Weekend road trip Part 1: Le Tour de France, Metz, France

After years of watching Le Tour de France on TV we finally had an opportunity to see it in person!

Friday morning, we parked the bikes, rented a car and hit the road.  Stage 6 (Epernay to Metz) was scheduled to arrive in Metz, France sometime in the late afternoon.

Honda "Jazz" hybrid -fun car!

Pitstop (American style)

After a long drive (approx 371 km or 231 miles) we arrived in the beautful town of Metz.

border of Luxembourg entering France

Novotel at City Centre- Metz, France

 The Tour arrival venue was within walking distance from our hotel. We walked over and found a spot on a hill with a great view of the entry - right in front of where the team cars exit the route to allow the cyclist to enter the town.

As the racers come into view you can hear the crowd cheering and begin beating on the boards that border the route! It is amazing how FAST they are traveling...it was hard to get a good photo that wasn't a blur!

Go USA!!

  

All around the venue were cyclist, team buses, and escort cars. 

 

Bucket list: Go to the Tour de France - CHECK!

After a busy day of traveling and seeing the tour, we had a great dinner at a local cafe and took one last look out the window of our room. Good night Metz- we look forward to visiting you again!