Poll: When will the next major bicycle race happen again?

[tobydawq]

And now some riders and teams are complaining that it's unfair that in some countries, riders can ride outside and in others they can't, so they want a no-race period after quarantines have lifted so they can get up to speed with their training.

I have three not particularly nice words for them:

Suck it up.

When the racing can start, the racing must start.

 

[RedheadDane]

Such a no-race period could even happen quite naturally. To give an example:
If I understand correctly, the Spanish lock-down will end on April 12. However, there is no racing for all of April, so...

 

[Kaptain Kool]

I expect a lot to change by summer. In my part of the world (SE Asia), the virus continues to spread but hospitals aren't overburdened and there have been few deaths. The only thing SE Asians have in common is heat. My country (Thailand) projects the peak here will be December or January. We have restrictions now on travel and large events but there's no way they can be in place until the turn of the year. The goal is to limit the influx now and then live with the virus at a manageable level.

The Olympics is tricky because many countries won't want to participate and there would be the large influx of travelers from around the world (including southern hemisphere, where the virus will increase int their cooler months). But the Tour should be doable.

 

[Koronin]

Once they get the technical side right, cycling should be one of the sports easiest to do as e-sports.
Way easier at least to hold Zwift-races than play a digital football match with real football players. But do we really want to see those? Depends on how desperate we get, I suppose.

Well NASCAR is giving this a try this weekend. Some of the drivers decided to organize a race for Sunday, got NASCAR on board and they got FS1 (Fox Sports) to agree to broadcast it. It's not all the drivers, no prize money or anything just fun. If they can do it with iracing, I don't see why cyclists couldn't do it with Zwift.

 

[42x16ss]

And now some riders and teams are complaining that it's unfair that in some countries, riders can ride outside and in others they can't, so they want a no-race period after quarantines have lifted so they can get up to speed with their training.

I have three not particularly nice words for them:

Suck it up.

When the racing can start, the racing must start.

I spotted Jess Pratt (Canyon-Sram) back home here in Brisbane training earlier this week. I'm guessing she wants nothing to do with indoor training after all the Zwifting she did to get her contract

 

[yaco]

Well NASCAR is giving this a try this weekend. Some of the drivers decided to organize a race for Sunday, got NASCAR on board and they got FS1 (Fox Sports) to agree to broadcast it. It's not all the drivers, no prize money or anything just fun. If they can do it with iracing, I don't see why cyclists couldn't do it with Zwift.

Mitchelton Scott has run a swift series for the last two weeks.

 

[yaco]

I spotted Jess Pratt (Canyon-Sram) back home here in Brisbane training earlier this week. I'm guessing she wants nothing to do with indoor training after all the Zwifting she did to get her contract

Sarah Roy and Gracie Elvin from MS are back in Canberra.

 

[Koronin]

Mitchelton Scott has run a swift series for the last two weeks.

Can it be watched on line somewhere?

 

[yaco]

Can it be watched on line somewhere?

Go to the Mitchelton Scott website - Matt Stevens and Matt Hayman provide commentary.

 

[ice&fire]

Such a no-race period could even happen quite naturally. To give an example:
If I understand correctly, the Spanish lock-down will end on April 12. However, there is no racing for all of April, so...

I just checked the official decree and Spanish lock-down will end 15 days after its publication (14th of March). The 15 days limit is set in the Spanish Constitution. Extensions are possible, but they require a parliament vote.

 

[perico]

2021. Don’t see how they could pull it off this year, and even with a vaccine it won’t matter.

 

[Faserr]

Unfortunately I think the people who said 2021 at the beginning of the pandemic are right. I don't see a fast solution for sports. The spread can only be stopped with social distancing in the next months or 1-2 years. It will take time to develop rules for cycling and other sports. People will get used to prohibtions that's why I think cycling can happen without specatators, but not in the next few months.

Zwift events with pro riders will happen this year, perhaps a lot.

 

[Simurgh]

I voted July, because I felt that corona would be sweeping across Europe, but that it could be contained relatively smoothly, so that even though Dauphine and Suisse would be cancelled, the worst days would be behind us in June, so that everything would be close to normal in July. The thing is though, that Italy is still on lockdown with no end in sight and Spain is suddenly suffering big time too...and that is just the beginning for them. Now I think that races could start in July, if the race organizers can guarantee the absence of spectators on the roads, but how is that possible to enforce? It is not possible, whereas in football (real football) you can play in empty stadiums and finish the season. On the other hand, teams need exposure to justify existing sponsorships and attract new sponsorships, so they might be insisting on racing TdF, and ASO might also have an interest in this, since people probably will in the summer holidays stay home in front of the television, meaning a lot of viewers, since EURO 2020 and Copa América are postponed. Time will tell, and we will probably know the destiny of this season by Easter.

 

[Joelsim]

I voted July, because I felt that corona would be sweeping across Europe, but that it could be contained relatively smoothly, so that even though Dauphine and Suisse would be cancelled, the worst days would be behind us in June, so that everything would be close to normal in July. The thing is though, that Italy is still on lockdown with no end in sight and Spain is suddenly suffering big time too...and that is just the beginning for them. Now I think that races could start in July, if the race organizers can guarantee the absence of spectators on the roads, but how is that possible to enforce? It is not possible, whereas in football (real football) you can play in empty stadiums and finish the season. On the other hand, teams need exposure to justify existing sponsorships and attract new sponsorships, so they might be insisting on racing TdF, and ASO might also have an interest in this, since people probably will in the summer holidays stay home in front of the television, meaning a lot of viewers, since EURO 2020 and Copa América are postponed. Time will tell, and we will probably know the destiny of this season by Easter.

No government will allow any sport until public services aren’t under pressure anymore, or until there’s no risk from travelling. That won’t be this season, if we get a full season next year I think we’ll be lucky.

 

[Stelvio]

Voted september. I'm afraid that is highly optimistic. There's a good chance no professional sport will happen before vaccination. And a vaccine is highly unlikely to get this year.

 

[Koronin]

I don't think countries can survive a lock down with people not working and relying on the govt to pay for everything. Hence the reason so many businesses in the US are open even in states that are under "shelter in place" or "stay at home" rules which also aren't exactly being enforced that strictly for the most part.

 

[RedheadDane]

Been thinking a little - dangerous, I know - and I think two steps might be necessary in order to allow cycling under the current circumstances.

Step 1, make sure nobody gets in. By "in" I mean "into the area". For the TdF that would probably mean no foreigners travelling to France, and nobody driving cross-country, basically; if it requires in anyway sleeping outside your home it's a no-no!

Step 2, make sure nobody gets out. On the day of the race, people - who doesn't have work - need to just... stay at home, and those who are at work should stay there. Don't even walk down-town to see the race; if you can't see it from your own home, sorry, not this year. In order to maintain a little bit of celebratory feeling - which I think people are gonna need - it could even be an idea to encourage people to make personal displays/banners.

Oh, and the caravan would probably need to not hand out stuff.

 

[gregrowlerson]

I am not sure exactly what the parcours is, but with foreign travel still hypothetically restricted or banned, if the TDF was to go ahead, then race it only in France?

 

[sir fly]

I am not sure exactly what the parcours is, but with foreign travel still hypothetically restricted or banned, if the TDF was to go ahead, then race it only in France?

Only in France it is, but the riders are supposed to come from all over the globe.

 

[gregrowlerson]

Only in France it is, but the riders are supposed to come from all over the globe.

Yes, my bad, I forgot about that! Oh well, an Aussie isn't going to win it in the foreseeable future anyway

 

[Kaptain Kool]

Some countries might still restrict tourists in July. I'd be shocked if business travel (including teams and associated personnel) is prohibited in France then.
Even if there are restrictions, teams could arrive over two weeks in advance, get tested and quarantine before the race.

 

[sir fly]

Some countries might still restrict tourists in July. I'd be shocked if business travel (including teams and associated personnel) is prohibited in France then.
Even if there are restrictions, teams could arrive over two weeks in advance, get tested and quarantine before the race.

Yes, that's probably the way to manage the situation.
Training in quarantine might be the issue, though.

 

[Kaptain Kool]

In Asian countries the people follow instructions and respect authority.

I live in Thailand. We don't do that here.

 

[IndianCyclist]

He is talking about China, Japan, Korea, Singapore i think

 

[Kaptain Kool]

He is talking about China, Japan, Korea, Singapore i think

Maybe. But he was responding to my post about SE Asia and heat. So only Singapore qualifies. He also previously mentioned Vietnam.