Tour of Britain
Sep. 10th, 2004 11:30 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
selenayI've had an exhausting week - big weekend and then much college work this week - which is why it's been a week since I updated this. I went into London to watch the Tour of Britain final stage and it was much fun. Sadly I can't get the photos off my camera because Da has taken the card reader with him on holiday, but I took many photos and hopefully there will be at least a couple of good ones.
I took a newbie to cycling with me on Sunday and introduced her to the joys of watching a professional road race. This is an exhausting procedure, but she says that she had fun and I believe her :-)
We set out a little later than I'd planned due to my last-minute flapping about to make sandwiches. It was one of those mornings where you start out with tons of time, way ahead of schedule and then realise that you're actually way behind schedule with no idea where the time went. I'd been paying attention to the weather reports all week and knew it would be hot, so I'd dressed appropriately: surfer shorts and my 98 Tour de France T-shirt. T didn't know it was going to be hot until I told her that morning, so she was dressed in jeans and a dark, thick T-shirt. Oops.
The train into London was nice and quiet (ah, Sunday trains) and the Tube across London was hot and busy (ah, Sunday Tube). We got out at Westminster (cue much sqeeing about the Houses of Parliament, despite the fact that I've seen them many times before) and immediately spotted barriers and distance markers, the unmistakable signs of a bike race. Then we had to check our maps to work out which direction to go for the finish line. Easily accomplished and during the short walk I managed to aquire an official race program and some leaflets from London Transport about cycling in the capital.
We got to the finishing straight at around 11am. There were a few spectators, but most people were obviously waiting until exciting things began. T and I therefore managed to find a very good spot around forty feet from the finish line and right opposite the stage where jerseys and prizes would be awarded. I don't think we could have found a better place. T had brought along a couple of little foldy stools so I had the unusual experience of not sitting on the road at a bike race.
The organisers had put on some extra events before the big race in the afternoon. We'd missed the first one, but a demo of some new childrens bikes began soon after we arrived. It was fun and the kids seemed to enjoy racing around on the weird bikes. T and I started making inroads on the sandwiches and coffee afterwards :-)
Just after 12pm, one of the big events began. The organisers had put on an amateur race around the circuit before the pro race, sort of in homage to the Tour du Etape. The circuit that the riders would be going around was a mile-long cicuit of Westminster. The pros would be doing it 45 times and the amateurs raced it twenty times. I think they were probably glad of that because the day was hotting up a lot and the amateur race was surprisingly fast.
There were around 160 amateurs in this race (called the Bob Chicken race for some unknown reason) of varying levels. Some were really amateurs who had probably only done some basic club racing. There were also a couple of the big amateur teams, including the Persil squad who are *the* British amateur squad. Add in some ex-professional riders and you've got quite a mixed bag. Sean Yates (an excellent pro rider in his day, demon descender and very fast man who now works for the CSC team) was there, as was Brian Holm. There was a rumour that Johan Museeuw might show, but he didn't. Oh, well....Sean Yates :-) The organisers had David Duffield doing a lot of the PA stuff (a Eurosport commentator) aided by the BBC's Hugh Porter. The PA system had been set up with speakers around the circuit, playing lots of music and providing commentary and interviews with anyone DD could corner. Noisy. But fun :-)
I was snapping away with the camera and got lots of lovely photos as the riders massed for the start (right in front of me - woo!) and then lots of good action shots when the race was on. The pace began high, slowed a little in the middle and then sped up again at the end. The pace came as a bit of a shock to some of the riders and it quickly became obvious who the dedicated riders were and who were the strictly hobby riders. The hobby riders were shooting out of the back of the race and a lot gave up before the race was half over. There were lots of attempts at break aways from the front of the peloton, but none of them succeeded. Sean Yates led the peloton for most of the race, chasing down breaks and showing that the man is still in top shape despite being retired for nearly ten years. Unfortunately, he punctured on the penultimate lap and didn't recover his rhythm :-( The winners came from the Persil squad and there was a nice prize presentation afterwards. There were even press guys taking photos and it wouldn't surprise me if at least a couple of those riders snap up pro contracts for next year.
T and I sat down again and had more sandwiches and coffee while we waited for the big race to begin. I was very impressed with the race organisation. Nobody got onto the road when they shouldn't, there were lots of St John's Ambulance guys around to treat spectators overcome with the heat and everything looked fantastic. We were incredibly close to the start/finish line and the traditional arch over the line with the count-down clocks also had a lap counter. The entire route had was lined with barriers and a lot of the route also had advertising boards that maintenance guys regularly checked to make sure they weren't coming loose.
The professionals began signing in at 2pm, at which point T and I packed up the stools and took our places at the barriers. I got lots of photos of riders signing in, being interviewed and gathering in front of us for the off.
There was much excitement when Eddy Mercx was announced to present the competition leaders with their jerseys. This is the greatest cyclist in the history of the sport - there isn't a race that he didn't win at least once. He could win races from February to October and an on-form Eddy was unbeatable. Remind you of anyone? Armstrong is being compared to Mercx and I honestly think that Mercx is now the only cyclist greater than Armstrong.
Of course, I took lots of photos and got thoroughly excited about being feet away from a cycling god :-) The leader of the race overall was a little Columbian guy called Mauricio Ardila and there was a party of vocal Columbians a few feet from us. Of course, Ardila had to pose with them so the press could take photos and it was lovely to hear the enthusiasm from his fans :-) Bradley Wiggins (Credit Agricole), winner of two medals at Athens, was there as was Roger Hammond (MrBookmaker.com), British champion and Olympic medal winner. Tom Boonen from the Quick-Step team was interviewed as he signed in - he's a good young sprinter who won a couple of Tour de France stages. Andreas Kloden (T-Mobile), second in this year's Tour, appeared and Axel Mercx (Lotto-Domo), bronze in the Olympic road race, was there to make father Eddy proud :-) Jose Azevedo and Chechu Rubiera (US-Postal), two of Lance's most important lieutenants, rode up and down in front of us. I'm sure that when I examine my photos I'll find more people tobrag babble about.
At 3pm, the race was off. It's difficult to imagine a big, professional bike race if you've never been to one. You've got the noice from the PA, the music and the sound of 100 pairs of bike tyres on the road. Those tyres make a surprising about of noise and the riders create quite a draft as they ride past at 30mph. The pace is higher and more intense than the amateur version, but hardly anyone is dropped from the peloton because these guys race at this pace all the time in all kinds of weather. And then there's the spectators. We shout and cheer and bang on the advertising boards as the riders go past, willing them onwards with all our might. It's incredibly noisy, very intense and you can't help getting caught up in the excitement. Where T and I were, the crowds were three or four people deep and we were at the front, banging on the boards until our hands were bruised, screaming ourselves hoarse and grinning uncontrollably. It's an amazing experience.
There is also the press. There are the guys on motorbikes taking insane risks to get fabulous film that will be broacast all over the world. They also take shots of the spectators :-) When the riders come to the final lap, the photographers take up their positions in a bunch behind the lap. There are twenty or thirty of them and they take their photos of the finish and jump out of the way in a practised move that still makes me wonder how none of them get killed. Just past the finished line there is a crane with a camera man on to take the footage as the riders come down the finishing stretch and flying overhead is the aeroplane that takes the overhead shots and beams the signals from the motorbike cameramen to the waiting world.
Ardila won the overall, which prompted yet more photos with his fans. Bradley Wiggins nearly won the stage, but his legs ran out on the final lap. It didn't stop us cheering him :-)
The presentations took place about fifteen minutes after the end of the stage. The area in front of us became filled with press (taking photos and film way too close to T and I) and special precedence was given to one guy who I am sure is Graham Watson, one of the true greats in the world of cycling photography. The riders got their final jerseys and statues. Hammond got a prize as best-placed Brit. Ardila attempted to spray the magnum of champagne that simply wouldn't bubble - they drank it instead :-)
With this kind of thing, it's also amazing how fast they are at packing up. T and I sat down for half an hour before going back to the Tube station to let the worst of the crowding drain away. They were already well into dismantling everything by the time we left. I reminded T that on any other day, they'd be dismantling it all to carry to the next stage finish and put it all up again so they have to be good at quick pack-ups.
It was a fabulous day and I am now really hoping that London manages to get the Tour de France start in 2008. Just wait until I show T what a Tour stage is like. Ten times more frantic, ten times louder....and even more fun :-)
Thus ends my cycling babbling. Hopefully I'll be back to normal service tomorrow :-) If any Brits want to watch some of the race, Grandstand is broacasting the highlights of the Tour on Sunday afternoon. Hopefully T and I haven't been caught in any of the shots :-)
I took a newbie to cycling with me on Sunday and introduced her to the joys of watching a professional road race. This is an exhausting procedure, but she says that she had fun and I believe her :-)
We set out a little later than I'd planned due to my last-minute flapping about to make sandwiches. It was one of those mornings where you start out with tons of time, way ahead of schedule and then realise that you're actually way behind schedule with no idea where the time went. I'd been paying attention to the weather reports all week and knew it would be hot, so I'd dressed appropriately: surfer shorts and my 98 Tour de France T-shirt. T didn't know it was going to be hot until I told her that morning, so she was dressed in jeans and a dark, thick T-shirt. Oops.
The train into London was nice and quiet (ah, Sunday trains) and the Tube across London was hot and busy (ah, Sunday Tube). We got out at Westminster (cue much sqeeing about the Houses of Parliament, despite the fact that I've seen them many times before) and immediately spotted barriers and distance markers, the unmistakable signs of a bike race. Then we had to check our maps to work out which direction to go for the finish line. Easily accomplished and during the short walk I managed to aquire an official race program and some leaflets from London Transport about cycling in the capital.
We got to the finishing straight at around 11am. There were a few spectators, but most people were obviously waiting until exciting things began. T and I therefore managed to find a very good spot around forty feet from the finish line and right opposite the stage where jerseys and prizes would be awarded. I don't think we could have found a better place. T had brought along a couple of little foldy stools so I had the unusual experience of not sitting on the road at a bike race.
The organisers had put on some extra events before the big race in the afternoon. We'd missed the first one, but a demo of some new childrens bikes began soon after we arrived. It was fun and the kids seemed to enjoy racing around on the weird bikes. T and I started making inroads on the sandwiches and coffee afterwards :-)
Just after 12pm, one of the big events began. The organisers had put on an amateur race around the circuit before the pro race, sort of in homage to the Tour du Etape. The circuit that the riders would be going around was a mile-long cicuit of Westminster. The pros would be doing it 45 times and the amateurs raced it twenty times. I think they were probably glad of that because the day was hotting up a lot and the amateur race was surprisingly fast.
There were around 160 amateurs in this race (called the Bob Chicken race for some unknown reason) of varying levels. Some were really amateurs who had probably only done some basic club racing. There were also a couple of the big amateur teams, including the Persil squad who are *the* British amateur squad. Add in some ex-professional riders and you've got quite a mixed bag. Sean Yates (an excellent pro rider in his day, demon descender and very fast man who now works for the CSC team) was there, as was Brian Holm. There was a rumour that Johan Museeuw might show, but he didn't. Oh, well....Sean Yates :-) The organisers had David Duffield doing a lot of the PA stuff (a Eurosport commentator) aided by the BBC's Hugh Porter. The PA system had been set up with speakers around the circuit, playing lots of music and providing commentary and interviews with anyone DD could corner. Noisy. But fun :-)
I was snapping away with the camera and got lots of lovely photos as the riders massed for the start (right in front of me - woo!) and then lots of good action shots when the race was on. The pace began high, slowed a little in the middle and then sped up again at the end. The pace came as a bit of a shock to some of the riders and it quickly became obvious who the dedicated riders were and who were the strictly hobby riders. The hobby riders were shooting out of the back of the race and a lot gave up before the race was half over. There were lots of attempts at break aways from the front of the peloton, but none of them succeeded. Sean Yates led the peloton for most of the race, chasing down breaks and showing that the man is still in top shape despite being retired for nearly ten years. Unfortunately, he punctured on the penultimate lap and didn't recover his rhythm :-( The winners came from the Persil squad and there was a nice prize presentation afterwards. There were even press guys taking photos and it wouldn't surprise me if at least a couple of those riders snap up pro contracts for next year.
T and I sat down again and had more sandwiches and coffee while we waited for the big race to begin. I was very impressed with the race organisation. Nobody got onto the road when they shouldn't, there were lots of St John's Ambulance guys around to treat spectators overcome with the heat and everything looked fantastic. We were incredibly close to the start/finish line and the traditional arch over the line with the count-down clocks also had a lap counter. The entire route had was lined with barriers and a lot of the route also had advertising boards that maintenance guys regularly checked to make sure they weren't coming loose.
The professionals began signing in at 2pm, at which point T and I packed up the stools and took our places at the barriers. I got lots of photos of riders signing in, being interviewed and gathering in front of us for the off.
There was much excitement when Eddy Mercx was announced to present the competition leaders with their jerseys. This is the greatest cyclist in the history of the sport - there isn't a race that he didn't win at least once. He could win races from February to October and an on-form Eddy was unbeatable. Remind you of anyone? Armstrong is being compared to Mercx and I honestly think that Mercx is now the only cyclist greater than Armstrong.
Of course, I took lots of photos and got thoroughly excited about being feet away from a cycling god :-) The leader of the race overall was a little Columbian guy called Mauricio Ardila and there was a party of vocal Columbians a few feet from us. Of course, Ardila had to pose with them so the press could take photos and it was lovely to hear the enthusiasm from his fans :-) Bradley Wiggins (Credit Agricole), winner of two medals at Athens, was there as was Roger Hammond (MrBookmaker.com), British champion and Olympic medal winner. Tom Boonen from the Quick-Step team was interviewed as he signed in - he's a good young sprinter who won a couple of Tour de France stages. Andreas Kloden (T-Mobile), second in this year's Tour, appeared and Axel Mercx (Lotto-Domo), bronze in the Olympic road race, was there to make father Eddy proud :-) Jose Azevedo and Chechu Rubiera (US-Postal), two of Lance's most important lieutenants, rode up and down in front of us. I'm sure that when I examine my photos I'll find more people to
At 3pm, the race was off. It's difficult to imagine a big, professional bike race if you've never been to one. You've got the noice from the PA, the music and the sound of 100 pairs of bike tyres on the road. Those tyres make a surprising about of noise and the riders create quite a draft as they ride past at 30mph. The pace is higher and more intense than the amateur version, but hardly anyone is dropped from the peloton because these guys race at this pace all the time in all kinds of weather. And then there's the spectators. We shout and cheer and bang on the advertising boards as the riders go past, willing them onwards with all our might. It's incredibly noisy, very intense and you can't help getting caught up in the excitement. Where T and I were, the crowds were three or four people deep and we were at the front, banging on the boards until our hands were bruised, screaming ourselves hoarse and grinning uncontrollably. It's an amazing experience.
There is also the press. There are the guys on motorbikes taking insane risks to get fabulous film that will be broacast all over the world. They also take shots of the spectators :-) When the riders come to the final lap, the photographers take up their positions in a bunch behind the lap. There are twenty or thirty of them and they take their photos of the finish and jump out of the way in a practised move that still makes me wonder how none of them get killed. Just past the finished line there is a crane with a camera man on to take the footage as the riders come down the finishing stretch and flying overhead is the aeroplane that takes the overhead shots and beams the signals from the motorbike cameramen to the waiting world.
Ardila won the overall, which prompted yet more photos with his fans. Bradley Wiggins nearly won the stage, but his legs ran out on the final lap. It didn't stop us cheering him :-)
The presentations took place about fifteen minutes after the end of the stage. The area in front of us became filled with press (taking photos and film way too close to T and I) and special precedence was given to one guy who I am sure is Graham Watson, one of the true greats in the world of cycling photography. The riders got their final jerseys and statues. Hammond got a prize as best-placed Brit. Ardila attempted to spray the magnum of champagne that simply wouldn't bubble - they drank it instead :-)
With this kind of thing, it's also amazing how fast they are at packing up. T and I sat down for half an hour before going back to the Tube station to let the worst of the crowding drain away. They were already well into dismantling everything by the time we left. I reminded T that on any other day, they'd be dismantling it all to carry to the next stage finish and put it all up again so they have to be good at quick pack-ups.
It was a fabulous day and I am now really hoping that London manages to get the Tour de France start in 2008. Just wait until I show T what a Tour stage is like. Ten times more frantic, ten times louder....and even more fun :-)
Thus ends my cycling babbling. Hopefully I'll be back to normal service tomorrow :-) If any Brits want to watch some of the race, Grandstand is broacasting the highlights of the Tour on Sunday afternoon. Hopefully T and I haven't been caught in any of the shots :-)
