How do you fight Post-Tour-Depression

[Kwibus]

Oh I dunno. I know the Vuelta is the weakest GT but I always enjoy it. I enjoy Lombardy too and Poland is pretty good these days.

The Canadian stuff I'm not so familiar with, but if they can get me through the Autumn they get my vote.

Last year the 2 canadian races were a real joy to watch. The only way to watch it was by a canadian stream with french commentators, but it certainly was great fun. Voeckler winning in Quebec and Gesink winning in Montreal after a solo of 8km.

It's sad that the TdF finished, but there still is plenty of racing coming until half October. Then the real depression kicks in

 

[L'arriviste]

For me, the season has a sort of three-part cycle.

First time I 'take a moment' is after Paris-Roubaix. The (cobbled) Spring Classics represent my favourite third of the season and at the end of that the specialists are shrinkwrapped and put away until just before the Tour.

Then it's LBL, the Giro, Romandie, Suisse and hello and welcome back to another sort of rider that we saw earlier in Italy. The Tour represents the culmination of this second chunk of the season, the end of which requires another moment to be taken.

Autumn for me starts with San Sebastian (yes, the first week in August) and that's got its own charms, where the two earlier thirds come together and stage racers battle with one day specialists (in a way that hasn't been seen since probably Tirreno-Adriatico) as the sun gets weaker and races eventually end in lower light (the golden light was amazing at Emilia last year).

So for me winter is the worst time. From Lombardia until Omloop Het Nieuwsblad. For the first time last year, I watched cyclo-cross every week last year with a nice beer and that filled a gap.

 

[jsem94]

Winter is def worst. I forget all about cycling... lol. XC skiing keeps me pretty occupied, but I should stay on the forums to keep myself updated at least.

 

[Roninho]

i'm not going to miss the racing, because, well there is SSB next week and the vuelta is coming up soon.

However, what i do miss is that the amount of attention in the media for cycling will be back to it's normal level again. So no more radio tour de france, no more talkshows about cycling and no more long articles in the newspapers about cycling. All the attention just builds the tension for the next stage and keeps me even more interested in it. That is what i really do miss after each tour.

 

[Roninho]

Winter is def worst. I forget all about cycling... lol. XC skiing keeps me pretty occupied, but I should stay on the forums to keep myself updated at least.

I used to have this problem when cycling and auto/motorracing where my 2 favorite sports. Winter was like hell in terms of sports, all day long langlaufen and things like that on eurosport...

Luckily the last 7-8 years i've found out about (american) football, and that fills up my needs till early february. I especially appreciate the college bowls with all these games during the last week of december and the first of january (when normally i'm on holliday and had nothing to watch on tv). So now my worst period is from half of february till paris nice which is my start of the cycling season (sorry guys, but tour down under, tour of oman, etc. is not my cup of tea).

 

[Mellow Velo]

For me, the season has a sort of three-part cycle.

First time I 'take a moment' is after Paris-Roubaix. The (cobbled) Spring Classics represent my favourite third of the season and at the end of that the specialists are shrinkwrapped and put away until just before the Tour.

Then it's LBL, the Giro, Romandie, Suisse and hello and welcome back to another sort of rider that we saw earlier in Italy. The Tour represents the culmination of this second chunk of the season, the end of which requires another moment to be taken.

Autumn for me starts with San Sebastian (yes, the first week in August) and that's got its own charms, where the two earlier thirds come together and stage racers battle with one day specialists (in a way that hasn't been seen since probably Tirreno-Adriatico) as the sun gets weaker and races eventually end in lower light (the golden light was amazing at Emilia last year).

Exactly as I see the season. The end of the Tour signifies the beginning of the end for the season, although it is a very slow decline.

I find the end of the Tour quite nostalgic, as it's early transmissions served to introduce many to the sport as a whole.
The fact that one of the broadcast teams remains exactly the same, 25+ years on, fuels this nostalgia.
Another year over and that familiar empty feeling. Happens every Monday, post GT.

 

[Duartista]

My post-Tour blues have just been blown away - I'm going to be in the Polish Tatras next week, and I've just discovered that the decisive stages of the Tour of Poland will be taking place in the area where I'm staying.

 

[zigzag wanderer]

I used a simple tactic this year - I moved to Istanbul the day before the tour started. Now the race is over I can finally start exploring my new home

Not sure how I'm going to deal with it next year though....

 

[Rouetheday]

I always have a cycling depression after Liège and the Tour.

Is that you, Andy?

 

[Midnightfright]

I always have a cycling depression after Liège and the Tour.

Is that you, Andy?

ha ha very good , Andy is trying to beat Jan's 2nd place dominance at the tour. Any schmuck can try and win the tour but it takes a talent to keep just missing out. Maybe that why I like both of them so.

 

[Jeanne]

I'll be watching the next races San Sebastian, Tour of Poland, Vuelta.. And at the moment finally I'm working very hard again, no running away after lunch anymore

 

[mickkk]

No such thing as PTD this year for Aussies, were just gunna watch it all over again, all 100 hours of SBS.

 

[King Of The Wolds]

I always have a cycling depression after Liège and the Tour. Sure, there are great races right after them, but still...the best part of the season is well behind us now. It's worse after Lombardia of course, then it get's so bad I even watch cyclo cross to pass the winter.

Exactly this. La Vuelta and Lombardia, even Poland and SS, are great, and I'm looking forward to them, but they aren't the Tour. It will be another 8 months before I'm really excited about a race again.

 

[The Hitch]

My post-Tour blues have just been blown away - I'm going to be in the Polish Tatras next week, and I've just discovered that the decisive stages of the Tour of Poland will be taking place in the area where I'm staying.

Where are you staying?

 

[El Pistolero]

The other problem is that the better races do come before the Tour.

I mean Vuelta is the weakest GT and Lombardy is the weakest monument. Paris Tours is the weakest of the historic classics. Eneco Tour is the weakest World Tour race.

Only the World Championships and the Tour of Poland can compete with the importance of races that come before July, and the worlds course is a bit crap this year.

Crowd wise its also a bit of a letdown after you see thousands of people packed on places like Alpe or simply as the race goes through towns.

The Giro and Flanders can compete with those crowds and the passion but the Autumn races do not.

Still in this epic 2010 Season recap video, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yVVyxDkxezg the best song is reserved for the post July period which means after watching it 50 times i have better memories of the Autumn period from that season anyway.

And im really liking this new Colorado project, and those epic Canadian races from last year so maybe the Autumn part of the season is in the proccess of upgrading itself.


Edit: watching that video again has got me excited for the Vuelta. And it reminded me why Anton is such a class act. A shame Johnny Walker wont be there but others will I guess.

Lombardy and Paris-Tour will be more fun to watch than a normal Milan-San Remo. As for the Eneco Tour, it sucks, horribly. But at least it's on Sporza. And Lombardy is definitely more fun to watch than Poland lol.

 

[RedheadDane]

Wallonie, 3 more days
San Sebastian 1 day
Poland 7 days
Tour of Denmark 5 days
Eneco Tour 7 days

Theres another 23 days in the next few weeks, and all of it should be viewable online or on tv.

I'm already planning to watch some of that live! Conveniently enough for me it just so happens to go through my town this year!

 

[Duartista]

Where are you staying?

Near Bukowina Tatrzanska.

 

[Caledon]

It was a nice tour I can see how you might miss it. Luckily I only watched 2 stages so its not much of a comedown. Thinking of Amy winehouse makes me more depeessed than the tour ending.

Think you need to re-focus. The horrors enacted in Norway at the weekend deserve your emotional energy a lot more than the untimely death of a celebrity.

As for post Tour blues, just do what Sidbike suggested and get out and ride more.

 

[sublimit]

Kind of relieved its finished, got the cricket on the radio so its Ok.

We have the Vuelta to look forward to, The Tour Of Poland, The Eneco, SS, The Tour Britain lol The Worlds etc.
Getting through the winter is far worse with the long wait for the Spring classics/semi classics and the start of the season.

 

[racing_like_scalded_cats]

I'll try to consume 1-2-3 Fosters oilcans in honor of the wheelsucker.

 

[Kwibus]

Kind of relieved its finished, got the cricket on the radio so its Ok.

We have the Vuelta to look forward to, The Tour Of Poland, The Eneco, SS, The Tour Britain lol The Worlds etc.
Getting through the winter is far worse with the long wait for the Spring classics/semi classics and the start of the season.

Tour of Britain was fun last year.

 

[boomcie]

I don't fight it cause I have no Post-Tour-Depression. Actually pretty relieved it's over, because everyone started talking to me about cycling and most of it didn't make any sense.

That's what I hate about the Tour, everybody reading up on cycling and acting like they are an expert. Kind of like with football all year around.

 

[The Hitch]

Near Bukowina Tatrzanska.

lol I knew it. they finish there every year. Personaly I have no idea what it looks like without snow though.

 

[GroupDK]

Its not easy to fight post tour depression, but normally I cool it down by taking 2 weeks on smoking heroin and then finally 3 weeks on weed in the red light dsitrict here in Copenhagen.

So in my case, Im out of the woods in only 5 weeks after the Tour ends.

In some cases it also helps to write love-letters to Michael Rasmussen, but that is only possible in the first 2 weeks, otherwise it just feels wrong..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A74Iv9WjanI&feature=related

Not sure that others can handle it in only 5 weeks.

But its all about "try & error"

Anyway guys, take care, see you at the next grand tour..!
A big bearhug from here to you all, _like the one Riis gived Contador after his beautifull effort on Alpe Huez..
-

 

[mickkk]

I don't fight it cause I have no Post-Tour-Depression. Actually pretty relieved it's over, because everyone started talking to me about cycling and most of it didn't make any sense.

That's what I hate about the Tour, everybody reading up on cycling and acting like they are an expert. Kind of like with football all year around.

Yes been a hoot with all the new fans that have come onboard. Cadels win is going to ensure a new generation of riders which equals more pressure on Govt to cater for Cyclists.

It reminds me of the Olympic Games Diving when we all become experts for a week.