2014 TdF to start in Yorkshire
Re: 2014 TdF to start in Yorkshire
Is it possible to cycle on a stage route once the riders have departed?
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thirdcrank
- Posts: 36740
- Joined: 9 Jan 2007, 2:44pm
Re: 2014 TdF to start in Yorkshire
In the absence of anything from anybody who was there when the TdeF last came to the UK. I'll offer this.
The road closures and associated traffic management will be much more comprehensive than anything we used to get in connection with the Milk Race Kellogs etc (No racing careers being ended in the manner of Phil Anderson's) The organisers' demands must have been met 100% or they would have walked away. The amount of traffic to clear after the race has passed, both in the form of spectators driving home and waiting traffic being allowed to move again will be heavy.
Having said that, I'm not sure what you have in mind. I suppose if you wanted to ride an entire stage, if you set off something like an hour after the race, then bearing in mind that you would be falling further behind all the time, I can't see a problem OTOH, if you intended to ride to a good vantage point. watch the race and then set off, I think the sheer weight of traffic would limit your scope. My only personal experience of anything like this in the UK was the Leeds Classic, when the place to be was on Holme Moss. After the race had passed second time round, it was a mad dash down the hill - helped by the gradient, partly motiviated by the chance of getting a final view of the race as it passed by at the bottom. That was a tiny affair compared with the TdeF of course (IIRC one year only three teams turned up) but the traffic afterwards was still pretty heavy.
Hopefully, this will prompt somebody with greater experience to post
The road closures and associated traffic management will be much more comprehensive than anything we used to get in connection with the Milk Race Kellogs etc (No racing careers being ended in the manner of Phil Anderson's) The organisers' demands must have been met 100% or they would have walked away. The amount of traffic to clear after the race has passed, both in the form of spectators driving home and waiting traffic being allowed to move again will be heavy.
Having said that, I'm not sure what you have in mind. I suppose if you wanted to ride an entire stage, if you set off something like an hour after the race, then bearing in mind that you would be falling further behind all the time, I can't see a problem OTOH, if you intended to ride to a good vantage point. watch the race and then set off, I think the sheer weight of traffic would limit your scope. My only personal experience of anything like this in the UK was the Leeds Classic, when the place to be was on Holme Moss. After the race had passed second time round, it was a mad dash down the hill - helped by the gradient, partly motiviated by the chance of getting a final view of the race as it passed by at the bottom. That was a tiny affair compared with the TdeF of course (IIRC one year only three teams turned up) but the traffic afterwards was still pretty heavy.
Hopefully, this will prompt somebody with greater experience to post
Re: 2014 TdF to start in Yorkshire
Christian Prudhomme visited the Dales Bike Centre in Fremington, near Reeth, yesterday and stopped for lunch.
A well deserved recognition for all that Stu and Brenda have done to help bring the tour to Yorkshire.
A well deserved recognition for all that Stu and Brenda have done to help bring the tour to Yorkshire.
Re: 2014 TdF to start in Yorkshire
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Last edited by gaz on 16 Mar 2025, 7:38pm, edited 1 time in total.
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thirdcrank
- Posts: 36740
- Joined: 9 Jan 2007, 2:44pm
Re: 2014 TdF to start in Yorkshire
gaz wrote: ... But in '07 it also went through my home village, ...
And if I may say so, a fitting tribute. It may well be that the English language commentators couldn't understand the significance of the fuss being made, but the French commentators are, well, au fait with the history of cycling and the great characters, although when I googled "Limportance du Gaz" it came up with this.
http://mckraken84.free.fr/Gaz.htm
Re: 2014 TdF to start in Yorkshire
Mark1978 wrote:Is it possible to cycle on a stage route once the riders have departed?
Yes. Once the trailing vehicles have gone through, the road opens pretty quickly. Be aware, though, that there tends to be a lot of work going on, with barriers being removed and gantries being taken down at sprint points etc.
Re: 2014 TdF to start in Yorkshire
Galloper wrote:Mark1978 wrote:Is it possible to cycle on a stage route once the riders have departed?
Yes. Once the trailing vehicles have gone through, the road opens pretty quickly. Be aware, though, that there tends to be a lot of work going on, with barriers being removed and gantries being taken down at sprint points etc.
Thanks! I'll put it as an option to my friends.