Young cyclists trying the final climb of stage 4 Morning and the Tour of Britain stage 4 finale Gateshead to Beast Banks Kendal is scheduled for mid-afternoon. Preparations are well underway and the logistics of making ready for such a major sporting event are impressive. The police have searched the area. Bins all sealed. A personal highlight is meeting the Cumbrian Police Dog Unit, talking with one of the team and watching thirteen week old Ripley, a Belgian Malinois, with her police handler. Ripley will be what the unit calls a big dog, a general purpose police dog,
The Belgian Malinois breed has a high-drive to search. Ripley is eager, alert and nifty. She'a a general police dog for criminal work: people and properties. She’s bonding with her handler, having fun, and with gentle movements of his hands he fine-tunes her responses. Ripley will meet the crowds, so here's an aspect of socialisation. Different dogs for different purposes. Spaniels and Labradors to search for drugs caches and firearms. Forensic dogs trained to detect blood, bone and semen at crime scenes. I'm reminded of the medieval hunt where there was a different breed for each task. There is laughter, whistles - it's delightful to see the team training a young dog - firm discipline gently and affectionately done.
Police assemble from across Cumbria for this major sporting event. They’ve already searched the area long before the crowds assemble. The morning is a great opportunity to talk with people, to learn about the challenges of mounting such a major sporting event, to explore in a way that is impossible once crowds begin to gather.
3 Lions Security from Whitehaven are out in force . One was at Glastonbury, and at q music festival where drugs were a big problem. Kids bury drug caches at the location then retrieve them when the event takes place.
Barriers for crowd control are emblazoned with advertising by sponsors. Vittoria takes the opportunity to show the importance of graphene for cycle tyres. Barriers line the Beast Banks climb and there are several crossing points, one by a wall overhung with flowering ivy full of wasps. A red admiral butterfly nectars on buddleia.
On the grass by Belmont there are bikes awaiting the arrival of Border City Wheelers, of Carlisle. A group of young cyclists who’ll try out a stretch of the climb on Beast Banks which concludes stage 4 of the Tour. Children from Heron Hill and Ghyllside School will ride too. There are shrieks of delight as they cycle downhill against a backdrop of the chimneys of Kendal and the fells.
Police assemble from across Cumbria for this major sporting event. They’ve already searched the area long before the crowds assemble. The morning is a great opportunity to talk with people, to learn about the challenges of mounting such a major sporting event, to explore in a way that is impossible once crowds begin to gather.
3 Lions Security from Whitehaven are out in force . One was at Glastonbury, and at q music festival where drugs were a big problem. Kids bury drug caches at the location then retrieve them when the event takes place.
Barriers for crowd control are emblazoned with advertising by sponsors. Vittoria takes the opportunity to show the importance of graphene for cycle tyres. Barriers line the Beast Banks climb and there are several crossing points, one by a wall overhung with flowering ivy full of wasps. A red admiral butterfly nectars on buddleia.
On the grass by Belmont there are bikes awaiting the arrival of Border City Wheelers, of Carlisle. A group of young cyclists who’ll try out a stretch of the climb on Beast Banks which concludes stage 4 of the Tour. Children from Heron Hill and Ghyllside School will ride too. There are shrieks of delight as they cycle downhill against a backdrop of the chimneys of Kendal and the fells.
Offered a flag and a green hat by a woman from OVO energy I take the opportunity to ask whether their fleet of support vehicles has green generators. She says she’ll find out.
I have a long chat ( I listen) to someone representing The Tour who tells me OVO are constantly requiring them to think about their environmental impact, to minimize it. I ask again about green generators. Expensive, it’ll take time he says. The Climate Emergency is urgent and needs action now. He carries a bag of plastic ties to secure the barriers. Single use items, there's not yet an alternative to plastic. He tells me every one will be collected after the event. All these conversations are purposeful and positive. It's important to keep questioning the environmental impact of such a major event.
I have a long chat ( I listen) to someone representing The Tour who tells me OVO are constantly requiring them to think about their environmental impact, to minimize it. I ask again about green generators. Expensive, it’ll take time he says. The Climate Emergency is urgent and needs action now. He carries a bag of plastic ties to secure the barriers. Single use items, there's not yet an alternative to plastic. He tells me every one will be collected after the event. All these conversations are purposeful and positive. It's important to keep questioning the environmental impact of such a major event.
In the afternoon, I return to see the finale of stage 4. The mood is utterly different. A vast crowd of spectators and nothing like as friendly. It’s deafening, loud thumping music and a loud commentary. As the cyclists come into view we are encouraged to be ear-splittingly loud. Impossible to talk because you can’t hear a word above the din. Everyone pushes forward onto the barriers to see, to take pictures so all we see is a few seconds after the riders cross the finish line. I’d have preferred to be out on the fells watching the Tour across Cumbria, a long trailing line of cyclists and a white line of sheep startled and running away. 'All that work and it's all over in seconds,' says one of the security men.
Next morning, a team of workmen are taking up the protective covering laid over the grass at Beast Banks which isn't quite how it was before.
Next morning, a team of workmen are taking up the protective covering laid over the grass at Beast Banks which isn't quite how it was before.
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