The final stage of the 2014 Tour de France will once again
be a night stage. The 8.30pm start time
was tested at the 2013 Tour and approved again for the 101st running
of the event.
While I’m a fan of night events and mixing things up (think
Singapore F1, night finals, any Red Bull event…) this is also a trap for young
spectators. Myself included. Although the 2006 finale was scheduled to
come through Paris around 4.30pm I had mindlessly booked a 5.30pm Eurostar out
of there. The procession ended up 45
minutes late and left Lucan and I pushing the already lead-footed taxi driver
to get us to Gare du Nord quicker than a Bourne Supremacy car chase. He loved it.
We didn’t see a single bike that day, but we made the train
with about 15 seconds to spare.
