Tour de France 2024 (1 Viewer)

[colyboy]

I know quite a few members of MHF like to follow the TDF.

The 2024 route will be published this coming Wednesday 25 October.

No Paris finish in 2024 this will be in Nice , due to the Olympic Games been held in France.

Hope to see some of you there?

Colyboy)

 

[Mixyblob]

I'd love to watch a stage or two, but unfortunately the navigation, catering and soft furnishings manager is not keen.

 

[Birdy67]

I know quite a few members of MHF like to follow the TDF.

The 2024 route will be published this coming Wednesday 25 October.

No Paris finish in 2024 this will be in Nice , due to the Olympic Games been held in France.

Hope to see some of you there?

Colyboy)

100% doing this next year, hopefully along with catching a couple of Euro's matches in Germany beforehand. The fact that the Tour starts in Italy and ends in Nice suggests it'll be predominately down south so I've applied for tickets in the ballot for Dortmund, then Stuttgart and can then cross the border into southern France as the tour arrives from further south. Really want to be sat on top of a mountain somewhere surrounded by loony Dutch and Belgians as it passes.

 

[Augusta08]

We will be there.

 

[Verteuil Man]

I am just hoping that it will come through our village one day. I am ready.

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[Birdy67]

The route is now confirmed. Anyone got any advice on which of the various mountain stages might be worth making the effort for? I don't know any of them well enough but really fancy plotting up on a mountainside for a few days, possibly somewhere close to turn 7 and enjoy some of the madness.

 

[Deadloss]

Hopefully will get there in our MH this year at some point. I've previously been to Morzine to see a stage finish, and also a mountain time trial. It's a great experience. I was even able to ride part of the route into Morzine, under the flamme rouge, to within about 200m of the finish - on the morning of the stage! Not many other sports you get this close to!

 

[Birdy67]

Hopefully will get there in our MH this year at some point. I've previously been to Morzine to see a stage finish, and also a mountain time trial. It's a great experience. I was even able to ride part of the route into Morzine, under the flamme rouge, to within about 200m of the finish - on the morning of the stage! Not many other sports you get this close to!

I've earmarked Col Du Tourmalet as one stage to get to as that's iconic for the Tour. But as we'll hopefully be crossing into France from Stuttgart after getting Euro's tickets in the ballot it would be nice to catch a stage or two in Eastern France but I really don't know that area much.

 

[DJIT]

Resurrecting this thread.
I am just back from 2 days near Troyes - watching stages 8 & 9.
Anyone else watched or about to watch the tour?

 

[DandJ]

I may pop across and watch Wednesdays stage. It's about 90 minutes away.

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[sedge]

Yep - annual event in this house! Only commented yesterday to OH that we hadn't seen a single MHF flag yet.

 

[dazandandrea]

Was very surprised to see the gravel sections on highlights this morning .
Dont recall seeing this before.

 

[Ridgeway]

Was very surprised to see the gravel sections on highlights this morning .
Dont recall seeing this before.

There’s been quite a few over the years, also plenty of pavé

 

[Nigel Crompton]

Resurrecting this thread.
I am just back from 2 days near Troyes - watching stages 8 & 9.
Anyone else watched or about to watch the tour?

Yes, plan to be on the Tourmalet ascent (there's a thread I started ...)

 

[Simon Meadwell]

Colyboy usually goes . Doesnt seem to be posting anymore.

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[MichaelT]

Was very surprised to see the gravel sections on highlights this morning .
Dont recall seeing this before.

It was like wacky races in parts

 

[Jonsdad]

Watched stages 1,4 and hope to catch stage 11 on Wednesday

 

[Nigel Crompton]

Today on the Tourmalet is thoroughly miserablé. Clag came down last evening and hasn't lifted but there's no wind; dreich as they say in Scotchland.
We're at the Super Bareges lift station (there's still room!) and the bar is open ....

 

[DandJ]

Looks great weather for you tomorrow tho.
Roglic out, his crash yesterday looked pretty bad and the way the whole Bora team rode the last few Km didn't look promising. 2 crashes in 2 days must add bruises on top of bruises. A different breed, come off their bike at 40mph...clamber back on and carry on....or get a slight tap on the shin with another players football boot and roll around in agony, one eye open to see if you get awarded a free kick......

 

[Chipster]

Seeing the tour is on our retirement bucket list!! What's the rules with parking up? Completely off the road and away from houses? I know you need to be there days in advance for mountain stages.

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[DandJ]

It depends which stage you go for and where you actually want to park. First thing to do is buy one of the 'Bumper Issue' cycle mags like Cycling Weekly (or better still, a French one when you arrive here)
They'll often close the roads hours in advance and to get a parking place on a col would indeed necessitate being there 2 or 3 days early (madness IMHO) For most places, you can park and walk in.
Look at the map below. The race went from fairly centre of the map at Le Falgoux west to Col de Neronne, then headed ESE towards Puy Mary. At the point marked with the red pointer.....it is a 4 way crossroad, so you can drive fairly close to that junction where there is a lot of parking....the first pic shows the corner they took...coming from left onto the main road...and the 2nd pic shows the parking if you turned 180 from that junction. On each stage there are dozens of places like this to go and watch.

 

[Nigel Crompton]

Seeing the tour is on our retirement bucket list!! What's the rules with parking up? Completely off the road and away from houses? I know you need to be there days in advance for mountain stages.

We arrived here late Thursday afternoon, for a Saturday afternoon stage. Plenty of room then on this ski-station car-park but all the roadside spaces (which we didnt want) were full. Still some folk trying to squeeze in now, with minor territorial disputes occurring. These gatherings are, IMHO, mostly friendly affairs ...
I'll post a pic later if its stops mizzling ...

PS: also IMHO, only worth spectating on mountain stages or time trials.
PPS: When it's rammed like this, if you have a dog it will crap on someone's territorial space. One of mine peed on an awning leg this morning when the owner distracted me ....

 

[Chipster]

Thanks!! Really do want to tick it off sooner rather than later!!

 

[DandJ]

PS: also IMHO, only worth spectating on mountain stages or time trials.

I'm half with Nigel on this...if you're only going to do one stage, try to make it a Mtn stage, you don't have to be at the top of the biggest climb, you can be savvy and pick a minor section of a climb...it's a lucky dip as to whether there is some real action just where you're stood. However, I've watched some great flattish sections of stages; esconced under a sun brolly at a bar with dozens of others in a small village with a fabulous atmosphere for 3-4 hrs, sat in a park in Bagneres de Bigorre watching the stage on a huge screen in a party like atmosphere before strolling 200 m to the finish line to watch Dan Martin win....
It really is a superb event....yes, sometimes the riders are past you in the blink of an eye but the whole atmosphere, build up and opost race parties/gatherings is awesome.

 

[Nigel Crompton]

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[MichaelT]

View attachment 922618

Well jealous

 

[CAB96]

View attachment 922618

Surely they're not going to leave that car there?

Going up or down?

 

[Ridgeway]

Surely they're not going to leave that car there?

Going up or down?

Even if they did, Pog would have ridden over it today

 

[MichaelT]

Even if they did, Pog would have ridden over it today

Fantastic finish, laid a marker down.

 

[Nigel Crompton]

Up, always up! It was a tour associated car ...

We were in the middle of that huddle - and if you zoom in you'll be able to see a couple-hundred more campers lining the zig-zags.

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