Visiting the tour 2012

tomilinski1
tomilinski1 Posts: 96
edited June 2012 in Pro race
Ok - everything is booked for my third time watching the tour in the Pyrenees!
Will be there for Stages 14-17 - woohoo

Hopefully the Gendarmerie will be kinder this time!

Does anyone have a clue where the final climb of stage 14 to Foix is? - I can't find it on Google maps so it must be a local name!
Bring back the original C4 Tour theme tune !

The wife's breastfeeding tops website

Comments

  • VeloPeloton
    VeloPeloton Posts: 72
    edited February 2012
    Vélo Peloton Pyrénées Café and Bike Rental
    https://pyreneesrental.bike
    https://velopeloton.com/
  • TMR
    TMR Posts: 3,986
    We went to the Tour for the first time last year; to the Team Presentation at Puy de Foy, then to the first 5 stages in Brittany & Normandy.

    My wife has just booked a cottage in Foix, so we'll be in the Pyrenees for a week this year! I should be able to watch at least 2 of the high mountain stages. Very happy! :)

    I'm taking my bike as well, so hope to have a crack at some of the climbs myself.
  • Nothing booked yet but am planning to take my camper over to Calais, pick the Tour up near Boulogne and mix riding and spectating as it heads down south before stopping near Chambery for a few days and then leaving the Tour to go and do some climbs in the Alps. Then over to Mont Ventoux before heading back north, catching the TT at Chartres and the final stage in Paris.
  • frosty99
    frosty99 Posts: 115

    Hopefully the Gendarmerie will be kinder this time!

    what does this mean?? sorry I'm heading down to the tour for the first time, will be there for the same stages as you...
  • In 2010 we planned to ride the race route from Bagneres de Louchon to the Tourmalet.
    Hours in advance we had got over the Peyresourde and then the boys in blue started telling us to get off our bikes - so it was a case of walk until he is out of site then ride to the next one and carry on like that for about 10km! - we only made it to the Aspin!
    Generally the french police are pretty relaxed and will let you ride up the mountain until the caravan comes along, however I think the tour is becoming so popular that they are starting to get a bit stricter!
    Bring back the original C4 Tour theme tune !

    The wife's breastfeeding tops website
  • frosty99
    frosty99 Posts: 115
    Ah I see, we were planning to cycle up the Tourmalet from Argeles-Gazost so will we have to set off really early?
  • Generally the french police are pretty relaxed and will let you ride up the mountain until the caravan comes along, however I think the tour is becoming so popular that they are starting to get a bit stricter!

    Useful comments about the Gendarmes. A few of us are going to be in Bourg D'Oisans when the Tour goes up the Croix de Fer, so I was hoping to ride out to it from our base in Bourg.

    Given the pros are coming up the north side rather than the south before turning up the final few km to the summit, we should be OK to cycle up to pretty close, if not all the way up to the CdF.
  • frosty99 wrote:
    Ah I see, we were planning to cycle up the Tourmalet from Argeles-Gazost so will we have to set off really early?

    Yes - the earlier the better, and be prepared for a long wait!
    Trying to combine a decent ride with watching is a tricky art in my experience.
    Bring back the original C4 Tour theme tune !

    The wife's breastfeeding tops website
  • I have never seen Le Tour live and would love to see the climb on the Mur de Péguére. I won't have a bike but will have a car. Will it be possible to drive and park on Mur de Péguére? And if so will I need to do it the night before and sleep in my car?
  • BikingBernie
    BikingBernie Posts: 2,163
    Generally the french police are pretty relaxed and will let you ride up the mountain until the caravan comes along, however I think the tour is becoming so popular that they are starting to get a bit stricter!
    I haven't known the police to allow people to continue riding up a climb until the caravan comes along for years, although some departments are less strict than others. Best you can generally hope for is to be allowed to ride for up to one hour before the first official vehicle associated with the race comes along.

    Main reason for this is, of course, to ensure that the road is secure well ahead of the race coming through. If someone riding up was hit by a press car or some such, and the emergency services had to be called in or a helicopter, it would disrupt the whole stage.

    Best thing is to ride in early, and plan on doing a few hours sunbathing / picnicking until the race comes though. :wink:
  • cougie
    cougie Posts: 22,512
    Dont forget to take foul weather gear. It can turn really nasty quite quickly
    And you don't want to be caught out on an exposed mountain in your summer kit.