Fred from our Manchester shop recently took a trip over to the Pyrenees to chase down the Tour de France. Luckily for us, he took his camera...
From a young age, I have always been into bikes, and in recent years I have swapped my beloved BMX for a road bike… and lycra. Much to my dad’s joy, I have been converted.
So, this year whilst on a holiday in Southern France, I decided to catch a glimpse of the most prestigious cycling race in the world, the Tour de France.
Shortly after the heavens opened and gave everyone a good soaking, the multi-coloured, meandering circus that is the Tour rolled into the sleepy town of Foix. First up was the tour caravan; a wild 45-minute string of sponsored vehicles hurling products at you, mainly Haribo and key rings.
Then it was time for the main event as team cars and motorbikes started to fly up the mountain with the thumping sound of the helicopter above, the riders then started to scurry up the mountain at an incredible pace.
Armed with my camera I tried to capture some shots of this prestigious event, including the surreal decorated sponsorship vehicles, some mad Colombian fans and of course, the really quick lads on the bikes.
It helps that cycling is dead easy to photograph, with so much emotion and colour. The scenery was also ace - chateaus, green mountains, windy roads, all that good French stuff.
My verdict? Mint, but also mental.
