Tour of Europe

DavMartinR

With the TDF starting in Rotterdam in 2010, what about a Tour of Europe?

I now with the race schedules and the history and passion of the TDF this isn't going to happen, but what about the following route:-

UK- prolouge and 1 stage. major town prolouge and then stage heading to the ferry.

France - 1 or 2 flat stages then down to the pyrenees

Spain & Andorra - couple of mountain stages and a stage in Catalunia back into France.

France - Alps in to Switzerland Mountian stages

Italy - from Switzerland Mountian stage

Slovinia to Austria

Germany - TT in Berlin

Holland - Flat stage (What else?)

And then either finishing in Brussels or Paris

Or has the ASO this in mind for the future already?

RichardB101

The Tour of Europe is a great idea but i think it would me better to make it a true one side to the other tour.

I would start it in warsaw and finish in barcelona, Thats about 3000km but with gaps and 20 stages inc 1 TT and 1 TTT you could make each stage average arounf 150Km and cross Germany and then down to italy and across the alps in to france and then a few flat stages in the pyrenees.

The tour would cover 6 or 7 countrys and be a True TOUR OF EUROPE.

cougie

Why bother ? The tour has races in the past that have done six or seven countries on the way - thats more than enough. Where would the new race fit into calendar - and would you get rid of the giro or vuelta in order to fit this one in ?
Organising this would be a nightmare too and the riders would hate the transfers.

andyp

They've tried it before - in the late 80s/early 90s the Tour de l'Avenir was renamed the Tour of the EEC and run over several countries. It didn't last as they couldn't attract sponsors.

afx237vi

Sort of similar is the Peace Race, which used to be like an amateur Tour of Central Europe through Poland, Germany, Austria and the Czech Republic and so on.

It's still going and is open to pro teams now, but doesn't get much attention.

JC.152

it'd be funny if the uci read this and thought it could save their protour and made it for next year ....

....the riders would love it :twisted: , just like this year when Sastre scored no points in the official protour

victorponf

andyp wrote:

They've tried it before - in the late 80s/early 90s the Tour de l'Avenir was renamed the Tour of the EEC and run over several countries. It didn't last as they couldn't attract sponsors.

You are right, Indurain won it once