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Starting in just over a week seems to be a vaguely muted affair this year - http://www.tourofbritain.co.uk/stages/
With just 8 stages and almost ignoring Wales altogether and not finishing in London!?
How come our tour doesn't have the status of some other €uropean nations?
Will you be watching?
With just 8 stages and almost ignoring Wales altogether and not finishing in London!?
It finishes in the capital of Wales, how is that ignoring it?!
They are passing about 3 miles from my house so I'll try and see them then.
yeh hence the 'almost' crazy dude. 🙂
and does branding it tour of 'Britain' and not UK allow them to ignore NI?
ITV4 showing live coverage of every stage.
It was bumped up in status in 2014 so it's on the same level as the Tour of California now, I think. That's about what it deserves IMO.
Have you watched it in recent years? They tend to go east one year and west the next. Wales has featured very heavily in the recent past.
They try to minimise transfer times for the teams, hence not trying to include all points of the compass every year.
It's only one week long, they can't go everywhere. We were lucky enough to ave stage near us last year, but this year it's a fair old hike to the nearest.
Starting in just over a week seems to be a vaguely muted affair this year
I don't think its changed this year. It went through my home town last year, sunny sunday luch time and passed a pud with a beer garden out front, happy days.
So it's muted for me because it's nowhere close to me, I'll still watch the highlights every night though.
How about just be a bit more realistic and re-name it the 'Tour of the lower half of the British mainland'.
It's never been above the central belt in Scotland, you know, the bit with all the hills in it....
Imagine a stage starting in Perth, follow the A93 to climb over Glenshee, then Crathie/Balmoral to Gairnshiel, Gairnshiel to Cock Bridge, there to Tomintoul and on to a mountain finish at Cairngorm..? Perth and Aviemore/Strathspey can accommodate the requirements readily enough. The racing and the helicopter visuals would be stunning and at least we'd get to see a proper stage in a bonny bit of quite lumpy terrain.
A few years ago, people used to complain becasuie the Tour of Britain came past their house and it meant disruption, traffic jams.
Now everyone complains becasue it doesn't come past their house!
Every single year now when they announce the route, there'll be complaints of "oh it's not in [insert random town/area]" in spite of the fact that it visited there last year. They try and spread it around a bit plus there's the other concern of transfers between stages.
London has had the pick of it in the last few years but with RideLondon, London Nocturne and Women's Tour all being there it meant that ToB really had to find a new final stage town.
I hope with ITV4 now going to full live coverage of every stage it'll mean the end of Hugh Porter, some new commentary would be very welcome.
Disappointed the Edinburgh start won't take it along Porty prom but that would probably drive the local dog walkers to insanity. Think I'll watch it go through Musselburgh or maybe a bit further out if I get up early enough.
Bloody roadies ...Ive got the hump because the road is closed for 2hrs through my village on Monday and as we are leaving for a week's camping in the Lakes ..it means we will have to set off earlier than expected ..
Inconsiderate gits ..
How about just be a bit more realistic and re-name it the 'Tour of the lower half of the British mainland'.It's never been above the central belt in Scotland, you know, the bit with all the hills in it....
I'd love to see a ToB entirely north of Stirling.
Might be a challenge to make it work commercially though.
I hope with ITV4 now going to full live coverage of every stage it'll mean the end of Hugh Porter, some new commentary would be very welcome.
With Ned & Dave working on the Vuelta I'm not sure who they'd draft in. Do we know if Eurosport's commentators have an exclusivity clause? If not then Rob Hatch would do fine.
Ever since the Grand Depart in 2014 they seem to have re-branded it the [i]Tour of Britain (avoiding Yorkshire)[/i]
I know we have the Tour de Yorkshire, but they seem to go out of their way to avoid the whole county now!
One stage is finishing virtually at the end of my street, town will be chaos, can't wait.
Ever since the Grand Depart in 2014 they seem to have re-branded it the Tour of Britain (avoiding Yorkshire)
I know we have the Tour de Yorkshire, but they seem to go out of their way to avoid the whole county now!
Yeah, again it's avoiding "overuse" - which usually translates as "pissing off the locals". Tour de Yorkshire is a well-established event now and Yorkshire is hosting the 2019 World Road Race Championships so no point in treading on their toes.
It's a subtle way of saying "Dear Yorkshire - you've got the TdY so you can't have the ToB as well"
Also Yorkshire hosts a lot of the regular British Cycling events like Ryedale Grand Prix, Sheffield Grand Prix, Otley GP etc
The more high-profile cycle events there are, the more difficult it becomes trying to shoehorn in other ones due to costs and overuse issues.
I would LOVE to see the race visit the highlands though, imagine the race going from John o'Groats to Inverness, going over Bealach Na Ba?
actually that's a hell of a long stage. But still....
I'd be looking forward to hearing his full gamut of regional accents - clacton would be great 😀If not then Rob Hatch would do fine
Well it's passing my house, though a number of sportives/ organised rides seem to. Will be cycling to work to avoid the traffic.
I'm sure during the TDF the organiser said they cant go into yorkshire as the tour of yorkshire is a different organiser.
Start of the final stage is 4 miles from here, though I'll probably head in the other direction to see them take on the mighty Malvern Hills somewhere near Stoner's gaff.
This year is the first time I can remember it not coming to the north west, I've been watching since 2012 but it's only fair that it's spread out over the years.
Despite the tour being put up in status, the main issue is transfer times. This was made very vocal by the teams a couple of years ago.
One stage finished on Hartside Cumbria and the next stage was Stoke I think. Some teams were not getting to the hotels till 10 pm. This wasn't helped by the fact it finished on the top of a hill were there is only one road between Penrith and the North East and the team buses were parked on the Hawes side and they couldn't get back towards Penrith due to the finishing line still being in situ.
They had to travel towards Carlisle then drop back down.
Still a great race though. I'm going even though it means travelling this year.
I reckon in the Highlands there are so few roads you'd isolate parts of the country for hours by closing the roads. Elsewhere emergency vehicles or whatever could probably get around. I think they have to take things like this into account.
Re: my earlier post ..got my dates mixed up and it doesn't affect my travel plans ..sorry!
Stage 4 looks alarmingly like the "Tour Dr Scuzziest Bits of The East Midlands". Grim looking stage.
Stage 3 goes through the village I grew up in!
So, it actually goes past the bottom of my garden. Literally.
Literally as in 'literally' rather than the more modern 'figuratively'
Also routes along one of the segments I happen to have the KOM for... any bets I'll still have it in a couple of weeks?
Got to agree with @highlandman, stage taking in glenshee, the lecht and cairngorm is a bit of a no brainer for what is supposedly a tour of Britain. Would be a proper climbers stage.
And would be easy enough to run a stage for a sprint somewhere down the west coast the following day.
How about just be a bit more realistic and re-name it the 'Tour of the lower half of the British mainland'.
except it misses the southwest...
Christ, they've got Brian Smith co-commentating. Can't stand his nasal whiny voice.
If you think this is bad, don't look at Rally GB....
Route looks a bit meh this year. I'm watching it at the moment but the Vuelta is on in bit.
Course designed by organisers for an Alex dowsett win. Relatively flat week with small time gaps likely then a 10mile dual carriageway TT in his home county. Good pr for tob when a British rider wins. Can't guarantee sky sending British gc guy, turned out they did, but Dowsett would have been a cert. Yes Cummings won last year but that hilly race made it way more open.
Madison Genesis have managed to run over a One Pro rider. Clearly in amongst the GC, points, KOM and sprint competitions there's a separate one to find the worst bit of team car driving. 😉
God that CCC kit/bike is gopping!
seriously crazy-legs!! Not again
God that CCC kit/bike is gopping!
+1