Santos Tour Down Under 2011

 Record crowds line the streets of South Australia!

Taking the long route from Melbourne to Adelaide, via the coast road because of the terrible flooding in Victoria, we finally arrived 12 hrs later in a city overflowing with thousands of brightly coloured lycra clad cycling enthusiasts, all proudly riding their carbon fiber bikes and buzzing with the expectations of the week to come. The 13th edition of the Santos Tour Down Under (TDU) was underway. This is the Aussie’s Tour de France and is the official beginning of the professional cycling season attracting many of the world’s best cyclists.

Thousands of spectators line Adelaide streets

The “spectator friendly” 6 stage race has gained a reputation for being one of the most intimate and accessible races of its kind because of the friendly and close relationship between some of the world’s most famous pro riders with the public.  This year saw record numbers of spectators lining the streets of South Australia, many thousands visiting from overseas. This event is growing in popularity with official crowd figures this year of 772,000 spectators over the 8 day event.

Getting up close to the pros

The tour village is set in the heart of Adelaide city centre. Here, people can mingle with the riders, watch the team mechanics finely tune the bikes and maybe get an autograph or two off their favorite athletes.  At the start of each stage the riders are also in very close proximity to the spectators and if you are lucky they can sometimes be persuaded to give autographs or pose for photos. This openness is unprecedented in any of the other UCI World cycling events, and is what gives the TDU the nickname “The People’s Tour”.  The Hilton Hotel is also the hub of tour activity, where all the riders, their managers, teams and the journalists stay. Wandering through the bar  at night “star gazing” we saw many a familiar face, relaxing at the end of each day!

Enjoying a joke with Mark Cavendish

One of the unique aspects of the TDU is the accessibility of the race stages to the public. For those enthusiastic cyclists who want to show off their skills and make the most of the amazing cycling to be found in South Australia, it is possible to cycle to the start of a stage, then leg it ( or should I say pedal it ) across the Adelaide hills to intercept the race along the way, and even on some stages, arrive at the finish in time to see the famous sprinters battle out the positions for the day.  This has to be one of the most spectacular ways to follow these talented athletes, while at the same time doing some amazing cycling oneself. 

The finish - stage 1 - Angaston

 The first stage this year went through the famous Barossa valley wine growing region with its spectacular scenery, and attracted thousands of spectators along the 138 km route from Mawson lakes to Angerston.  We joined the crowds at Lyndock, having cycled an amazing route up through Cudlee creek.  We even enjoyed a delightful coffee stop at a local vineyard en route!  Tasmanian born Matt Goss, cycling for HTC-Highroad, delighted the Australian crowds by crossing the finish line first in an exciting sprint.

 

The start line - stage 3- Unley

And so, the rest of the week continued. Starts, feeding stations, sprints, hill stages, finishes; I managed to experience all aspects of the Tour, all on my own bike following some awesome routes through the Adelaide hills. We cycled through the famous wine regions, up Creeks and down steep winding roads through some amazing Australian countryside, with the strong heady scent of pine and eucalyptus in the warm Adelaide air. The thrill of cycling in this region and then arriving in time to watch the TDU cyclists race past, sometimes several times a day as we followed and intercepted their routes, has to be the best cycling experience I have had to date.

Willunga Hill - stage 5

The local towns were all in festival mood, with music, food and plenty of entertainment, all adding to the fantastic atmosphere to be found at the Santos TDU.
This year’s race wasn’t without its accidents. Stage two saw three crashes in the last 4 kms – taking down , among many others, British rider and star sprinter Mark Cavendish (HTC – highroad ) and Matt Goss (HTC – highroad ). They both finished the race, but Cavendish had some severe lacerations to his face, shoulder and knee.  Ben Swift, (Team Sky sprinter) also British, managed to avoid the carnage on the roads and claimed his first major win of the season.

The start of Willunga hill climb

Stage 4 this year, a 124km route from Norwood to Strathalbyn was the route chosen for The Mutual Community Challenge Tour that gives amateur riders the opportunity to ride a TDU stage just hours before the pro’s. With four different race distances to choose from, over 7500 riders took the opportunity to really feel part of the action. This event also raised money for the Cancer council SA.
The final stage this year, stage 6,The Adelaide City Council circuit, was held in the city centre. With 20 laps of a 4.5km circuit this gave spectators a wonderful view of the riders and an exciting fast end to the Tour.  Again Ben Swift sprinted home to claim his second stage win of the week and put him in third position overall in this year’s Tour.



The 23yr old Cameron Meyer (Garmin – Cervelo)  from Australia took the overall victory over the 762km 6 stage Tour Down Under 2011, with Matthew Goss just 2 seconds behind him in Second Place and Ben Swift taking third.

Crossing the start line - stage 5

Stage 5 - and they are off!

 An amazing week, one of the most spectacular cycling events to follow and one that Crouching Tiger Tours will be adding to the itinerary of tours offered in 2012.