Tour de France 2023 ** SPOILERS **

[Dogtrousers]

Ah well, it’s all over for another year. I have to say I found it really enjoyable and not quite sure why some folk were calling it boring,

In fact, the only problem I had with this year’s Tour is that I now have about a squillion new places were I want to ride my bike - Pinot Corner anyone??

I don't doubt some people are calling it boring, but not that many.

I really enjoyed it. I could have enjoyed it more if Cav hadn't crashed but that didn't make it boring. And it would have been closer up to the line were it not for Vingo's monster TT at the start of week 3. But again, that didn't make it boring.

 

[Dogtrousers]

I would guess it's Sean Kelly on Eurosport - he's definitely Oirish, and does tend to use the most old-fashoined jargon in existence for every element of bike racing. He can't pronounce "third" for toffee, but overall I really like his style

I wonder if that's because his roots in the sport go back to when English was more of a minority language in bike racing than it is now. So terms like dossard and bonification - which (I think are French words) will be the ones he learned when he was racing.

Could be wrong there.

 

[Chislenko]

That's fair enough. Presenter voice/manner/etc is a very personal taste thing (I get irritated by Rob Hatch, yet he seems to be quite popular!)

I would guess it's Sean Kelly on Eurosport - he's definitely Oirish, and does tend to use the most old-fashoined jargon in existence for every element of bike racing. He can't pronounce "third" for toffee, but overall I really like his style

No it's not Sean, I do enjoy Sean however, the chap I was thinking of was Declan Quigley who appears to have disappeared from Eurosport.

And I wholeheartedly share your irritation with Rob Hatch!

 

[Adam4868]

Must be a nightmare for anyone here to watch the cycling with so many irritating presenters lol...
Love accents,I love when they get stuff wrong,I love scenery and food recipes...GCN heaven 😍

 

[matticus]

Must be a nightmare for anyone here to watch the cycling with so many irritating presenters lol...

Thanks for your sympathy, brother. x

Love accents,I love when they get stuff wrong,I love scenery and food recipes...GCN heaven 😍

You probably missed ITV's moment of the Tour; the day Jane Birkin died (Stage 14-ish maybe?) in a dull bit around 90km to go, they played "Je t'aime" in tribute. I did wonder if I'd nodded off and dreamt it.

 

[Adam4868]

Thanks for your sympathy, brother. x



You probably missed ITV's moment of the Tour; the day Jane Birkin died (Stage 14-ish maybe?) in a dull bit around 90km to go, they played "Je t'aime" in tribute. I did wonder if I'd nodded off and dreamt it.

Don't do ITV....but if needs must definitely ambient sound.
Millar brings me out in a rash.

 

[Dogtrousers]

Must be a nightmare for anyone here to watch the cycling with so many irritating presenters lol...
Love accents,I love when they get stuff wrong,I love scenery and food recipes...GCN heaven 😍

I'm with you on this. I can't think of any presenter/commentator that I don't like. They're just there. OK I think Millar is a bit of a dick, but that doesn't stop me listening to him. He knows approximately a zillion times more about racing than I do.

 

[Adam4868]

He knows approximately a zillion times more about racing than I do.

Maybe you....not me 😁

 

[T4tomo]

I'm with you on this. I can't think of any presenter/commentator that I don't like. They're just there. OK I think Millar is a bit of a dick, but that doesn't stop me listening to him. He knows approximately a zillion times more about racing than I do.

Yes me too, although I actually quite like Millar. I do like Orla's presenting style too, and her left field outfits.

 

[Paulus]

I like David Millar's insights on the tour.
I did get fed up with Eurosports commentators who I thought were not a patch on the great David Duffield.

 

[cougie uk]

Imlach definitely needs to take fashion advice off of Orla. Where does he get those tops from ?

 

[Sunny Portrush]

That's fair enough. Presenter voice/manner/etc is a very personal taste thing (I get irritated by Rob Hatch, yet he seems to be quite popular!)

I would guess it's Sean Kelly on Eurosport - he's definitely Oirish, and does tend to use the most old-fashoined jargon in existence for every element of bike racing. He can't pronounce "third" for toffee, but overall I really like his style

I love Sean Kelly and again. I’m old enough to remember watching him cycle.

It may not have been the Tour, it may have been the Giro but the commentators cut to him for some precise insight and he just said “I don’t know what they are bloody doing” lol

And his pronunciation of cyclists is legendary, completely different to everyone else on the commentary team

 

[roadrash]

And his pronunciation of cyclists is legendary, completely different to everyone else on the commentary team

Pog a char and Rogerlic, I love it when kirby waffles for ten mins and says dont you agree sean, cue a few seconds silence , and...... NO, just a one word answer

 

[Dogtrousers]

I've just done a bit of googling and it turns out that there is a French phrase "faire le calcul" which translates as "work out" or "do the math(s)". Linky

So I'll add "make the calculation" to dossard and bonification to my list of Kelly-isms that he probably picked up directly from the French when he was racing.

I note he also says "the teams of the sprinters", rather than "the sprinters' teams" which could be another example direct translation from "les equipes des whatever-the-french-is-for-sprinter". And he often calls it "the Tour of France" not the "Tour de France" which could be a Kelly literal translation.

But I think he alone is responsible for mangling some of the rider and team names.

 

[matticus]

Imlach definitely needs to take fashion advice off of Orla.

But does he have the legs for it?