2010 ToB route unveiled

andyp

Stages

Saturday, September 11
Stage 1: Rochdale - Blackpool, 126km

Sunday, September 12
Stage 2: Stoke-on-Trent - Stoke-on-Trent, 160km

Monday, September 13
Stage 3: Newtown - Swansea, 150km

Tuesday, September 14
Stage 4: Minehead - Teignmouth, 171km

Wednesday, September 15
Stage 5: Tavistock - Glastonbury, 176km

Thursday, September 16
Stage 6: King's Lynn - Great Yarmouth, 189km

Friday, September 17
Stage 7: Bury St Edmunds - Colchester, 151km

Saturday, September 18
Stage 8: London (Newham) 100km

That transfer from Glastonbury to Kings Lynn will go down well with the riders.

GroupOfOne MkII

At least they've cut down the majority of the other transfers I suppose. What's worse, lots of middle distance ones, or one whacking great one?

Nice to see Wales return (should quieten down a few people!) and a Swansea finish...oooh does that mean what I think it means? :twisted:

First couple of days look good, be at a weekend with some nice scenic climbs by the general route of it, so should make for some good spectating.

andyp

A 250 mile transfer mid race? No thanks.

Here's the current teams down to ride;

An Post
Cervelo Test Team
Endura
Garmin Transitions
HTC Columbia
Motorpoint Marshalls Pasta
Rabobank
Raleigh
Rapha Condor Sharp
Saxo Bank
Sigma Sport Specialized
Skil Shimano
Team Sky
Topsport Vlaanderen

afx237vi

GroupOfOne MkII wrote:

At least they've cut down the majority of the other transfers I suppose. What's worse, lots of middle distance ones, or one whacking great one?

Nice to see Wales return (should quieten down a few people!) and a Swansea finish...oooh does that mean what I think it means? :twisted:

First couple of days look good, be at a weekend with some nice scenic climbs by the general route of it, so should make for some good spectating.

Constitution Hill?

GroupOfOne MkII

Andy, perhaps you should tell the Giro organisers that!

+2 still TBA for your team list btw.

Quite a few British teams this year, not convinced all of them have the strength for it though, or at least the strength to be anything but there for the ride. Will look forward to being proved wrong by them now.

FJS

Constitution Hill would be great... and the Stoke stage seems to suggest a good visit to the Peak District... we'll see when the route details are reveiled I suppose

pomtarr

Wot no Newcastle?

greeny12

A stage finishing in my home town of Great Yarmouth!!

Gotta be back there for that, and for any sportive style tour stage that might be linked to it.

Bad planning that this follows a stage in the West Country though - that's a heck of a transfer, not all of it on motorways either...

iainf72

Bradleeeeee is complaining there is no TT so won't be competing.

I thought by that point in the season Wiggins was in full beer monster mode?

rick_chasey

iainf72 wrote:

Bradleeeeee is complaining there is no TT so won't be competing.

I thought by that point in the season Wiggins was in full beer monster mode?

Doesn't he owe Cavendish a good effort in the Worlds this year?

SparkyP

Tour of WHERE??

eh

More like Tour of the regions time forgot

The Glasto to Kings Lynn transfer is rubbish, couldn't they find anywhere in between that wanted to host a start and finish?

patchy

iainf72 wrote:

Bradleeeeee is complaining there is no TT so won't be competing.

I thought by that point in the season Wiggins was in full beer monster mode?

wasn't he prepping for the Worlds TT last year and only hit the sauce at the end of Sept?

GroupOfOne MkII

iainf72 wrote:

Bradleeeeee is complaining there is no TT so won't be competing.

I thought by that point in the season Wiggins was in full beer monster mode?

I fully agree, dreadful decision by the organsiers, they should have had a Prologue, and then a variety of 10m, 25m, 50m, 100m and TTT solely to appease him. After all aren't time trials facinating viewing.

Anyway doesn't he usually spending the ToB getting p*ssed up before climbing off on day three?

rick_chasey

The UK has enough time trials anyway.

josame

zzzzzzzzzz

What uh...

What's goin on

oh TOB

zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

Rodrego Hernandez

eh wrote:

More like Tour of the regions time forgot

The Glasto to Kings Lynn transfer is rubbish, couldn't they find anywhere in between that wanted to host a start and finish?

Errrr, I guess not!

WTF is wrong with you lot? Don't you think that the organisers tried to minimise transfers as much as possible but they can only organise the race between towns that want it.

It's bad enough the press bitching, al they care about is having to drive themselves and missing out on a few beers in the evening!

RichN95.

First up : Constitution Hill. According to the BBC, it's being used. Hooray! I might go and watch.

Secondly, transfers. There are scheduled flights for Exeter to Norwich, so surely it's not beyond the wit of man to organize an extra one for a day. And before that they will be able enjoy a luxury cruise on the Swansea-Ilfracombe ferry. The other transfers are no big deal.

stagehopper

patchy wrote:

iainf72 wrote:

Bradleeeeee is complaining there is no TT so won't be competing.

I thought by that point in the season Wiggins was in full beer monster mode?

wasn't he prepping for the Worlds TT last year and only hit the sauce at the end of Sept?

Bit later - he ended his season by winning the Herald Sun Tour on October 17th.

fastercyclist

Hooray I get to watch stages four and five in person

Bradley who? :roll:

neilmacd

Tur of Britain - Tour of England and Wales more like.
Understand the need for minimising transfers where possible but bit of a misnomer methinks.

GroupOfOne MkII

If it visited each of England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, Isle of Man, Isle of Wight every year and kept to eight days then you really would be moaning about transfers.

Even the TdF doesn't visit every region, every year. Scotland's had it for the past four or five years with Wales moaning they didn't get it, now Wales gets it and Scotland moans they haven't got it!

stagehopper

RichN95 wrote:

And before that they will be able enjoy a luxury cruise on the Swansea-Ilfracombe ferry.

If it ever opens.

FJS

neilmacd wrote:

Tur of Britain - Tour of England and Wales more like.
Understand the need for minimising transfers where possible but bit of a misnomer methinks.

Fair, but to be even fairer, the Welsh have had a lot more to complain along that line for a long time now... 'Tour of England and One Other Nation'?

RichN95.

neilmacd wrote:

Tur of Britain - Tour of England and Wales more like.
Understand the need for minimising transfers where possible but bit of a misnomer methinks.

It's been to Scotland in each of the last five editions and on four occasions a stage has started or finished in Glasgow. But miss one year and it's boo hoo hoo. Don't you think you're being a little greedy?

gsk82

if the socks wanted it so much they'd have paid for it, doubt they were helped by the shocking turnout at gretna last year. unless they can start/ finish a weekend stage in glasgow or edinburgh i wouldn't take it to scorland anyway, no one lives there. the geogrpaphical spread is abit poo though i admit. i'm in hull and the nearest start is rochdale and finish probably stoke., all at least 100miles away

starting in rochdale however is a joke, sweetspot need to start to think a bit more long term and try for a big start to the race, instead of nothing towns like scunthorpe and rochdale getting stage one.

iainf72

Lionel Birnie tweeted that Mick Bennett said Sky asked for a TT for "one of their riders"

GroupOfOne MkII

Oooh now I wonder which one :roll:

Wasn't aware it was particularly usual for teams to ask for a certain type of stage for one of their riders (outside of Grand Tours and begging for TTTs/mountain top finishes). Sky desperate to ensure they take a win on British roads this season?

incog24

Didn't Wiggins pull back a break practically by himself last year? Then abandoned to prep for the worlds?

Bit sad to have no stages in the North of England. But there have been in the last couple of years so no cause for complaint really.

Have police played any role in the location of the stages?

andyp

Last time I checked both Rochdale and Blackpool were in the north of England.

GroupOfOne MkII

incog24 wrote:

Have police played any role in the location of the stages?

Yeah London, because some bloke with a silly hat is in town that day