London Wins bid to host 2017 Grand Depart...
Discussion
...then pulls out citing cost.
Or at least that what was just reported on BBC News 24.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/cycling/34385718
That's not exactly going to endear us to the ASO for future years either.
Or at least that what was just reported on BBC News 24.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/cycling/34385718
That's not exactly going to endear us to the ASO for future years either.
SixPotBelly said:
...then pulls out citing cost.
Or at least that what was just reported on BBC News 24.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/cycling/34385718
That's not exactly going to endear us to the ASO for future years either.
I saw this too, the ASO will never forget it and we'll probably be black listed for a very long time?! Or at least that what was just reported on BBC News 24.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/cycling/34385718
That's not exactly going to endear us to the ASO for future years either.
I wouldn't be surprised if the knobbers at TFL etc. bid in the hope that someone else would win it but now they're left with egg on their faces! Especially when you think that they've wasted money in the first place putting a bid together when they could have just been honest and not bid because of budget restraints... although we all know that's not how politics work...
I don't know how long the bidding process was for this, but it's perfectly reasonable to assume that since it started, costs have gone up substantially (when don't they in events like this?), whilst TfL's overall available budget has fallen.
Personally, I think it's good news. It's all well and good hosting it somewhere like Yorkshire where it really will bring many extra millions into the local economy, but for the London economy, at best it would be a drop in the ocean, and that's before considering the losses in other areas caused by the huge disruption.
Add to that, we've already got Ride London as an annual event, which is far more worthwhile, as it's a mass participation event. The Grand Depart would've just been a pointless vanity project for a few politicians, and wouldn't have added any value to Londoners.
To cap it all, let's face it, this sort of racing is utterly s
t to watch from the side of the road anyway! Even when it's something like the Tour of Britain or the Tour Series, where the riders do multiple laps, it's still a case of standing around for a couple of hours to see the riders go past for a couple of seconds, wait for 15 minutes, see them go past for a couple of seconds and repeat.... Why anyone would choose to get to the roadside early enough to get a view and then watch the cyclists go past once is beyond me! Why not just run it in some Hull or some other Godforsaken sthole that could use the money and doesn't have much going on to disrupt in the first place, and let the rest of us settle back to watch it on TV?
Personally, I think it's good news. It's all well and good hosting it somewhere like Yorkshire where it really will bring many extra millions into the local economy, but for the London economy, at best it would be a drop in the ocean, and that's before considering the losses in other areas caused by the huge disruption.
Add to that, we've already got Ride London as an annual event, which is far more worthwhile, as it's a mass participation event. The Grand Depart would've just been a pointless vanity project for a few politicians, and wouldn't have added any value to Londoners.
To cap it all, let's face it, this sort of racing is utterly s
t to watch from the side of the road anyway! Even when it's something like the Tour of Britain or the Tour Series, where the riders do multiple laps, it's still a case of standing around for a couple of hours to see the riders go past for a couple of seconds, wait for 15 minutes, see them go past for a couple of seconds and repeat.... Why anyone would choose to get to the roadside early enough to get a view and then watch the cyclists go past once is beyond me! Why not just run it in some Hull or some other Godforsaken sthole that could use the money and doesn't have much going on to disrupt in the first place, and let the rest of us settle back to watch it on TV?Boris has put his hand up and said the decision was his, and personally I agree with everything he's quoted as saying.
Kermit power said:
Boris has put his hand up and said the decision was his, and personally I agree with everything he's quoted as saying.
Whether it's worth it or not is not the point. The point is if you commit to do something you do it. The time to decide if something is worth paying the amount you're bidding in an auction is before you place your bid, not after you've won.
SixPotBelly said:
Kermit power said:
Boris has put his hand up and said the decision was his, and personally I agree with everything he's quoted as saying.
Whether it's worth it or not is not the point. The point is if you commit to do something you do it. The time to decide if something is worth paying the amount you're bidding in an auction is before you place your bid, not after you've won.
Stickyfinger said:
Good one Boris....we don't need London shut down every time some Lycra Road Warriors want to play.....
Formula.1 London please
Yeah because it's not like there are at least three circuits capable of holding one of Bernie's parades is there?!?! And you all seems to manage when it's the marathon but hey ho lets get all bothered about cyclists because pistonheads...Formula.1 London please
I'm pleased the money is going on infrastructure and not the TdF, the grand depart in London would be pants, Surrey vs Yorkshire? really?...
pablo said:
Yeah because it's not like there are at least three circuits capable of holding one of Bernie's parades is there?!?! And you all seems to manage when it's the marathon but hey ho lets get all bothered about cyclists because pistonheads...
I'm pleased the money is going on infrastructure and not the TdF, the grand depart in London would be pants, Surrey vs Yorkshire? really?...
Touring Cars then....who caresI'm pleased the money is going on infrastructure and not the TdF, the grand depart in London would be pants, Surrey vs Yorkshire? really?...
It seems a bit disingenuous to Edinburgh and Manchester, who have missed out on the opportunity to bid as a result of London pulling out. On the other hand I'm sympathetic to London withdrawing from the contest as well.
Since the last London GD in 2007 we've had the Olympics, several Tour of Britain stages, Ride London etc. To your average punter even a TdF Grand Depart would just be Yet Another Big Cycling Thing. To be honest, do we really want another sprint down The Mall or can't the UK think of somewhere else a bit differnt to host a GD. (But please not endless laps of the Plymouth bypass...)
What made Yorks so brilliant last year (and NI for the Giro) was the novelty of it - both for the competition and the areas involved. Surely other locations in the UK could be just as different and could highlight the local terrain - off the top of my head....Snowdonia, Salisbury Plain (inc Stonehenge), Lincolnshire Fens, Cumbria, Highlands and Lochs, Oxford and the Cotswolds.
Since the last London GD in 2007 we've had the Olympics, several Tour of Britain stages, Ride London etc. To your average punter even a TdF Grand Depart would just be Yet Another Big Cycling Thing. To be honest, do we really want another sprint down The Mall or can't the UK think of somewhere else a bit differnt to host a GD. (But please not endless laps of the Plymouth bypass...)
What made Yorks so brilliant last year (and NI for the Giro) was the novelty of it - both for the competition and the areas involved. Surely other locations in the UK could be just as different and could highlight the local terrain - off the top of my head....Snowdonia, Salisbury Plain (inc Stonehenge), Lincolnshire Fens, Cumbria, Highlands and Lochs, Oxford and the Cotswolds.
I agree with Pablo and 2Volvos.
London was completely upstaged by Yorkshire last year.
A return there or Scotland, Wales or Cumbria would be much more spectacular, provide better racing and make a greater contribution to whichever local economy. Imagine a stage on the Fred Whitton route!
London was completely upstaged by Yorkshire last year.
A return there or Scotland, Wales or Cumbria would be much more spectacular, provide better racing and make a greater contribution to whichever local economy. Imagine a stage on the Fred Whitton route!
Roman said:
I agree with Pablo and 2Volvos.
London was completely upstaged by Yorkshire last year.
A return there or Scotland, Wales or Cumbria would be much more spectacular, provide better racing and make a greater contribution to whichever local economy. Imagine a stage on the Fred Whitton route!
It's a bit of an FU to other cities / counties though isn't it.London was completely upstaged by Yorkshire last year.
A return there or Scotland, Wales or Cumbria would be much more spectacular, provide better racing and make a greater contribution to whichever local economy. Imagine a stage on the Fred Whitton route!
Grand Depart in Yorkshire but a stage ends up being in London.
London wins GD but says no.
No doubt if B'ham or E'burgh had won London would've been clamoring for a stage finish, yet look at the stages of the ToB, some great scenery, hills and crowds. Much better than laps of Hyde Park
Hackney said:
I agree, but its the repercussions of bidding, winning and then saying no that bother me.
Precisely! What I don't understand is why we had three cities bidding for the same event?! Surely it would have been more effective to pool our resources to make a single bid from Birmingham or Edinburgh for the 2017 GD and then supporting Edinburgh or Birmingham for a future GD?!Gassing Station | Pedal Powered | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff