The Tour de France? Isn’t that….erm…in France? Well, the answer is yes of course, but it’s not unusual for another country to host the opening stages. In fact, just recently, both Northern and the Republic of Ireland hosted the Giro d’Italia’s opening stages, in a rain-soaked few days of cycling.
This weekend, the UK is hosting the first three stages of one of the world’s most important cycling races, with the well publicised ‘Le Grand Depart’ happening in Yorkshire today. I must admit to being a little excited that it’s coming to my ‘little’ town of London!
On Monday, I imagine, most of the capital will grind to a halt as the third and final UK hosted stage in the race for the infamous yellow jersey begins in Cambridge and works its way through 155km of English countryside, arriving in North East London, passing through the capital and finishing on The Mall. Roads will be closed, transport will be affected, we’ll all moan and groan about the delays, but I’m sure the buzz in London will be contagious too. Information on watching stage 3 can be found here.
All this cycling promotion and Tour de France Fever has got me looking at my little bike with more interest recently. I have a lovely bike, named Rose, who served me wonderfully well when I was rather poor, cycling to Waterloo every day to commute to Guildford during my Masters. Using the bike kept me super fit and saved me money. As time’s gone by and working as a fitness instructor is so physical, I use the bike a lot less…well not at all to be honest (backwards logic, I know).
Maybe this summer I’ll get back in the saddle, as they say. It needs a little TLC, and sadly I’m no longer with the partner who built it for me, but I’ll find a way!
- Will you be watching the Tour de France across the UK?
- Has cycling fever prompted you to get on your bike?
- Will the UK hosting this event encourage a fitter, healthier, more active country?
- Do you think London is ready for the influx of newbie cyclists on the road after this weekend?
In my opinion, the answer to all the questions should be YES! Apart from the last one, which is a resounding NO (sorry London)!