TOB really just a tour of the West coast

ddraver

mattsccm wrote:

What irritates me is the London bit for everything. Plenty of good riding to be had in the country and they end up with a tedious flat stage. Why not 150 miles around the Peak district and end in Manchester?

Ah yes. Cash. Fair enough I suppose.

Not like the tour finishes in the same place every year is it? And don't even get me started on that Paris Roubaix! That has nt come past my house in Bordeaux for YEARS I tell you!

Paul 8v

mattsccm wrote:

What irritates me is the London bit for everything. Plenty of good riding to be had in the country and they end up with a tedious flat stage. Why not 150 miles around the Peak district and end in Manchester?

Ah yes. Cash. Fair enough I suppose.

Hey, you've already got the BBC up there now

National bike race finishing in the capital? Seems pretty normal to me!

ManOfKent

Some of the guys who work on the race aren't best pleased that after a year's hiatus they're back in London for the finale. The amount of paperwork that's required for an event in the capital is a serious stretch for a relatively small organisation like SweetSpot; and it's almost impossible to come up with a route that's anything more than flat laps around the postcard landmarks. But it's something they have to do because like it or not, London is by far the biggest draw for overseas viewers, sponsors and hangers-on.

richard_farrant

Paul 8v wrote:

mattsccm wrote:

What irritates me is the London bit for everything. Plenty of good riding to be had in the country and they end up with a tedious flat stage. Why not 150 miles around the Peak district and end in Manchester?

Ah yes. Cash. Fair enough I suppose.

Hey, you've already got the BBC up there now

National bike race finishing in the capital? Seems pretty normal to me!

The Giro doesn't finish in Rome...

brettjmcc

Richard Farrant wrote:

The Giro doesn't finish in Rome...

Someone get onto RCS quick and have a word! :roll:

knedlicky

Richmond Racer wrote:

... the landmarks like the Eye, Houses of Parliament, Big Ben, Buck Palace etc looking stunning as backdrops onthe telly - and that sells well to oversees viewers.

ManOfKent wrote:

... London is by far the biggest draw for overseas viewers

I’m not sure what the arguments above are quite proposing – that because a TOB stage is in London, more overseas viewers will extra-specially watch? And so the advertisements reach more viewers?
If so, I can’t agree. Some interesting landmarks briefly in the background doesn't increase viewing figures for a sports event.

If the arguments above are trying to suggest that as a result of London being the backdrop for one stage of the TOB, the numbers of overseas visitors will later increase, I also can’t agree. People from overseas who go to London (or Paris, Madrid, Milan, or York, Edinburgh, Liverpool or wherever) go there because they anyway want to go to London, etc, not because they briefly saw interesting landmarks in the background of a sports event.

I think what sells more to tourists on TV is attractive countryside (in which I also include picturesque small towns and villages). And that’s where the TOB could help the tourist (and advertising) industry. The Tour has shown that the most-watched stages are those in the mountains, and it's not just for the racing but also for the landscape.

Nearly everyone from abroad I’ve met who decided to visit the UK, after watching a programme set in the UK on TV in their own country, had watched something showing the UK countryside - either documentaries about parts of Britain (something similar to 'Coast' or a Julia Bradbury hiking film) or films of Rosemunde Pilcher novels shot on location in the West Country, or TV series set in rural England which have been sold to other countries and so shown abroad, like Midsomer Murders.

mattsccm

I really have my doubts about London selling things. The ToB is a relatively low level event that undoubtedly is watch by cyclists not those wishing for a trip to the UK. A bit like Paris Roubaix but smaller. Fancy going to Belgium?
I based my ideas on the fact that any stage in that part of the country has to be relatively flat and boring compared to something more hilly.

deejay

mattsccm wrote:

What irritates me is the London bit for everything. Plenty of good riding to be had in the country and they end up with a tedious flat stage. Why not 150 miles around the Peak district and end in Manchester?

Ah yes. Cash. Fair enough I suppose.

Whinging, Moaning useless internet freaks.
Not the Councils but the Dumb POLICE is the problem and the COSTS they need to be there these days.
Where is the ARCHER GRAND PRIX which is lost because of POLICE costs. It was run for years without their interference. We rode from KENT to Wycombe and the Chilterns to watch this major event.
Yes they were welcome in their observation rolls for Law abiding.

Have you ever organised a Cycle Race and had to notify the area police for their approval and then taken their advice for course changes because they know of other events in the area.

I never thought I would see the day that Central London had closed roads for a Cycle race but there you are whinging about something that has become a regular occurrence and I am so happy to see motorists loose some freedom for a short while.

The Tour of Britain (Wherever it goes) is still good for the sport because (as I understand it) there is a Police Support Operation drawn from many parts of the country who are gaining more knowledge about Cycle Racing.
This knowledge can be spread to their various divisions if others are willing to learn.
From this knowledge we might get back to the old days while driving a Lead car with a Police Motorbike in front and others at the road side observing.

You want racing in the North East then get off your backside and organise and get sponsorship to show the TOB organisers what a great Infrastructure you have in your area, but stop moaning as it's down to you.

ManOfKent

mattsccm wrote:

I really have my doubts about London selling things. The ToB is a relatively low level event that undoubtedly is watch by cyclists not those wishing for a trip to the UK. A bit like Paris Roubaix but smaller. Fancy going to Belgium?
I based my ideas on the fact that any stage in that part of the country has to be relatively flat and boring compared to something more hilly.

Surely sponsors prefer to sip their champagne and eat their canapes in the shadow of the Houses of Parliament or wherever, than on an industrial estate near Rugby (to pick a place at random) or the cobbled high street in Guildford. And it's sponsors' money that pays for these things ultimately.

mroli

deejay wrote:

Where is the ARCHER GRAND PRIX which is lost because of POLICE costs. It was run for years without their interference. We rode from KENT to Wycombe and the Chilterns to watch this major event.

I'd love to see the Archer back. Or any event running through the Chilterns....

Richmond Racer

deejay wrote:

mattsccm wrote:

What irritates me is the London bit for everything. Plenty of good riding to be had in the country and they end up with a tedious flat stage. Why not 150 miles around the Peak district and end in Manchester?

Ah yes. Cash. Fair enough I suppose.

Whinging, Moaning useless internet freaks.
Not the Councils but the Dumb POLICE is the problem and the COSTS they need to be there these days.
Where is the ARCHER GRAND PRIX which is lost because of POLICE costs. It was run for years without their interference. We rode from KENT to Wycombe and the Chilterns to watch this major event.
Yes they were welcome in their observation rolls for Law abiding.

Have you ever organised a Cycle Race and had to notify the area police for their approval and then taken their advice for course changes because they know of other events in the area.

I never thought I would see the day that Central London had closed roads for a Cycle race but there you are whinging about something that has become a regular occurrence and I am so happy to see motorists loose some freedom for a short while.

The Tour of Britain (Wherever it goes) is still good for the sport because (as I understand it) there is a Police Support Operation drawn from many parts of the country who are gaining more knowledge about Cycle Racing.
This knowledge can be spread to their various divisions if others are willing to learn.
From this knowledge we might get back to the old days while driving a Lead car with a Police Motorbike in front and others at the road side observing.

You want racing in the North East then get off your backside and organise and get sponsorship to show the TOB organisers what a great Infrastructure you have in your area, but stop moaning as it's down to you.

deejay