Le Tour.

So that’s the end of my last Tour de France – watching the peloton on the TV, roaring around the Champs Elyseé and wishing I was there; especially on the Saturday night before the race finish when the Tour cars are parked all around Paris when they go out for a big meal. Show offs.

“See? Look at us! We made it!”

Watching all the vehicles hooting, especially the trucks, roaring along the Champs before the race gets in. Afterwards, when the cameras are gone, watching the teams cycle round the course in a slow motion lap of honour.

Three weeks ago I was on the road to Paris, standing on the high street at Epping, watching the commisaires setting up the intermediate sprint in the sunshine.

For the last three weeks, I’ve seen their photo finish lorry in every corner of France; the Alps, the Pyrenees, the muddy cobbles of the flatlands of northern France in the rain, the sunny south, and now I saw it on the Champs for the very last time.

What I would have given to have been free to jump on the train and be there for the day, but in April I did just that. I made it to a very wet Paris – just for one day, by coach overnight each way.

There I was, getting off at the Place de la Concorde just where the peloton screams around the corner and onto the Champs.

When I was young, watching Le Tour was an act of rebellion; choosing a continental sport instead of an insular England of isolated bigots. It was a rebellion and an escape; a breath of fresh air, a glimpse of forbidden foreign countries and different languages.

Now millions watched it screech through Yorkshire and down to London.

Neil Harris

(a don’t stop till you drop production)

Le Tour - ici! Allez - Vites!

1445pm and Epping is full of anticipation - I'm hit by the emotion of it all; my last Tour.

Now the press are zooming through - Laurent Jalabert's car (a famous former rider now working for French media as a commentator, everyone knows his name).

Now the race officials cars are getting more serious;

Any minute now le Patron. It's coming;

It really is coming;

And now the riders, so fast we can't take it in, these aren't the leaders;

The peloton is coming now, my camera isn't good enough to cope with the speed of it all (I'm far too excited to take pictures);

And now in a mad rush, hundreds of team cars rush past us with spare bikes and wheels on the roof racks, the water bottle vans, referees in their red cars, press bikes and TV cameras, the helicopters, ambulances and Police, the VIP's and politicians.

Hurry! Allez!  Allez!  Vites!

A big cheer for L'anterne Rouge, The Red Lantern - last rider on the day. Hurry, catch up - there's still time!;

Then the saddest sight of all, The Broom Wagon which sweeps up the ill and the injured who retire from the race (wait till the days in the mountains, it will be full);

Worse, the end of the Tour (Fin de la Course);

But still time for some high fives - after 7 hours standing we've earnt it;

 

 

And then it's all over, the race has moved on to London and tomorrow?

 

The PMU sprint will be set up just like today but in a little French town somewhere between Le Touquet and Lilles.

 

Epping?

 

All that will be left will be a little white line across the High Street which will soon wear away and some memories.

 

Vive La Tour.

 

Neil Harris

(a don't stop till you drop production)

As  usual if you click on a picture you get a slideshow and better images.

 

Home: helpmesortoutstpeters.blogspot.com

Contact me; neilwithpromisestokeep@gmail.com

 

 

Le Tour de France is coming!

So, Monday morning finds me on my way to France.

Ok, I'm actually on the M25 at 0800 am on my way to Epping but for me, today it's going to be France, it really is.

L'Etape D'Epping.

Because Le Tour De France is powering through Essex on its unstoppable journey to Paris.

I'm late. I've got a complicated timetable of medication to take. I'm a carer so there's someone else's medication to sort out. There are lunches to be made. I'm late but I've done this before.

Now I'm sat in a traffic jam and I hit Epping Forest just a bit too late - 0909 am, when the roads shut at 0900.

But I really have done this before, I know the tricks - they shut the side roads first and I manage to fight my little car onto the Tour route and as long as you can do that you are OK - when your trapped on the race route they have to let you out!

The plan was to find a remote spot in the forest and get a long slow view of the race which is what I usually do.

This time, I changed my mind - I saw that the crowd at the finish of the intermediate sprint wasn't big - I went for it.

I had to walk two miles through the forest and along the high street - just in time as everything was ready when I got there;

The houses were decorated, the shops lined with bunting and flags. The crowd barriers going up. Beer barrels being set up, barbecues being lit. This is a big day for a little town. Today this town is on the route to Paris.

There was still time to test the route;

Some people came a long way - next to me were a family who had driven down from Cambridge where the stage was going to start because it was going to be more exciting down here.

These lads were members of The Huddersfield Star Wheelers and they'd come down from Yorkshire where the first two stages were (I'd loved to have gone up there too) and now they were doing as much of this stage as they could before security got too tight.

This is the Timing Commissaire preparing the photo finish booth for the sprint, which carries a small prize but more importantly points for the Green Jersey competition sponsored by PMU (Paris Mutual) the French Tote.

 

 

In five hours time the whole world (OK Europe) is going to be watching this spot.

 

Everything has to be exactly right.

Here's the Commisaire painting the sprint finish line and setting up the photo finish cameras;

 



By now the route is packed with people, it's 10-00 am and we are fighting for our places. I made friends with a couple of local ladies who very kindly got me a T-Shirt from the other side of the route, while two of us kept our places.

By about 1230, when the race had left Cambridge, the thrills were starting where we were; every now and again the race officials cars would scream through. The Church Bells started to ring, the Police motorbikes and the ambulances started to speed through. The Tour is coming!

More Police, more officials - everything must be inspected three times - the Tour is coming!

Nothing must stop it's frantic chase to Paris!

And now at 30 mph, the Caravanne Publicitaire starts to race through and as each mad vehicle screeches past we bang the race boards and wave;

How much fun is that job? Driving a giant Teddy bear to Paris, or a huge bed on a lorry? Or a bottle?

Here's another bottle, on a Taxi (of course, it's Londres)

Meanwhile we chat to the young French lads who do the barriers and the advertising - spending a glorious July on the road. 

Then the Commisaires act out a little French tableaux for us. Madame Commisaire is presented with a bunch of roses - aaah!. Monsieur Commisaire fusses endlessly over the cameras and the sensors. It is like a little remote station on a deserted branch line of a railway - today the grand patron is coming through.

And now, the French Police take over the roads; soon it's the elite Guarde Republicaine motorcyclists;

Still the caravaine rolls on;

For me, best of all are the three cars of the CGT, the communist led Union which always has a major presence on Le Tour, either here with the publicity cars or in the medical cars or providing volunteers.

Most dramatic of all - the charging tableaux of Carrefour which gave us a foretaste of the flying Tour which is driving along the road to us;

Amazing, thrilling, what a spectacle!

Even the most conservative, irritated little Englanders in this most conservative of English towns is now completely won over.

Vive le Tour!

It's now 1430 and the race is late! - will it ever get here?.

Neil Harris
(a don't stop till you drop production)
Click on a picture for a slideshow and better quality.

Home: helpmesortoutstpeters.blogspot.com

Contact me: neilwithpromisestokeep@gmail.com

L'Etape D'Epping - Foret D'Epping.

I've just got home; 7 hours standing, a couple of hours waiting for the roads to reopen. I'm exhausted and really happy.

I'll put the pictures up tomorrow after I've had a rest - here's my new T-shirt, my flag from team Sky and a bit of Tour de France tape.

Oh, and I've just seen my hat on the television report.

Wow! That was fun.

 

 

Neil Harris

(a don't stop till you drop production)