AN OPEN LETTER to CHRIS PRUDHOMME

Letter to Chris Prudhomme


Swanning around in your Limousine with a variety of " notable personalities " you will rarely see the " Glitches " that the everyday visitor to " Le Tour " has to overcome ! Certainly your subordinates have done their best to see that you have a " Trouble Free Ride " each day . No doubt you have briefings with your personnel each day to keep you abreast with potential problems .

Whilst you were with France TV you were quick to pick my brains about my activities on the periphery of " Le Tour " and also whilst " understudy to JM Leblanc ", but since becoming " The Man " you rarely deem a simple "hello" as appropriate for a man of your importance . Amazing then that i get to meet some of the General Officers of the Sapeur Pompiers , Army and Gendarmerie as well as assorted Politicians whenever i find the time to be at a " Depart " or " Arrivee " ! Some i have advised of my Blogs , so it may be that their staff have been detailed to have the occasional read . Phillippe Sudre is also aware of these blogs but as to whether he deems it worth his time to read my offerings i couldn't say .

In previous " Open Letters " to you i have suggested ways to improve the security of the " Signage " but neglected to point out that many of the large Roadside Signs proclaiming " Road Closure details of route nos with dates and times " could be better . All Media receive a looseleaf book , known as the "Guidebook" and this is a very helpful tool to ALL , but it neglects to coordinate that very important issue of "Road Closures" ! Surely you want the world to know WHEN the routes of the " Le Tour " each day will close , don't you ? Many of those i speak to at the " Le Tour " tell me that each Department of France has a Web Site that offers info on these " Route Closures " but the general public are rarely aware of this , let alone the Overseas Visitor , many of whom do not understand the French Language whether written or spoken .

BY adding an additional column in the “Guidebook “ to the Caravan and the Racers anticipated passing certain points times , " ASO " will in consultation with the various authorities be able to advise the WORLD of the "Road Closure " times . Media of all persuasions will no doubt pass on to their readers this information , as they tend to copy out your pages as if it was their own work in the effort to inform their audience . Each Department has it's own branch of the Police National and Gendarmerie responsible for the "Security of the "Le Tour route" and since these signs have to be constructed to inform the public then the information should be accurate and All will see a coodinated result !

During one Etappe i had a Gendarme as he passed me in his car as i rode up the "Col" tell me that i should stop as the "Col" was closed ! This was more than an hour before the Sign Posted Closure time ! When i arrived at the " Col" there were several " touring cyclists " but none of the private cars that passed me after this rash statement was made . The " Major " then again told me that the road was closed even though there remained 35 mins until the posted time . My solution was to pick up the bike and walk off the road until i reached a point beyond the " Col "
where i could ride once again . Further down the road i found that the times posted had been extended another hour and half as is normally the case when you pass into a new area of control . As to what happened to the " touring cyclists " i could only speculate , but had they relied on the published information then they were sadly inconvenienced and carrying a "touring bike " with luggage in many cases is out of the question .

Expect to hear more points of interest from me over the next months as i know how hard it is to get action when too many issues are raised at the same time . Have your people read my " OPEN LETTER to Pat Mc Quaid “ about the " Authorised Driver Permit " that i feel is required to avoid a repeat of the incident that nearly killed two racers .

No where on page 7 of the " Guidebook " does " ASO " refer to driver conduct in relation to the Racers or even the ordinary cyclist AND since the " Le Tour " as an event is about Cycling , one wonders who was responsible for coordinating the material published ? No doubt Phillippe Sudre after our discussion took a look at that page . After publishing my blog post about the RMC Radio Stationwagon i saw the driver many times but he never again caused me any problems . Whether this was good luck or he had the matter brought to his attention is not for me to say .

Security of the "Le Tour " route is an important concern but having the Public sit on the side of the route for 5 hrs each day is asking too much particularly since the "Tour de Suisse" is able to run an event with "Private Security on motorcycles " and Army reservists causing the routes to be closed for periods ranging from 10 mins to 30 mins before the arrival of the racers unless in the mountain passes when longer periods may be required . Could be that your people need to look at the abilities they display and adopt some of their expertise !

A Bientot

SPIVS AT WORK !

Driving around the last kilometres of today's etappe of St Paul to Gap i came across the "vermin " stopping the traffic to impose their flags on the " unsuspecting public "at 8.40am ! Wearing " hazard /reflective jackets " they were just visible in the heavy rain and most thought they were official so wound their windows down and had the flags thrust in their face ! As i drove through one of them kicked the car denting the rear offside panel but as there are usually five of them i decided " safety first "! Could not find a Gendarme all the way to the centre of Gap so decided that a report elsewhere would have to suffice. No luck on the way to Briancon as there was heavy continous rain with the lightning !

Here in Briancon the sun has broken through finally mid afternoon and reading the Eurosport's early reports states the "Depart " was sunny but the racers were expected to arrive in bleak weather after riding through the storms . Driving through from Gap to Briancon i saw lots of cyclists riding towards the " Ville Arrivee " most wore light rain jackets but some were without and with no backpack one wonders how they will survive the period until the Racers arrive . Since there were so many groups it seems certain that the majority were with tour companies and thus were happy to suffer through ! Saw some standing on the side of the road laughing and chatting so those guys must have been enjoying the conditions !

Personally getting on the bike to ride in the rain no longer appeals but i will continue on a rainy ride after donning the rain jacket ! This is the first of my 14 years of the TDF that i have failed to ride the start and finish of a stage but yesterday's ride with " georgethecyclist " will i guess count for the start of today's etappe . Now the sun is out , the bike will hit the road for a circuit of the district until the TV coverage attracts my interest !

ASSAULTED !

Whilst walking uphill with the bike on the shoulder after passing the 2km mark before the finish i came to a junction where there were 3 Gendarmes about 14.45hrs or about 2 1/2 HR before the racers were due ! One Gendarme called " Descend the velo " , did he mean put it down since i was carrying it ? Then his colleague with 3stripes rushed across Grabbed the front of my cycling shirt and pulled me off my feet causing the bike to drop to the road , regardless of this he dragged me like a toy in the teeth of a Bulldog off the course ! I completed the journey to the finish along the back of the barricades and when i climbed over the grass embankment there was the "Turd Brigade guy " who photoed me with the 3 star General at Cap last Wednesday . When some Belgium media people tried to give me a cup of coffee he sideswiped it out of my hands and told everyone that i was in the wrong area , they were inside the metal fencing and i was on the outside !

Eventually i found the Gendarme with the 4 bars signalling he was a " Commandant " and reported the " assault " , his deputy wearing 2 bars heard me out and wrote down details . What annoys me is that this was the FRench holiday , " Bastille Day " and to be treated in such a cavalier fashion in front of "jeering spectators " dishonours the uniform and causes his fellow officers embarassment . Could this 3 striper walk into the Gendarme Canteen or office and relate this story with any pride ?

Normally Gendarmes are easy going but firm , but this was extreme and considering the efforts i had made earlier in the day to help them with the " spivs " i feel hard done by ! Hopefully the 3striper will get a dressing down or a demotion . Considering the public attitude to " law & order , he brought the force into "disrepute " !

More for " Chris Prudhomme " !

Whilst you " swan around " the " 2011 TDF ", there are those out there on their bikes and with loaded panniers trying to find their way from start to finish of each etappe !

When i started riding the TDF route with the 1998 edition i just followed the signs a couple of hours in advance of the racers but this year it is necessary to be more than 5 hours in front of the racers because this is the time the "Gendarmes " are being posted in the "Interests of Security(safety?) ! This Policing organisation is being required to go against their " better nature " for no other reason than your Organisation , " ASO " thinks that making the ordinary cyclist invisible to the general public increases the prestige of the " Racers Efforts "!

RUBBISH ! This pathetic behaviour is souring the experience of those arriving with the " BIG ACCREDITED TOUR COMPANIES ! They pay big money to come to the TDF with their bike and then find that YOU & YOUR ORGANISATION don't want them to ride the Tour Route UNLESS THEY GET UP AT THE UNGODLY HOURS NEEDED TO BE CARTED TO THE COURSE BY THEIR TOUR OPERATOR ! Rather than increasing your revenues you are now "Advertising a stay away policy " !

As for myself , it costs me little to be here and just being here reminds people of " Handisport " which is the ONLY REASON i persist in putting up with the " pettiness" dished up by your minions ! Do you think i care about the "Turd brigade( your laughable security force) " or those wearing "dog collars" so that people can direct them back to the "reserved area " they have PAID BIG MONEY to inhabit ! Noticed that you even scan their "accreditation " going in & out of the village to make sure you get your monies worth !

ALL OF THE ABOVE IS SURPLUS TO THE REAL REASON FOR THIS LETTER !

Last night and this morning i found it al but impossible to find the route laid out in the " Guidebook " ! THE SIGNS had dissapeared or not been erected , not your fault you say ? WRONG ! Some signs are "screwed " to the attachment and with large "washers" can deter the thiefs from removing them by "twisting " them where anchored by wire ! Your erectors will take a little longer to complete their assignment BUT the signs will stay in place ! ANOTHER TRICK would be to apply a "date stamp" to the vrear of the sign so today's signs will have 13/07/11 on the rear and any caught with them before 1800hrs today will be clearly identified as " Thieves " and so you can "Prosecute" for lost revenue !

LOST REVENUE OVER THE PAST 11 DAYS HAS ALSO COME ABOUT THROUGH " Drapeau & Nougat vending " ! Read my blog for my attitude to that !

Don't care how much ASO misses out on BUT I DO CARE ABOUT THE VICTIMS !