Nous roulons avec le Tour de France

The CBB (Cute Blonde Boy) and I are big cycling fans. When we realized (in about 2010) that the 100th edition of the Tour de France was coming up (in 2013), we decided to go and follow it. Tous le Tour de France. Because...why not?

Once the route was announced in October, we (rather, I) booked airfare and a campervan, obsessed over routes, and then we were off!

After flying into Nice with a couple of celebrities* (well, they were on our flight, anyway), we were on our way to 3 weeks of Adventure.

The next morning, we boarded a ferry to Corsica, where we spent a few days traveling to the different towns where the race would begin, or pass through.

A few days -- and one very delayed flight -- later, we headed back to the mainland, hopped a train to Lyon, where we picked up a campervan, and rented 2 bikes. It was a long drive back toward Nice (where the next race stage was), and our mainland adventures began.

The Grand Boucle took us west from Nice toward Montpellier, into the Pyrenees, up to Mont St. Michel, back down-and-across toward the Alps, and finally to Paris.

When people heard about this trip later, they said things like, "Oh, I've always wanted to see France!" and "I love France -- such cute little towns!".

And though we really had a great time, we saw more of France's highway system than we did cute little towns.

You see, when you're following nearly every day of a Grand Tour stage race like TdF, you watch them go by (or perhaps see them off from a start, or welcome them in at a finish), but then you need to get on the road, to arrive at (or perhaps decide on) your next destination. We had target areas to park our van, for most days, but didn't always know exactly how these things would pan out. So rather than amble leisurely through charming villages and winding streets, we took the motorways, and tried to stay one step ahead of the Tour.

Still with me?

Great. Now, if you're already a cycling fan, perhaps you're used to watching the race(s) on TV. You know, the beautiful helicopter shots, the interviews, the commentary letting you know what's happening...

You can still have that, as you wait for the boys to come by.

We had the TdF broadcast coverage playing on one tablet or phone, and had another device following TourTracker, for details on exactly where the caravan was, who was in the lead, what crashes had occurred, etc. When the peloton came by, we knew who we were seeing whiz past, and how long the break was until the peloton came swooshing by.

Plus, we had easy access to croissants and wine.

If all you're doing is sitting by the roadside for 3 hours waiting for them to whoosh past, it's not much fun, no. But if you're following along, understanding the strategy, feeling the same weather the riders are, hearing the crowds, seeing the debris on the roads....well, that's a different story.

The caravan adds some interest, too. About an hour before the actual race comes through, the publicity caravan rolls along the route. This is a rolling parade of sponsor vehicles, kitted out with fiberglass.....sculptures, almost....where energetic young people smile, dance along to the upbeat music they're blaring from the vehicle's speakers, and often, they have goodies to toss out to the spectators. Hats, tshirts, giant foam fingers, mini bags of Haribo, little packs of sausage, cookies, crackers, pens, laundry detergent.... It can be quite a haul!

We've watched many other races since this one, and we don't usually pack in quite as many viewing days in a row as we did, in 2013. We'll look at the race route, decide what stages we really want to see (and where/why), and build in a few days of race with a few days of being tourists.

A mountain stage often calls for us to find a nice 12% grade hill to sit on, and watch them suffer up the climb. A time trial is fun to watch from the start (or better yet, ride along in an official follow car!). And you really ought to try your luck at getting a discarded musette at least once -- pick a pretty town -- though the challenge is figuring out where the feed zone will be.

When all was wrapped up on the Champs-Élysées, we had some fantastic memories, more photos than we really knew what to do with, and a whole box o' schwag from the Caravan (which is why we learned how to mail from a French post office).

Things we learned:

• Even celebrities have to wait for their luggage at the carousel
• The water in the Mediterranean is an amazing shade of deep blue that you can't possibly represent on TV or in photos
• The Google translate app can be useful for interpreting parking lot signs
• While it's not required to have an international drivers permit, it sure can come in handy
• You can survive a campervan trip in a strange country with your sweetie, but it may not be for everyone
• People will knock you over for a free bag of gummy bears
• Toll booths are not made for medium-height vehicles
• We love this sport

*For a more detailed account -- with photos: TravelArk: http://v2.travelark.org/travel-blog/spoons1/20061105

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