Firstly it is the 100th. edition, so the motivation to win this centennial event will be increased for all potential contenders.
Secondly because of the success last year, of the British Team (Sky) and Bradley Wiggins being the first British Rider to pull off a win, interest in Cycle Racing in the U.K. has escalated. This has resulted in the already great T.V. coverage being further enhanced with several hours of cycling action for each stage.
Brad is out this year with injuries, but his wing man Chris Froome is poised as the overall favourite to take the title this year, with many of us thinking, he could have won last year if he was not supporting Brad.
Cycling events earlier in the year have been devastated with awful weather conditions, so we are keyed up more than usual for this event.
The terrible weather combined with my health, has also confined me in doors more than previous years, resulting in me watching more T.V. with subsequent difficulty in finding worthwhile programs to watch. For the next three weeks, this problem will be eradicated, as I enjoy the spectacle of almost 200 of the Worlds top cyclists, competing in the toughest sporting event on the planet.
The first was run about 110 years ago but the annual event has survived two World. Wars. during which cycle racing succumbed to survival.
A team bus got jammed under the finish banner, which carries all the electronic apparatus.
The racers where bearing down on the scene at 60 K. per hour as the officials franticly announced on the radios, the finish was adjusted to 3K shorter.Then as the bus was freed, they reverted to the original finish, with minutes to spare. But not all the riders had their radios on and some where not aware of the danger.
Over the next three weeks, my lawn mowing schedule etc will be governed by the Tour activities. The crucial mountain stages can not be missed so my other events occur during boring sprint stages. when the sprinters teams try to cancel out any brave break away attempts, so their sprinter can sit in the bunch until the last 500 meters of the stage.
One such stage recently gave me an opportunity to go over to Oundle to cut my sisters lawns. She was away visiting with long seen cousins, so I enlisted the help of my friend Paul, for a ride from the bus out into the country where my sister lives.
Paul was annoyed that he had not been notified of my hospital sojourn, a few months ago, indicating he would have wanted to visit me in hospital.
What an unpredictable world we live in.
A few days later I get a call from Paul's partner, informing me Paul is now in that same hospital, having suffered a brain hemorrhage. Anne and I visit and find him in a coma. On our next visit a couple of days later we are relieved to find him conscious, but not talking and did not appear to recognize me.