I want to ride my bicycle

I am a tragic.

After the thrill of the World Cup on SBS (damn you Italy), I find that I am still craving the thrill of watching sporting competition at the highest level.

Having been a regular viewer of late night SBS, I find myself watching, and actually enjoying, le Tour De France. My wife and I have found ourselves engrosed in the race. We have no idea of who is who, and who is winning what. We have enough knowledge to know that there is more than one "race" happening at the one time, but we do not know who we should be rooting for. How tragic is that?

What I have especially enjoyed is the downloadable route maps for each stage for Google Earth. (I love Google Earth - one of the best time wasters I have ever come across) I love flying over the 3d rendered view of the climb through the alps. SPECTACULAR!

It really gives you an appreciation of the monumental effort made by these riders. It also allows us to locate the spectacular scenery shown on the broadcast, and see exactly where it is. That way we can bookmark the locations for when we get there ourselves.

On a side note, some of the bloody spectators are idoits. The road gets so crowded, that people are sometimes standing in the way of the cyclists. I have seen a couple of f*ckwits running along beside the riders, and falling over, nearly collecting a bike or two with them. This photo is from last year's tour (2005), and belongs to www.cyclingnews.com, but it perfectly illustrates the point - stupid spectator causing trouble.



At this point, I would also like to assert that I have received no financial incentives from either Google, nor le Tour de France, although I would be open to any offers.