Following the Tour de France

[Andy]

Apologies if this topic has been raised before (or if I'm in the wrong section of the forum) but my partner and I, plus Floyd our dog, are following the Tour de France this summer for the first time. Any general advice for first-timers would be much appreciated plus more specifically advice on:
- internet access throughout the TdF (we are thinking we'll buy a dongle for the laptop at the start of the tour(?));
- how to access race radio (I failed miserably at this year's Fleche Wallone);
- booking campsites
Any help would be gratefully appreciated
Andy, Carrie and Floyd

 

[King Boonen]

Arrive where you want to be early!

Afraid that's about as far as I can help you but I hope you enjoy it, sounds like a fantastic trip.

 

[Andy]

Re:

Arrive where you want to be early!

Afraid that's about as far as I can help you but I hope you enjoy it, sounds like a fantastic trip.

We're certainly very excited about the trip
Many thanks
Andy

 

[TheDuke]

Sounds like fun Andy! How many of the stages will you attempt to follow? How are you planning on travelling, car, train, bike, camper etc.? Are you also riding your bike? In general a 3G dongle or SIM card will work fairly well anywhere in France, however you may find in some remote areas (and some not so remote) that you will not get a signal - and then perhaps where you least expect to get one, you will - nonetheless, no better or worse than anywhere else on the planet I would say. From Wifi POV, many places in France, including the big towns offer Free Wifi - which is handy. Just look for the black and white WiFi signs on Cafes, Hotels etc.
For some of the bigger stages you need to be well prepared - it´s difficult to get in and out of some of the mountain passes as the mountains tend to go into a type of "lock down" some hours ahead some days (eg. Alpe d´Huez). Also consider the vast amounts of traffic coming off mountains etc. You can easily be delayed for hours and hours just to go 20kms. Transfers can also be long ie, sometimes the start and finishes will be quite a long way apart, so you´ll need to plan ahead - note the Stage Details are now published which should indeed help you! Camping ground will get busy quickly, are generally excellent, and pretty cheap. Make sure again to look ahead. Free camping you can do, and in general you´ll get away with it around the TDF time of the year, but dont be totally surprised if you are asked to move along by the local gendarmes. If you like I can offer you some place to camp for Stage 14, it goes right by my outlaws place

 

[Andy]

Many thanks for your advice - much appreciated. We will try to buy a 3G dongle and SIM card when we arrive in France or Belgium. Due to the dog we are going to give the first (second) and last stages a miss. Plus on the big mountain stages we will stick to the starts of the climbs rather than get involved with the madness higher up the mountain.
We have managed to book campsites in the Pyrennes (near the Col de Tourmalet) and the Alpes ( at the foot of Alpe D'Huez) which means we should be able to get to each stage. However, your comments on leaving the mountains after a stage will most certainly be taken on board. We have a campsite booked at Rodez which cover the end of Stage 13 and the beginning of Stage 14 but if the in-laws (or outlaws) live at the Mende end of the stage, yes please to some local knowledge!
We have a VW van so we have a fair degree of flexibility in terms of camping "hors-piste".
Once again many many thanks for your advice.
Cheers
Andy
#Floydand HD

 

[Jamzik]

Sounds good. I am going on a camping holiday with my wife and in (out) laws next week, and on 10 July we plan to take a day trip to stage 7 in Normandy, Liverot to Fougeres.

I would love to hear any tips, recommendations or local knowledge regarding where along that route would be a good place to set up for the day. It is a part of France I have never been to before so have no knowledge of it.

The hope is to identify a spot in advance and get there early, as advised by King Boonen.

Any views very welcome. Good luck to Andy on his trip to follow the whole race - awesome. Where do you plan to be for stage 7?

 

[TheDuke]

Many thanks for your advice - much appreciated. We will try to buy a 3G dongle and SIM card when we arrive in France or Belgium. Due to the dog we are going to give the first (second) and last stages a miss. Plus on the big mountain stages we will stick to the starts of the climbs rather than get involved with the madness higher up the mountain.
We have managed to book campsites in the Pyrennes (near the Col de Tourmalet) and the Alpes ( at the foot of Alpe D'Huez) which means we should be able to get to each stage. However, your comments on leaving the mountains after a stage will most certainly be taken on board. We have a campsite booked at Rodez which cover the end of Stage 13 and the beginning of Stage 14 but if the in-laws (or outlaws) live at the Mende end of the stage, yes please to some local knowledge!
We have a VW van so we have a fair degree of flexibility in terms of camping "hors-piste".
Once again many many thanks for your advice.
Cheers
Andy
#Floydand HD

Hi Andy, sounds like the plans are coming together, good stuff!!!! Everyone starting to get excited over here (France), par for the course this time of year. One thing to note, we have our first major "vague" of warm weather - could be seen as very hot depending on where you are from. Make sure you have all you need to combact the effects - liquid refreshments, sunscreen etc. especially for the dog!
Yes try and get a couple of kms into some of the mountain stages, even if you are still a long way from the top. That way you profit from seeing the riders for the longest possible time as the bunch begins to split and the "bus" is formed at the end. Note depending on what they have done prior to arriving where you are of course.
One thing also to remember (I was at a great camp ground at the bottom of the Tourmalet in 98) is that if you do manage to get towards the top of some of these climbs it can be very cold still up there, despite the temps at the bottom. That particular year the temps at the camp ground where around the 40 degree mark and on top of the Tourmalet was around 3 degrees.
I probably dont have to say this, but I will, be careful with your dog - you have likely seen the issues in the past with careless owners, and excited pups. The excitement of lots of people, the caravan going through, the riders, the other dogs, the noise of cars and sirens etc. is likely sensory overload for our canines. Just be careful that´s all
For the Tourmalet it can be a trap, depending on which side you are - Lourdes or Campan ? You can get caught for a long time with the traffic. If you are camping near Campan, there are some great little restaurents and try some of the local dishes, very cool!
Alpes d´Huez can be a little easier to get out of, but also depends. There are a couple of choices to sneak up the back-side of Alpes and come at it from the top, which worked for me, but again it will close really early - 2 days ahead. I basically camped at the top.
As for Rodez-Mende, I´m really looking forward to that stage (just personal viewpoint). I´ll also be in Rodez for the stage start, and then move over to Mende for the finish. There are a couple of options for you here. You could shoot across to the Gorge du Tarn (stunning) and see them come up there somewhere like St. Enimie, and then make a beeline for St Bauzile (near Balsieges) and take the back way up to the aerodrome (top of the Tir Fesses or Monte Jalabert), or you could just head over from Rodez to Mende and ride or walk up the climb. Note that it will be packed, as it usually is a great place to see the stage.
I can try and find out some camping places in that area if you need. I have some friend that live in Mende.

Talk soon,
Earl

 

[winkybiker]

Apologies if this topic has been raised before (or if I'm in the wrong section of the forum) but my partner and I, plus Floyd our dog, are following the Tour de France this summer for the first time. Any general advice for first-timers would be much appreciated plus more specifically advice on:
- internet access throughout the TdF (we are thinking we'll buy a dongle for the laptop at the start of the tour(?));
- how to access race radio (I failed miserably at this year's Fleche Wallone);
- booking campsites
Any help would be gratefully appreciated
Andy, Carrie and Floyd

My advice would be that if you want to be on the TV, ensure Floyd is either off-leash or in a really loose collar that he can slip when he gets startled by the crowd's excitement as the riders approach. Hilarity ensues! And the occasional broken collar bone.

 

[SammyLarns]

Agree with most things said above. I've followed the Tour for the past 3 years - most extensively in 2012 when a friend and I did a mid-uni trip down the Eastern Side of France. In my personal opinion the best way to watch the Tour is to travel by train, which is very easy in France. On the more open climbs, like La Toussuire and the Croix de Fer, you can basically have a little space to yourself. On the tighter climbs, like the Belles Filles or Alpe d'Huez you have no room at all. Both are enjoyable but just decide if you want to be crammed in before you make your way up.
People are right in saying that you need to be there early but that only applies in the mountains and at stage starts and finishes. If you're going to watch a flat stage mid way through then find a cafe and watch the stage then just nip out around 20 minutes before the stage passes. I learnt the hard way when, in 2012, we arrived at the Cote de Dieppe 5 hours before the peloton passed through and then sat in the ridiculous heat with very little water.
Most of all though, just have fun and enjoy yourself!

 

[Andy]

Thanks to you all for your advice, it really is very much appreciated. Please be reassured that the dog, Floyd, will be well under control and we will keep him well hydrated and cool. He is quite an experienced cycle race watcher having done 3 days of the Tour of Britain and the Fleche Walloon this year. We did Hay Tor and the climb to the finish from Abergavenny which were busy but I'm anticipating multiply that by 10 and you get the chaos of Bend 7 on Alpe D'Huez! Floyd wears a lead and a harness when by the side of the road and we take great care when the caravan and race come through - it's not the best way to spectate mountain stages but it's our trade off for taking him. I think Floyd will be on TV but hopefully for the van livery rather than anything stupid. The livery is being put on next Tuesday - Floyd will tweet some photos of the van on his Twitter account which is @FloydandHD
Earl - brilliant, brilliant advice on route planning and I'm delighted to say we're staying at Campan for at least 3 nights and will certainly give the local restaurants our custom! The Gorge du Tarn sounds great - please keep the advice coming . And yes please to any information re local campsites near Mende, all help most welcome.
Jamzik - Fougeres looks gorgeous, well worth a visit, and I think there will be a great bunch sprint at the finish. In my opinion (not that I really know a great deal) with the parcours and the changes to the Green Jersey points allocation kicking in on this stage I can't see the sprinters teams not chasing down the break away ( MTN-Qhubeka will be in the break awayof course) in the last 20 or 30km. Apologies for the double negative. Fougeres will be far too busy for us with the dog so my plan is to find an incline in the last 20km so we can see the race for a prolonged period as the peleton will be flying by then. I don't know the area at all but the stage profile shows an incline at Saint-Ellier-du-Maine which is 18/19km from the finish, so we'll head for there (fingers crossed). If you find a better spot and there's room for us please let us know either via Twitter or email andyowen28@yahoo.com
Thanks again to you all and if you are out on the tour and see the van please come and say hello and join us for a cider. We have a ridiculous number of cans of Natch plus my homemade cider so there's plenty to go around.
Look forward to hearing from you
Cheers
Andy, Carrie and Floyd

 

[TheDuke]

Thanks to you all for your advice, it really is very much appreciated. Please be reassured that the dog, Floyd, will be well under control and we will keep him well hydrated and cool. He is quite an experienced cycle race watcher having done 3 days of the Tour of Britain and the Fleche Walloon this year. We did Hay Tor and the climb to the finish from Abergavenny which were busy but I'm anticipating multiply that by 10 and you get the chaos of Bend 7 on Alpe D'Huez! Floyd wears a lead and a harness when by the side of the road and we take great care when the caravan and race come through - it's not the best way to spectate mountain stages but it's our trade off for taking him. I think Floyd will be on TV but hopefully for the van livery rather than anything stupid. The livery is being put on next Tuesday - Floyd will tweet some photos of the van on his Twitter account which is @FloydandHD
Earl - brilliant, brilliant advice on route planning and I'm delighted to say we're staying at Campan for at least 3 nights and will certainly give the local restaurants our custom! The Gorge du Tarn sounds great - please keep the advice coming . And yes please to any information re local campsites near Mende, all help most welcome.
Jamzik - Fougeres looks gorgeous, well worth a visit, and I think there will be a great bunch sprint at the finish. In my opinion (not that I really know a great deal) with the parcours and the changes to the Green Jersey points allocation kicking in on this stage I can't see the sprinters teams not chasing down the break away ( MTN-Qhubeka will be in the break awayof course) in the last 20 or 30km. Apologies for the double negative. Fougeres will be far too busy for us with the dog so my plan is to find an incline in the last 20km so we can see the race for a prolonged period as the peleton will be flying by then. I don't know the area at all but the stage profile shows an incline at Saint-Ellier-du-Maine which is 18/19km from the finish, so we'll head for there (fingers crossed). If you find a better spot and there's room for us please let us know either via Twitter or email andyowen28@yahoo.com
Thanks again to you all and if you are out on the tour and see the van please come and say hello and join us for a cider. We have a ridiculous number of cans of Natch plus my homemade cider so there's plenty to go around.
Look forward to hearing from you
Cheers
Andy, Carrie and Floyd

Hi Andy, I´ll will ping you an email. I´ll contact my friends in Mende. Let me know if you´d prefer to stay in the town itself (nice little town Mende) or you dont mind staying out of town a little there is a small camp ground which looks great in Barjac (Called Le Clos des Peupliers - contact - Virginie Rossi
+33 (0)4 66 47 01 16 fix
+33 (0)6 76 35 37 78 mb
www.​closdespeupliers.​com)

Great to hear you are in Campan, love that little place. You could also take a look up the Aspin if you have time and inclination. Then you are fairly easy on your way out to Bagneres-de-Bigorre and the A64 (direction Tournay).

Back to the Rodez - Mende stage, I´ve decided to not actually go to Mende on the day of the stage itself - I´ll ride that stage the day before (17th). I am thinking it´ll be better for my family and I to picnic and watch the action from the Cote de Sauveterre (nice little climb). I´m hoping it´ll be less packed than Mende, and it´ll certainly be easier for me to get back towards Millau. I´ll head to Chanac and then take the D44 down towards D986 (St Enimie and Sauveterre). If you have never been in that area, I really recommend, coming up from Aguesac towards Le Rozier, and then up through the Gorge du Tarn, towards St Enimie, it is really really stunning there. I´m lucky that I get to ride in that area quite a lot, and I am still amzed at its beauty!
If you´re keen, (as mentioned I´ll ride the route the day before) and pick us a good meet up location for the 18th on the Sauveterre. I can then sample some of your cider

Good luck with the travels.
Earl