ITV’s ‘face of the Tour de France’ Ned Boulting will be in York next month to give an insider’s view of the world’s greatest cycle race. STEPHEN LEWIS spoke to him.

THE people of Yorkshire are in for a shock when the Tour de France arrives in early July, says Ned Boulting. But perhaps not as much of a shock as Tour riders will get when they encounter some of the Yorkshire hill climbs.

We all think we know what the great cycling race will be like as it sweeps through our cities, towns and villages from watching the Tour in previous years on the television, says the face of ITV's Tour coverage.

We don't have a clue.

"You can imagine in your mind's eye what a block of 200 riders coming through will be like," he says.

"What you won't have seen on TV is the public caravan that will precede them through all these towns and villages. Ahead of the race there is a caravan of liveried vehicles, a fleet of hundreds and hundreds of them, throwing out treats as they go along – boiled sweets, bits of chorizo sausage, bottles of French pop."

It's a tradition that goes back to the Tour's origins as a commercial opportunity for companies to promote their wares, says the presenter. The riders themselves will then flash through – in a matter of seconds on a flat straight – and then there will be another caravan of motor cars and support vehicles bringing up the rear.

The other aspect of the Tour that will take us by surprise will be the chaos of it, says Boulting. The Tour is unlike any other major sporting spectacle. Yorkshire has done a great job in preparing to host the opening two stages of this year's event. But this is a race that takes place on ordinary roads. There will be road barriers to try to control the watching crowds.

"But you can't really control them – or the dogs that run out into the middle of the peloton, or the trains that run across level crossings just ahead of the riders. There's always a whiff of chaos about the race. It doesn't have that sanitised feel."

Which is one of the things he loves about it, the 44-year-old presenter admits. "It makes it special."

While the Tour is going to come as a big surprise to us, some of the Yorkshire hill climbs will come as an even bigger surprise to riders, he says – especially on Stage 2, from York to Sheffield. Okay, so there will be no alpine stages through Yorkshire. But we Britons have a different approach to getting up hills than do our continental cousins. Over there, roads loop and switch back endlessly, to try to reduce the gradient.

"But if we want to go over a hill, we tend to go straight up," he says. "Coming towards the end of the stage from York to Sheffield, some of the climbs are really brutal."

Some British riders will have reconnoitred the route, so will know what to expect, he says. "But some of the Spanish or Italian riders, they could find it a lot harder."

Because it will be such a test, Stage 2 of this year's race, which leaves from York on the morning of Sunday July 6, could be important to the outcome of the whole Tour, he says.

The route goes on a looping curve west and then south, through Harrogate, Keighley and Huddersfield en route to Sheffield – climbing as high as 1500 feet up to Holme Moss along the way. Some riders, if things go wrong, could struggle – and find themselves with a lot of ground to make up. "You cannot win on Stage 2, but maybe you could lose on it," Boulting says.

Boulting knows his stuff when it comes to the Tour de France. He has been reporting on it for ITV since 2003. Back then he was a football correspondent and admits he hadn't a clue about cycle races. He committed the ultimate gaffe on his first day reporting the race, referring to the famous yellow jersey as 'the yellow jumper'.

"It symbolised my complete ignorance," he says. "I got my low point in pretty early on!"

That gaffe made it into the title of his 2011 book about his years following the Tour, How I Won The Yellow Jumper. Described by a Guardian reviewer as a "hugely enjoyable behind-the-scenes look at the Tour de France", it conveyed not only Boulting's passion for the Tour, but also his transformation from bumbling know-nothing to the TV face of the tour for British audiences.

Even the year the book came out, however, he proved he wasn't above getting things wrong. Interviewed by Freewheeling France, he was asked if he thought Bradley Wiggins or any other Team Sky rider had a chance of winning any time soon. "No, I don't think so," he replied.

Wiggins, of course, won the very next year - and fellow Team Sky rider Chris Froome the year after.

Boulting will be in York on June 13 to talk about his twelve years following the Tour, as part of this year's York Festival of Ideas (see panel).

It is a great sporting event that, at least in the way it is regarded here, has changed out of all recognition since he began following it.

Back then, Britons just weren't interested. Even in 2007, when the Tour began on British soil, only the cycling die-hards really took much notice.

That year's race began with a 7.5km time-trial 'prologue' in London, followed by a 126-mile London-Canterbury first stage.

But even so the TV audience in Britain was tiny, Boulting says. There were huge crowds in London to watch the race live, but that was because anybody with an interest in cycling had come to see the event for themselves. There was no-one left to watch it on TV.

This year's Grand Depart in Yorkshire will be very different, he says. There will be huge crowds, yes – but there will also be a huge TV audience. That is partly because Yorkshire has done a fantastic job of promoting the event. "Everybody knows that the Tour de France is starting in Yorkshire." But it is also because recent British successes have ramped up interest levels here.

It began with the first of Mark Cavendish's many stage wins (25 and counting) in 2008: and exploded when Wiggins won in 2012 and Froome in 2013. Not even the doping revelations that resulted in Lance Armstrong being stripped of his seven titles have dented our interest, Boulting says. Germany has more or less turned its back on the Tour as a result: but British successes mean it is more popular here than ever.

The good news, he says, is that over the past three or four years, the Tour has been probably the "cleanest it has been in the history of the sport".

So fans will be able to enjoy this year's race for what it is: a great sporting spectacle.

Froome is probably his tip for this year, Boulting says – but don't rule Wiggins out entirely. He's been in good form - winning the recent Tour of California. And while Froome will be the Team Sky leader, and Wiggins will have to support him... well, if Froome doesn't begin well and Wiggins does, anything could happen. And then there's the threat from other teams. "It should be Chris Froome, but it will be much closer," Boulting says.

The animosity between Froome and Wiggins – the two men 'genuinely don't like each-other', Boulting says – should add real spice, making the Yorkshire tour one not to be forgotten.

But we knew that anyway.


Tour, TV and me

Ned Boulting will be in York on Friday June 13 as part of this year's York Festival of Ideas to talk about his time following the Tour de France.

His talk The Tour, TV and Me: 12 years on the Tour de France' will offer a 'glimpse behind the scenes' of this unique race, taking in 'all its chaotic splendour, from the villains to the heroes, with all shades of comedy (and tragedy) in between'.

The talk will be in the memorial hall at St Peter's School starting at 7pm. Tickets free, but you must book in advance from events@stpetersyork.org.uk or call 01904 527300.

This year's York Festival of Ideas runs from June 12 to 22, and includes more than 140 events being held at venues across the city.

Events range from discussions about how we should respond to international crises like those in Ukraine, to debates about how to feed the world and appearances by authors such as Michael Morpurgo and Anthony Horowitz. There will even be a talk by Ann Frank's step-sister Eva Schloss about surviving Auschwitz.

For the full programme visit yorkfestivalofideas.com


Tour highlights

THERE are 38 days to go until the Tour de France arrives in Yorkshire.

In the countdown to the race, Tour-themed cultural events are taking place throughout the region. Here are a few upcoming highlights:

May 29 - Woolly Bike Trail @ Bronte Parsonage, Keighley

May 30 – June 14 - "Last Train to Scarborough” opens at the Stephen Joseph Theatre

May 30 - Frolicked. The Hunt - @Knaresborough Castle

May 31 - Wish You Were Here Workshop @ Danby - what would you tell a travelling visitor about Danby?

For the diary:

June 21 – premier in York of Bike Story: Yorkshire theatre company 509 Arts' new outdoor theatre production based on stories from the public about cycling.

Visit festival.yorkshire.com/#events for more information