The route of the first post-Armstrong Tour de France has been published, giving you plenty of time to plan - to see it - or to avoid it with all the closed roads and extra traffic it generates. Whole towns grind to a halt for several hours if the Tour passes through. In 2006 it starts in Strasbourg on 1st July and then goes counter-clockwise around France, with excursions into Luxembourg, Belgium, Holland and Spain before charging up the Champs-Elysées on 23 July. It is a spectacle worth seeing once, even if you are not a cycling fan - a great carnival atmosphere even out in the countryside, and you get a free seat (free that is if you bring your own seat) for one of the greatest athletic feats of modern times - nearly 3,500km of high speed cycling in 3 weeks - and even on days when they tackle gruelling climbs up the Alps, they still have 180km to race! Love it or hate it - but it is a real French tradition. And 2006 promises to be exciting, no longer dominated by that man Armstrong (that will please the French), and there are some good younger riders who will challenge the runners-up from previous years. It is a very tactical race, with both individual, team and specialist trophies to be won (King of the Mountains, Best Sprinter as well as the famous Yellow Jersey). Unfortunately there is unlikely to be much British interest, but the Australians have been doing well in recent years, so you can support them without being disloyal. The French have also not had much to enthuse about in recent years, as they have struggled to win a single stage - a serious insult to their national pride!
For more French events see www.frenchduck.co.uk
Keywords: France, Tour, cycling, Strasbourg
