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The blog was created in the first place to ridicule the cringe-worthy moments like the 'phone call to the wife' bit, or the cheering at the top of the mountain bit. From comments on the blog last night, people felt it took on a more sinister element, talking about his wife - totally untrue and not something that even the blogger would find funny.
You have to expect the ridicule if you're going to put yourself up for something like this. Going off his posts after the first showings it would indicate that Francis is starting to believe his own hype. Less than 4 stages were ridden, it was a marketing campaign to promote Halfords, nothing more, nothing less. To those that are saying its jealousy, there's nothing to stop anyone looking up the tour route, driving over there and doing the stages themselves. Or entering the Etape or something similar. On a bike they actually want to ride and without having to be filmed and do pointless cheering/mock seriousness. I've done it, its good fun. I recommend it.
The adverts are annoying and it makes me dive for the remote every time an ad break looms. No, its not life and death and yes - I should be working rather than watching the tour, but he's annoying, the adverts are annoying and hence the big piss take. Disproportionate the rant might have been, but it wouldn't make for much of a blog if it just had one post saying 'oooohhhh, he's a bit annoying isn't he, still, I'm sure he's lovely and the camera man probably isn't a vegan'.....
genericusername - I think we appreciate what you are saying and thansk for the information, and you have explained some things, but shame on all the people involved who have actually managed to make cycling 4 stages of the TdF seem BORING. Yes, watching paint dry Wagners ring cycle sunday tea with the in-laws BOOOORING.
genericusername - So, what about my criticism, why couldn't you predict it might be REALLY bloody cold when you went up there and bring some decent cold weather cycling gear as well as find a climb that wasn't snowed in?
Have you considered trying something a little more interesting for next year? Maybe some of the classics from throughout the year so you don't get 12 metres of snow in the alps? Koppenberg in the rain and sleet in spring maybe? Get someone (or several someones) to ride Liege-Bastogne climbs? Paris Roubaix? There's even sportives there so you could get closed roads. As ****y as some of the Rapha stuff is, things like the Continental make me want to ride my bike, Tour de Francis not so much.
Oh, and for the record, the most annoying bits for me:
1. Paris. The whole bit. Cyclist struggling in a city is relatively mundane, I was hoping for more aspirational.
2. Cobbles. Short sections in the dry that are flat and really well maintained are fine. Downhill, wet, muddy, poorly maintained are a literal and figurative ballache. Couldn't believe he moaned about it.
Yeah, I got that you had authored both, hence me highlighting it.
How to make a cycle advert inspirational/aspirational
crashtestmonkey - good example. kid isn't moaning about how bumpy cobbles are either
we need TJ to the forum to teach genericusername about marketing!
Final final point: Dan has an alibi for the whole carpet tack episode.
What about the oil today huh? HUH?!
i love it, bit gutted to read here that he only did a few stages.
my missus has suggested i do something similar for my 40th. Still nobody on here likes anything, and you all wonder why there is a high incidence of depression...
even better, there will be a whole heap of "never ridden further than the end of the road" boardman and carrera road bikes on ebay before christmas.
even better, there will be a whole heap of "never ridden further than the end of the road" boardman and carrera road bikes on ebay before christmas.
better than that, if Wiggo's still in yellow on Friday there'll be thousands of 4k monsters bought on Saturday, ridden on Sunday (when the owners will find it's more work than expected) and on ebay on Monday.
Here's hoping for a Wiggo GC win this weekend.
Next Spring could be the Golden Age for second hand carbon road bling.
Still nobody on here likes anything, and you all wonder why there is a high incidence of depression...
I like riding my MTB. I like riding my road bike. I like talking sh1t about bikes with mates or on here. I like watching bike racing on TV. I like going to watch the tour and the classics. I like the Specialized advert linked above.
I dont like the tour de francis. And I'm not depressed.