Ready, aim, shoot! A day in the life of a Tour de France photographer CyclistReady, aim, shoot! A day in the life of a Tour de France photographerThe Tour de France is a cycling spectacle like no other a multi-coloured travelling circus of thousands that winds its way around France every July. Its a sporting story brought to our screens and into our homes by an army of writers and photographers on the ground, who follow the race each day, fighting against time, the crowds and sometimes even each other to get that interview, that shotBut what does life at the Tour look like day to day for those behind the lens? Heres a day in the life of a Tour photographer Related Posts Cyclists Tour de France predictions 2024 The best photos from the Tour of Britain Women 2024 Life as a pro photographer at the spring Classics with Tornanti.cc The 21 best photos from the mens Tour de France 2023 Mens Tour de France 2024: Route, how to watch and all you need to know 7:30amPete with his Jeep, which somehow manages to look nervous.Pete Goding / CyclistMy alarm screeches from the bedside table. Today is the first stage of the 2023 Tour de France. In a groggy panic, I curse, jump up and stub my toe on my wheelie bag the pitfalls of being in an unfamiliar hotel room. Having got my bearings, I decide I can afford another ten minutes of rest and hit the snooze button.7:40amStumble to the shower. I have a few hours to spare as the start in Bilbao isnt until 12.30pm and its only a ten-minute drive away. As I head down to the breakfast buffet, the voice of the automated lift announcement reminds me that we are in the Spanish heartland of cycle racing.Pete Goding / CyclistOr are we? As my fellow photographer (now retired) Graham Watson was keen to point out to me, I am actually in the autonomous community of the Basque Country, with its own language, gastronomy and culture. Im pretty certain Im still in Spain, though.9:30amLeaving the underground parking, I bump into one of the unsung heroes of the Tour one of the team of organisers, who has been up since 4am setting up the village and the enclosures. He guides me to the parking area, avoiding the road closures. Fans are already out in force and I realise that it could be a challenging day getting around the course.Mark Cavendish is presented to the crowd. Little did we know his Tour would end in heartbreak just seven days later.Pete Goding / CyclistUsually Id be on the back of a moto, but my driver doesnt arrive for a few days so today Ill be driving myself, which adds an extra level of stress because Ill have to navigate between the best spots to catch the action and I wont be able to shoot on the fly.10:30amThe caravan enters the town and the fiesta begins.10:45amPete Goding / CyclistGo to the start village and get a coffee. Im getting that familiar feeling, slipping back into the routine of Tour shoot days, which invariably start with coffee and a bit of a chat with my fellow photographers as we wait for the teams to arrive.11:05amThe riders roll out of Bilbao as the show gets on the road.Pete Goding / CyclistCheck my watch and decide to go to the team buses before heading to the podium to begin shooting the riders as they are presented to the crowd. With each click of the shutter, my images are sent automatically to my trusty editor in the Pyrenees who keywords the pictures and sends them to agencies in France and the UK to distribute worldwide. Edvald Boasson Hagen (TotalEnergies) is studiously ignored by the Lidl-Trek team car.Pete Goding / CyclistWithin a matter of seconds theyll be sent out to media channels. Gone are the days of spending hours in the press room keywording hundreds of photos from the day, missing dinner and getting to bed in the early hours. Thank goodness for technology.12:22pmIts not easy getting ahead of the action when roads are either closed or full of cyclists, motos and fans.Pete Goding / CyclistTime to get moving. But wheres the car? Ive forgotten where I parked it, so try to retrace my steps at a steady jog. Theres a mild sense of panic, because I dont want to be turned away from entering the course on the first day.I find the car and am ushered to the entrance. I wait patiently while a father and son draped in flags dawdle in front of my car. The organisers are about to shut the on-course entrance, so a burly security official gestures to me to use my horn to clear a path. Theres no time for niceties I hit the horn, causing the dad to jump a few inches in the air. Sorry, but theres no time to lose. This is the Tour de France.12:30pmPete endures a worrying moment as roadside fans begin thumping his already beleaguered Jeep on a Cat 3 climb.Pete Goding / CyclistIts the rollout. The riders drift out of Bilbao and head for the coast.1:47pmIm up a rock face, leaning precariously over the edge to catch the peloton as it rumbles along the coast. Another photographer has already had a similar idea, and I shuffle in beside him to look down over the quaint bay and click away as a long line of riders slips past below me. The other photographer is a local, and he looks fairly nonplussed by the shot. He knows there are better places to get his images, which spurs me to get a move on and catch up with the race.Adam Yates leads home twin Simon after an epic battle over the final kilometres.Pete Goding / CyclistI take out my phone to check the route. Should I try to overtake the race and get to a new vantage point, or stay along the route, wait for the broom wagon and slip in behind the race? Decisions, decisions. I choose the latter option and go.2:35pmIm on a mountain, the second Cat 3 climb of the stage. The fans are out in force and I reckon there are some good shots to be had capturing the carnival atmosphere. The volume of people forces me to slow to a crawl, and as I squeeze through the melee, people start banging on my windscreen. Pete readies himself for celebration pool duties for Stage 1, he is the only snapper allowed near Adam Yates, the winning rider.Pete Goding / CyclistMy poor little Jeep isnt used to this, and it begins to protest, with smoke flooding from the bonnet. The smell of burning clutch fills the air, which only seems to delight the crowd even more. Im gagging on the smoke, while my ears are filled with cheers and rhythmic thumping as the fans treat the car like a tom-tom.Things get worse. My clutch now seems to be stuck to the floor, and if I dont keep the revs up I will start slipping backwards into the revellers amassed behind me. I have seen many an abandoned press car that couldnt take the relentless punishment of driving on the Tours mountains, and I have visions of being hoisted onto the back of a tow truck while drunken fans jeer at me.Pete Goding / CyclistWith a stamp, the clutch releases and I make a hasty escape, narrowly avoiding becoming an impromptu roadblock. As I cross the summit I increase my speed and emerge from the smoky haze into clear air again.3:03pmI need to get to the finish. Im on celebration pool duty. To prevent overcrowding only one photographer can take the shots of the post-race celebrations, and they then have to share it with the other agencies. I wouldnt be popular if I missed it nothing like a bit more pressure on the first day so now Im on a mission to get to the arriv.Adam Yates celebrates with his UAE Team Emirates teammates.Pete Goding / CyclistI can still taste the smoke in the back of my throat and my cars purr has turned into a guttural growl, but at least its still functioning.I hear over race radio that a five-man break has been caught with 50km to go.3:57pmPete Goding / CyclistArrive in Bilbao with time to spare. Phew. I park the car and head to the finish line, scanning the surroundings, trying to imagine what the riders will do as they cross the line so I can gauge where the best spot is to stand.Theres always a bottleneck as the riders pass the finish line photographers. The slight incline today will slow them down, so I dont need to be too far back. I position myself strategically behind the line of black-bibbed photographers, ready to capture the ensuing tears and adulation.What if the winner just keeps going and rides right past me, forcing me to sprint alongside him? Ill just have to deal with it when it happens.Yates after donning the first yellow jersey of the 2023 Tour de France.Pete Goding / CyclistThe police form a secure line beside us, ready to push back anyone who gets too close to the cars or riders. Organisation staff remove unwanted individuals, ushering them away to the stands. Im poised. On the giant screens I see the Yates brothers sparring in the final kilometres of the race. The tension rises as we wait.Adam Yates is too strong for his brother, Simon. He crosses the line triumphant I grab the action over the finish with my 400mm telephoto, then switch to my 24mm as the brothers draw closer. They embrace, and Im in the perfect position. But now they are led over to the opposite side of the track; the rest of the riders come past and Im stranded, I cant get to where Adam is with his teammates. Oh hell, theyre celebrating without me!I spot an opening in the throng and leap through it. Im back in position, and in seconds its over. Ive got the shot.5:50pmI log onto my server and upload my pictures through my phone, doing a bit of quality control along the way: sharpness, composition, smiles, tears, laughter check, check, check.I highlight the images and off they go into the ether for my keyworder to pass on to the agencies. I take a moment to breathe.7pmBack to the hotel. Shower, change and meet a friend. Eat Spanish food, drink Spanish wine, examine the road book for tomorrow, talk about cycling.12:01am Bed. Sleep. Only 20 more stages to go. Vive le Tour!This article was originally published in August 2023. Related Posts Cyclists Tour de France predictions 2024 The best photos from the Tour of Britain Women 2024 Life as a pro photographer at the spring Classics with Tornanti.cc The 21 best photos from the mens Tour de France 2023 Mens Tour de France 2024: Route, how to watch and all you need to know The post Ready, aim, shoot! A day in the life of a Tour de France photographer appeared first on Cyclist.
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