How the Race Would Work
We could find ourselves in an event anchored in the spirit of unifing our country.” « On pourrait se retrouver autour d'un événement unificateur ancré dans le patrimoine, espère Romain Bardet (AG2R La Mondiale) – “
Today’s announcement by A.S.O. – with the full support of the French government it would have to be – that they are delaying the go-no-go decision on the Tour until May 15th, giving them 45 days to plan out a working scenario for the race, is showing the world how a true professional sports organization deals with a major crisis. It takes into account all of the needs of the varied stakeholders, but also gives them, A.S.O., a fighting chance to save their grand old business by not prematurely cancelling the Tour before each and every single possibility for moving forward has been examined for viability.
The very different training possibilities for the pro racers is a crucial factor to be addressed. While some, such as Belgian Oliver Naesen, have put in 365-kilometer (228-miles) outdoor training rides, others, restricted to their homes are using the – brilliant- home training platform Zwift, basically video game racing that builds resistance from hills and wind into the training experience. Another Belgian, Laurens de Vreese, spent an astounding 11-hours on Zwift, determined to virtually match Naesen’s accomplishment, adding three virtual kilometers to the tally for good measure. There are tweets of riders such as Elia Viviani pounding iron in the (home) gym, others are doing intense core regimes, all in conjunction with Zwift sessions it is safe to assume. This is not an equal, fair scenario for the riders given such disparity in their abilities to train outside. But none of this is fair, so move on. The riders, before the bans came into place, had four to five months of intensive training in their legs. Professionals all, they’ve certainly kept their bodies within striking distance of racing fitness – that’s their job no matter the circumstances.
Romain Bardet, alone in the mountains of France
A good solution, given that by the time May rolls around the French have created a scenario that allows the running of the race with a level of acceptable risk for all involved, would be to allow medically monitored training camps for the Tour teams. They would be sequestered, probably somewhere in the various mountain ranges of France, there tested and monitored by the crème of the French medical research community. The camps would of course allow the racers to gain fitness, but also serve as isolated control pods for the researchers to examine before bringing the entire show together in late June for the start. All rooms would need to be single occupancy, and meals could be pre-prepared to minimize the needs for hotel staff. This is not such a hardship as it might seem as recent reports have exposed the fact that a good third of French restaurants serve pre-prepared food in the guise of something fresh. Massage may be eliminated, other person-to-person contacts reduced as much as possible. The racers would have to go directly from the confines of the camp to the start in Nice to reduce chances of infection.
A.S.O.’s Paris-Nice experience will now prove invaluable as they work with the Gendarmerie national to secure a spectator-free race environment. I believe that the French public, a notoriously independent and sometimes cranky bunch, will embrace the national moment, fully support the initiatives and follow the national directives regarding the heroic race. Which will simply be: Stay inside and watch it on TV.
Team buses should probably be eliminated, with the riders and staff placed in hotels – of which there are plenty – close to the start so that the racers can ride their bicycles to and from the race, in essence directly from hotel room to hotel room. The explosion and acceptance of Zoom and other remote communication service usage will allow media access to all of the riders, but from the safety of their medically controlled hotel environments. The riders and staff will continue to be incessantly tested and monitored.
Franky De Gendt, the Belgian star and famed hardman, proposed that the first days of the race be shortened allowing the riders a chance to settle in. This is a great idea to which I’d add drastically extending the time limits (in a stage race a racer has to finish within a certain time percentage of the winner, 5% is a norm, in order to start the next day). Extend it to 20% to make sure that any rider who is braving this adventure has the right to continue, to look for better days up the road. A return to the collective professionalism of the past would be in order with a peloton-wide agreement to keep the race fairly contained over the first week, allowing those less fortunate in their preparations to get some legs. They need to think and act like an industry, a guild if you will, and of their responsibility to the sport, by putting on the very best show possible. Which won’t happen if half the field is eliminated right off the bat. Maybe they’ll all begin to behave a bit more in the peloton too, something they need to do as the riders can’t constantly be crashing in this time.
Despite all of the above, there will be much larger differences in the capabilities of the racers than in the past, which will make for grand, exciting racing like the days of old. Long breakaways that make it, daring attacks, unusual tactics, all sorts of interesting things can happen in a race where the peloton will be so changed.
Most of all, the peloton of this Tour, should it happen, must realize that they are racing for much more than personal or sponsor glory and money. That must understand they will become a symbol of hope, of progress in this fight that we all have, and of bravery. The Tour became popular because, back in the early 20th century, it went through unknown places like the Pyrenees that were then shrouded in mystery. The public was certain that the racers would be eaten by bears jumping out of those mountain forests. These racers of the 2020 Tour will again be racing into the unknown, the undiscovered. Perhaps that heroic aura can once again envelop cycling and a proper reboot for our sport can begin.