An amazing atmosphere
It isn’t only fans on social media who have been sharing their experiences. Jakub Frey, content creator and Canon global brand ambassador has added his insights and experiences from the Tour to the mosaic. “I’ve been a cyclist all my life, although I mainly ride mountain bikes. I watched the Tour on TV as a kid, but never dreamed of being able to attend the event for work. The first time was thanks to Škoda, when the Tour started in Nice – we took photos of the race director’s Superb there.”
This is Jakub Frey’s view of the Tour de France from his Kodiaq.
This time around, Jakub is driving a Kodiaq on the Tour, as he and Cameron Jeffers produce content for Škoda We Love Cycling. The Kodiaq has been a real partner for him on the Tour de France. He has even had a comfortable night’s sleep in the car on the way to the start of this year’s race in the Alps. “We’re in the Pyrenees now and just yesterday we parked beside the road, on the rocks. No problem. We can see how others struggle with this – they can’t go off road and if they try, they don’t get anywhere,” the social media content creator adds.
Jakub Frey (right) and Cameron Jeffers are content creators for Škoda We Love Cycling. Photo: Ondřej Kalman
“Cameron and I try to look for interesting stories or anecdotes among the fans. We met two ladies who were staying in their caravan right by the track. We went back to see them after the peloton had passed and asked how two elegant older women – one in her 60s and her mom, who was well into her 80s – came to be at the Tour. The older lady said that for many years she used to come to the Tour with her husband in a caravan. And when her husband passed away, her daughter took his place and now she drives her mum every year to keep the tradition going,” Jakub Frey says.
“The fans were a big surprise to me at first. I wasn’t aware what an atmosphere they can create.” Jakub cites the Basques as some of the riders’ strongest supporters at the track, and they really make themselves seen and heard. But it’s not just the Basques. “Yesterday we interviewed two middle-aged ladies from Germany. We asked how they were going to support the riders, and they proudly showed off their pink flamingo costumes. And they had a huge inflatable unicorn in the background,” says Frey, adding that from a work perspective he is fascinated by the sheer numbers of people and the frenzy the crowd works itself up into, which seems to become something bigger than just fans cheering. Witnessing a big event like this happening in their city drives people absolutely wild.