Saturday, December 11, 2010

100% immersion, 90 minutes Video Special Tour de France 2010

French TV "Direct 8" broadcasted a documentary with Cécile de Ménibus following the Tour de France 2010.
The video is showing the behind the scene of the greatest cycling event on earth.

It is 90 minutes long and in french, but it is very high quality video and give a very good opportunty to follow the race from inside.

Please enjoy.



Cecile shows us the inside of the Tour de France organization, teams, La caravane, cameraman on bikes and helicopter, the fantastic peoples all along the road.

While watching this video you will learn that it takes 150 trucks and 400 technicians to move the 7ha of start village and its materials such as 35kms of electric cable every days to each start city within 4 hours.

How Jean-Louis Pages (A.S.O. site director) goes to each the cities that applies to become a start or finish stage 2 years prior its official selection to check and "feel" the city and its possibility to become a start or arrival stage.
He explain that to feel the city, he drive around town and sit at a "terrasse" outside a cafe for few hours...I want this job!

In this video we can follow team Cofidis from inside the race and understand how each team sponsor takes care of its team fans standing along the Tour de France road. (My advice, if you support a Pro team as a fan, make sure that you get seen, especially by wearing the colors of the team).

"La caravane" is the group of cars that pass about 30 minutes before the bicycles racers.
It is 7kms long and 45 minutes show before the peloton shows up for a couple of minutes (at most), you'll learn that sponsors of the Caravan fork out between 3 and 6 million euros, each.
You might think it is big bucks, but it is 45 minutes every days for 3 weeks that millions of people are looking for to see.
40% of the people who go to see the Tour de France on the side of the road, goes for the "Caravan float" and 12 million goodies that are distributed all along the road.
It is constituted of 450 persons, receiving 1.000 euros for 3 weeks job (including food and hotel), nice summer job.

Interesting note, it is the only race that have 3 hour private road status, that means, no other cars can be on the Tour de France road.
However, even if the road is closed to public, it is constantly speed limited and recorded by the police.

Funny moments, Cecile interview Ben Stiller in english who is pretending being a new Garmin Team rider "Larry Armstrong". (@1min30)
She interview Bernard Hinault who is on the Tour de France for the 32nd year (after racing, he is now part of the organisation).

2010 Tour de France Extended 11 Hour Version

The Official Treasures: Le Tour de France

Graham Watson's Tour de France Travel Guide: The Complete Insider's Guide to the Tour!

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