. Hopefully.

So I'll depart here next with the routes of the UK 3 stages being taken so no-one gets lost and ends up in the dreaded broom wagon.

[Panwearsjaune]

Naked bike ride. You lot sound so......British!

[DramaAlpaca]

Just goes to show you get much better service in the independents when buying a bike. The large chains clearly don't like it when a customer knows more about their products than they do.

[Panwearsjaune]

yes the young chap in Harry Halls was a biker, a bit cool and informed, easy, and perhaps should have had a spliff hanging out of his mouth. but he knew his stuff.
So two weeks or less, and new road bike to take to the TdF!!

[LostInWales]

Still the same bike then? Just with much better service. I am cross on your behalf at the blokes in Evans. It goes hand in hand with my comment that if you aren't all excited getting a new bike then you can't have one, if you don't understand that you are selling something that exciting to someone and it is NOT a cheapy toy, you shouldn't be selling them in the first place. I'm glad you got your Harry Halls nice bloke. I was going to ask what size frame but wasn't sure if that was too personal a question (what do you mean too British). I had a hard time getting DS1 his first 'good' bike because he's got massive long legs for his height and as he was 13 at the time still growing like mad. (54" frame I'm sure you wanted to know ). We have a really good independent shop in our tiny town. Although my friend works there so measured up my long of limb child then told me which website would get me the best deal . We spend lots of money in there on everything else ok?

Endoplasmic I thought chafing too. . Not enough chamois cream in the world.

[mistlethrush]

Here are the Yorkshire routes.

I understand that they are heading out of Leeds at 11am on the Saturday following the procesion - but not starting to race until Harewood (noon). So if you want to actually see some of the riders and bikes and can get to somewhere between the city centre and Harewood in the morning, you'd get a view there. There's a viewing grandstand going up on the playing fields half way up Scott Hall Road (top of the hill).

[Panwearsjaune]

mistlethrush, those maps are wheely useful! My maps at the top of the thread were just big brush stuff but yours there are excellent for planning.

For Holme Moss details, click on Stage 2, click on the map, then select 'Holmfirth' on the left hand side list of places. This will show you the route coming in from the north. Navigate downwards and see HM summit as an orange circle. Follow the route down to the bottom of the road where it meets Woodhead Reservoir,and they turn left into the Peak National Park.

That road they meet at Woodhead is the A628 Woodhead Pass and will be closed coming out of Glossop/Manchester all day prob from early morning - I'll check.

Tough decision - do I want to go to HM summit, or watch them whizz by 'my' reservoir?

[EndoplasmicReticulum]

Robert Millar blog about Bradley and Tour
www.cyclingnews.com/blogs/robert-millar/robert-millar-blog-man-down

don't forget bikes

[SDTGisAnEvilWolefGenius]

DramaAlpaca - come and stay with me, and drive down to the TdeY with dh and me!

What do people think about the whole Wiggins not doing the Tour thing? Chez EvilWolef we are pro-Chris Froome, and think he is a better rider than Wiggo, and less of a bighead too, so we are not to bovvered.

[SDTGisAnEvilWolefGenius]

to bovvered? Too, obviously.

[museumum]

This is so useful from the Yorkshire folks. Thanks. Our plan is to arrive at the rugby club Friday night and stay parked there till after the peloton come through on the Sunday.
Not under any illusions of actually seeing stage 1 finish (except on a big screen) but the thought of trying to get to anywhere else on the route with a baby is too daunting. At least we'll see them woosh past on the Sunday.

[Panwearsjaune]

Spartacus needs Lost

[Panwearsjaune]

Am seeing the shop staff/buyer link Lost. If you sell bikes and have little sense of joy for a customer (no matter what age) maybe you should reconsider your career!

[EndoplasmicReticulum]

SDTG I'm not to bovvered either, but my son is disappointed (he's 7). When Bradley won the tour he was 5 and used to like shouting "Bradley Wiggins" whenever he saw a cyclist.

[DramaAlpaca]

Wow, thanks for the offer SDTG! You're so kind . Unfortunately I can't take you up on it because I can't get holidays from work on the Friday or Monday as other people in the office have booked holidays then So it will be the TV for me. And I will expect lots of reports on here from the MN reporters in situ

We are also not too bovvered chez DA about Wiggins not doing the tour. What will be very interesting for future years is if Wiggins changes team, as I suspect he will, and ends up competing against Froome in the Tour. Not one, but two, British team leaders/GC contenders would be something special.

[Panwearsjaune]

wondering if that article by Millar is an invitation for Garmin-Sharp. And Cav would prob be having a word in Omega Pharma ears?
iirc the contracts open season is in August. If Sky allow a deal a la Cav, then he would have time to compete in Glasgow and be up for the Vuelta.
Another team would mean he gets to ride the big three without the Froome-related hassles.

[Panwearsjaune]

Not convinced by the 'arrogance' charge at least v Froome. Froome tries to ignore team instructions and ride off in 2012. His book release and justifications afterwards was a study in passive/aggressive behaviours, claims he 'nearly left Sky (but you didn't Chris so what was the poont of that?), alleging 'weakness' toward a team member is NOT conducive to good work relationships, and will no doubt have had a strong word in who-does-what for Sky pre-Tour preparations. He is currently the favoured prince but is becoming rather tasteless in rubbing Brad's nose in it. Bit, or quite a lot, arrogant, imo.

[DramaAlpaca]

The Millar article is interesting. I'd say there's a lot of truth in the team selection being about personalities rather than performance. I wonder if things might change if Wiggins performs really well in the Tour of Switzerland and makes it difficult not to select him.

[EndoplasmicReticulum]

If sky don't take Wiggins, and if Froome had a crash in the early stages, do they have another gc contender?

[DoctorTwo]

Sorry I'm late. Really looking forward to this year's race, though I'm a bit annoyed with the Sky team for dropping Wiggins. He'll be off at the end of the season, he won't stand for this much lack of respect. Whoever signs him up (I'd love to see him at OPQS) will strengthen their team, he is that good.

[Panwearsjaune]

Greetings Dr!!

Richie Porte is touted as a GCer in the future, and will be CF's wing man this year.

Noticed that Eddie BH is in neither event.

[DramaAlpaca]

I'm wondering about OGE for Wiggins.

Eddie BH is considering his position at Sky and has been talking to other teams. He's been recovering from injuries sustained at the Giro, so was out of contention for the two selection races. I'm sorry he won't be in the Tour, he's one of my favourite riders.

[mistlethrush]

A friend has snapped the Sky team having a quick preview of some of the Yorkshire days.

I shall be watching it before the race starts - my parents saw it go past down south whilst racing and said that it was about 10 secs of flashing lycra for a 2 hr wait... So I wanted DS to actually get a chance of seeing the cyclists a bit at least! We're going to get dropped off near the route on a road that will be closed at the end and then walk the rest of the distance - and DH will pick us up again when we've finished.

[LostInWales]

Sorry, late to the thread today I've been too busy gently rubbing savlon into my beloved's road rash sorting out the bloody malware software on my laptop.

Richie Porte was looking to be a contender in the Giro this year wasn't he, I'm not sure if he was pulled due to illness as touted by Sky or if he was sacrificed to be there for Froome because he's the only one who can tolerate him. . I also bow to our great leaders opinion on Wiggo vs Froome

Sky seems to be shedding a lot of their good riders, good at picking people then training them well or good at bunging a good contract their way then single-mindedly backing their TdF chance above all else?

Anyhoo, I had a large G&T to celebrate moving off morphine and onto Tramadol overnight instead, I'm sure gin and opioids are a great mix but I would like to point out that my posting style may be even worse than usual .

[mistlethrush]

Being allergic to most painkillers now (Handy), I do find alcohol very useful at times

[LostInWales]

Allergic to painkillers? What a nightmare, I can't take any of the NASIDs anymore but I don't know how I would cope without the rest of them. Poor you, you must live in fear of hurting yourself. Alcohol a very good back up plan though!