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What would you do to make the Tour more interesting?

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May 14, 2010
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FabulousCandelabra said:
Make it a true tour, where they ride a 3000+km route carrying their own camping luggage. No motorized assistance whatsoever. Get back to basics, have it be gritty and real like back in the old days. Camera crews move into the camp after every race and record the drama "MTV real world" style.. Maybe allow some outside assistance (medical perhaps)... but the less the better.

Todays modern surgicaly precise, planned out, high tech tour, is incredibly boring...

Cycling desperately needs some innovation.. it could be sooo entertaining.

Armchair cyclist said:
Yep: Race Across America gets all the best riders and the level of coverage that the sport needs [/sarcasm]

What FabulouCandelabra describes and Race Across America have absolutely nothing in common except bicycles and riders. RAM is an extreme endurance event where riders go from coat to coast in the shortest possible time. The main things they have to worry about are the hallucinations induced by lack of sleep, and drifting into oncoming traffic for the same reason.

A "true tour, where they ride a 3000+km route carrying their own camping luggage" would involve actual stages just like they do now, but instead of the riders being totally supported by following vehicles, mechanics, and so on, the riders would be on their own, pretty much, even to the extent of putting up tents. This type of event would essentially be a multi-day brevet (known in the UK as an audax), and it would have a lot in common with the Tours of a hundred years ago. The riders wouldn't have to forge their own forks should they break (since the bikes would almost surely be carbon), but anything short of that they could handle themselves.

I think its an idea with great potential. (But as a separate event, not as a replacement for the Tour de France - this is more multi-day randonneuring, than it is road racing proper.)
 
Maxiton said:
What FabulouCandelabra describes and Race Across America have absolutely nothing in common except bicycles and riders. RAM is an extreme endurance event where riders go from coat to coast in the shortest possible time. The main things they have to worry about are the hallucinations induced by lack of sleep, and drifting into oncoming traffic for the same reason.

A "true tour, where they ride a 3000+km route carrying their own camping luggage" would involve actual stages just like they do now, but instead of the riders being totally supported by following vehicles, mechanics, and so on, the riders would be on their own, pretty much, even to the extent of putting up tents. This type of event would essentially be a multi-day brevet (known in the UK as an audax), and it would have a lot in common with the Tours of a hundred years ago. The riders wouldn't have to forge their own forks should they break (since the bikes would almost surely be carbon), but anything short of that they could handle themselves.

I think its an idea with great potential. (But as a separate event, not as a replacement for the Tour de France - this is more multi-day randonneuring, than it is road racing proper.)

It could also enable stage races around places with great opportunities to create cycling routes but without the necessary towns and cities to host the race. Who wouldn't love the televisual spectacle of a stage race in Iceland?
 
May 11, 2009
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How about a "Devil" on some stages; the last riders (one to ?) to cross the line are eliminated (in addition to time limit eliminations). This might ensure an end of stage sprint.
 
Have a stage on one of these

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Sure they could make a modern race version. :D
 
May 14, 2010
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Libertine Seguros said:
It could also enable stage races around places with great opportunities to create cycling routes but without the necessary towns and cities to host the race. Who wouldn't love the televisual spectacle of a stage race in Iceland?

Yes. Agreed. This has the potential to open up all sorts of places for stage racing, making it much more truly international than it is now. Could definitely generate new excitement.

And since the sport is so commercially oriented, I feel the need to point out that this type of tour could open up a whole new vertical market, long neglected, for the industry: that of randonneuring.
 
Apr 8, 2010
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Maxiton said:
Yes. Agreed. This has the potential to open up all sorts of places for stage racing, making it much more truly international than it is now. Could definitely generate new excitement.

And since the sport is so commercially oriented, I feel the need to point out that this type of tour could open up a whole new vertical market, long neglected, for the industry: that of randonneuring.
I thought internationalization was a bad thing:p

Anyway, it seems that there is not a big marked publicity-wise for these kind of brevet-like races.
 
Apr 25, 2009
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I think we're getting carried away.. Randoneering in Iceland.. I'd be interested to see another golden oldie suggestion, the top rider in GC from each team going head to head in a shootout in a stage late in the 3rd week.
 
In general riders make the racing exciting. However, the route might be contributing factor.
No more than one stage with H.C. or 1st cat 35km+ before finish.
At least 5 multiple climb stages for GC: 4 MTF+1 stage with decent or 3+2. By multiple climb stage for GC I mean a stage with at least two 1cat or HC climbs where the last HC or 1st cat. is an MTF or is located less than 25km before finish.
Short opening TTT (10-12km). Long ITT (55km-60km) after the first mountain range. Medium length ITT (25km-30km) the day before Paris.
Medium mountains, classic stages, cobbles are nice but they cannot substitute high mountains.
No time bonuses.
 
A

Anonymous

Guest
Eliminate the TT's and give each stage a point value by finish. 1 for first, 2 for second and so on.

Low score wins.

:D
 
Stage 1:
A 60km TT where riders are sent off in 9 groups of 22 (so one rider from each team per group)
Each group 2 minutes apart so some chances for groups to integrate (or disintergrate)
Riders get their actual elspsed time.
Teams select the groups their riders will go in.
So a few tactical considerations to consider.
 
swuzzlebubble said:
Stage 1:
A 60km TT where riders are sent off in 9 groups of 22 (so one rider from each team per group)
Each group 2 minutes apart so some chances for groups to integrate (or disintergrate)
Riders get their actual elspsed time.
Teams select the groups their riders will go in.
So a few tactical considerations to consider.

:D

LOL

Total caos but sounds like a blast.

Ps I like the TdF exactly how it is a bunch of French geezers in a smoke filled room doing the best they can to make it interesting. :)

T
 
Mar 13, 2009
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Another ridiculous idea. Starting at 1 minute intervals a TTT drafting off other teams allowed, but individual times, not team counts. So if you have a weak TTT ride like hell and put your GC guy into the team infront and then everyone can collapse dead, or you could wait for the guru team behind you and ride with them in a super squad ensuring you only lose 1 minute.
 
May 14, 2010
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Magnus said:
I thought internationalization was a bad thing:p

I don't follow. Why would it be a bad thing?

Anyway, it seems that there is not a big marked publicity-wise for these kind of brevet-like races.

In this case it's a market waiting to happen: an amorphous mass that becomes a market through a cool, new event people can relate to and do themselves.

gingerwallaceafro said:
I think we're getting carried away.. Randoneering in Iceland..

Personally, I'm all for getting carried away in cycling. It's about time! And randonneuring in Iceland would be awesome! Both for the riders and for the viewers. True adventure sport.

I'd be interested to see another golden oldie suggestion, the top rider in GC from each team going head to head in a shootout in a stage late in the 3rd week.

Sounds intriguing. How would that work exactly?

swuzzlebubble said:
Stage 1:
A 60km TT where riders are sent off in 9 groups of 22 (so one rider from each team per group)
Each group 2 minutes apart so some chances for groups to integrate (or disintergrate)
Riders get their actual elspsed time.
Teams select the groups their riders will go in.
So a few tactical considerations to consider.

Could be interesting. Could it be the first step toward eliminating teams altogether, each rider fending for himself in every stage?
 
Jan 3, 2011
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Taking our Froome and Porte would make the Tour more interesting.

On a serious note I do support the notion of cutting teams down to 7 or 8 riders. Less control = more fun.

Another think wich would be nice (not for the Tour in particular) was a budget/salery constraints like in the NFL. Would make team strength a tad more balanced.
 
Apr 8, 2010
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Maxiton said:
I don't follow. Why would it be a bad thing?
It seems that at least some people on this board goes in the red zone if they hear the words like uci and globalization in the same sentence, but maybe that's got more to do with venting general frustrations about Pat McQuaid than the actual subject.
Maxiton said:
In this case it's a market waiting to happen: an amorphous mass that becomes a market through a cool, new event people can relate to and do themselves.
Maybe. I'm just thinking that races like RAAM and Paris-Brest-Paris gets basically no coverage (at least in Denmark but maybe that's different elsewhere). Also I'm guessing that there's a reason Bordeaux-Paris is now defunct.
 
Apr 25, 2009
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Maxiton said:
Sounds intriguing. How would that work exactly?

Just by doing exactly that, holding a stage for the top GC contender from each team (or the top 10). Stage to be held over selective terrain (mountainous etc), wouldn't have to be a long stage 100KM would do it. It would have to be towards the end of the 3rd week of the Tour to deter apathy.

I'm in favour of shorter stages, 130-140km and then you'll see some proper racing. Though I reckon a much longer individual TT on a well thought-out course of about 120km would test each individuals endurance. While it might not be more exciting (it might too), it would contribute to a fairer all round assessment of each riders strengths.
 
May 11, 2009
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Next year with be the 100th Tour de France.
I was just looking at the stages for the first several tours:
- No time trials
- Some stages greater than 300 km and 400 km (although fewer total stages)

So next year
- eliminate time trials (I am a big TT fan)
- Have one super-stage 250 to 300 km over mountains

I'm sure the organizers are planning something big and different for 2013.
 
Maybe the UCI need to make with the points system to try and promote racing for victory. If they want people to worry about points (see Fulsang situation) then make people chase victory rather than ride conservatively.

So for the tour make it
1st - 200 points
2nd onwards the same as a classic

Make the reward for victory worth losing half a dozen places on GC.


As far as the race itself goes have the final stages

3rd last: 30 - 40 km ITT
2nd last: 200 km multi HC mountain stage
Final: Champs-Elysees

So if you fail in the ITT you can let it all hang out on the final stage and ride for glory.
 

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