Watching the Tour de France in a wheelchair



johnnytx

New Member
May 25, 2010
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I am in a wheelchair and am going to the Tour de France this year. Does anyone have any recommendations on the best way to watch the action? I am going to be in Brussels and going to one of the mountain stages in the Alps. How can I get up to the fence at the finish in Brussels? Will I need to camp out the night before on the route in the Alps?
Thanks,
John
 
people will help you out !

anyway, here is the estimated arrival time to Brussels, Sunday 4th of July, coming from Rotterdam.

depending on average speed, it could be between:
17:00 - 17:30 - 18:00

** they will come passing by MEISE (Eddy Merckx home)
** detailed streets will be published soon at www.letour.fr website

and first hand advice, arrive at least one day in advance, with a good Brussels street map, and a proper Hotel reservartion. On the one hand not everyone will know which streets the tour will use !! on the other hand those streets will be full of people that day ! ... like all cities in Europe the streets make lots of twists and turns, it could be tricky...


AND, Monday 5th July, also in Brussels
The tour leaves at 12:10
the start village is a nice show too, if you arrive early there is a lot to see
 
With only one 'proper' mountain top finish (Avoriaz) the Alps look a little dull this year. That finishing climb will be packed for at least 2 days so finding a good spot will be an exercise in patience. It's not uncommon for the roads to be closed to regular traffic 24 hours in advance. If you have a wheelchair and a disabled placard/permit in the car this may be different for you....

The stage prior to Avoriaz to Station des Rouses looks like it could be a firecracker. No really big cols but the roads through the Jura are tough and they're hitting 3 and 2 cat mountains all day. Expect a warp speed finish up the Cat 2 climb to the finish from a strong man like Valverde or Evans and significant pressure being applied from teams who's leaders messed up on the cobbles during the earlier stages and lost a bunch of time.

The stage to Avoriaz could well go down to action on the final climb but the following stage could see some action on the Col du Saises... but with the way that the Tour has been the past few years, expect someone to attack about 100 yards from the top of the last Col of the day.

If at all possible hit the pyrenees instead. The Port de Pailhères on Stage 14 will likely be a launchpad - about half way up this climb would be a good spot. It's a 15km tough climb (longer and steeper than Alpe Dhuez) and the Basque fans will be going ape sh1t. A spectacle for sure.

On the last mountain stage watching them suffer up the steep 3km section towards the top of the Marie Blanque would be a nice spot. It's 10 to 12% for a few kilometers and it's the first col on the last mountain stage... Even if someone has the tour sewn up it's still hard enough to where the guys have to put some effort in just to get up the darned thing. Parking on this climb would be a little tough but with it being the first col of the day it might not be so packed.

The only downside to the Pyrenees... the Basque fans know how to party (ok, not really a downside - and they'll drink the dutch fans on Alpe Dhuez under the table any day of the week) and it can get insanely hot. Drunk in charge of a wheel chair - is that a crime? :p The masses of flies don't help either.
 
How good is this, watching Tour de France in a wheelchair, I think that this is not an extra ordinary feature but also is an transparency for the ridiculous features of it. It might that your looking for a comfortable wheelchair, you have many option in what would be good for you.
 
Zjay i dont understand your post...

the final 5 kilometers in Brussels pass through:

Av. du Parc Royal
Rue du Cardinal Cardijn
Av. Émile Boekstael
Av. Houba de Strooper