I’d think MTB spectating would be better than a road circuit. They’re going slower and strung out, not whizzing by in a peloton. And you can probably set up shop near a feature for some more action.
I’ve only spectated my son’s MTB races, so it’s hard to compare as the level is lower but the stakes are higher (for me as a spectating dad). But we’ve also stuck around after to watch the older kids and elite men/women and in general I think the MTB vibe is very laid back, sort of a party atmosphere. More of a sense of community than the road races or Crits I’ve been to.
So it looks like Flo hasn’t sprung for the rights to the Quebec races. I can’t complain too much because for us up here in Canada, the coverage has been pretty comprehensive this year. Our friends south of the border will get them on Max and they’ll be on Eurosport/Discovery for those across the pond. The race website has a link for livestreaming that takes you to a Facebook page, so hopefully at least that works. Won’t matter for Sunday as I’ll be there but I’d love to be able to get home from work Friday and catch the end of the race in my backyard with beer in hand. I don’t know what kind of feed they’re going to show on Facebook or even if it’ll work - @marcag do you know any more about this than I do? Will you be spectating from inside a team car?
A buddy and mine have been doing the same ritual for years. We start at my Condo which is at the base of the mountain, where they come tearing down and turn onto Cote Des Neiges. We then walk the whole course, along Cote Des Neiges, Polyte hnique, through Outremont and when we get to the Plateau we go to the pub. Then we usually go to the start/end area and usually have passes to get into where the teams are set up near the finish line. If that’s boring we go back to the pub and then come back to the finish line for the end. Team car stuff is actually boring on this race.
Today I am testing the IPT owner at the velodrome. I will ask about the coverage. There is usually someone knowledgeable about these things.
I’ll defer to @marcag on this, but I think the thing to do in Montreal is ride on the south shore, but more often to the west than east (direction of unibroue). It’s also maybe questionable to have your mid-ride stop at a brewery whose best beers are in the 7-9% range. Plenty of good breweries and brewpubs in Montreal for post-ride beverages.
But this is all way in the future. More immediately, predictions for the race tomorrow? I like De Lie to defend his title, not sure whether Bini has recovered from all his post-tour partying, but I think it’ll be between those two. Bling always goes well here too, let’s say him for third.
Maybe Stevie Williams to try a long range move a la Cosnefroy in '22?
It looks the they are going to try to have a whole separate forum for road cycling. I guess they don’t want to contaminate triathlon discussion with roadie babble.
This thread was started right after The Snap as a way to talk about the most current race at that moment -La Vuelta
However, with no prospect of the broader-spectrum bike racing thread coming back, I propose this thread just be RE-Titled as others had and open it up to ALL formats
Not confirmed. It was “we are working on a few threads that didn’t make it over in the first try.”. But given that the thread doesn’t really fit into the new forum taxonomy, one wonders if it dropped off the priority list entirely.
“…one wonders if it dropped off the priority list entirely.”
I think you’re right about that. a wealth of info in each annual thread too, i’ve checked back throughout the season myself.
I’d like to see that carried forward too. I don’t recall the full name of the thread. always liked that it was easy to ID, with the asteriks before and after. (perhaps that was the issue)