July is the month where I can choose to experiment with being single or I can be an active spectator of Le Tour de France.

I have consistently chosen the latter and it has now sucked me in. I can recite statistics with the all but the most hardcore fanatic and have even developed an interest in the team tactics of this event which aside from the most recent doping scandals, has been more famous for Lance Armstrong’s seven yellow jerseys.

When I first started watching, roughly ten years or so ago now, I had no idea how somebody that seemed to be in the middle of the peloton for most of the event could come out and win. It was trying to understand how this was possible that kept me watching it that year. The following year, I wanted to make sure that I understood it properly and after that, I was hooked.

I’m consistently impressed how so many athletes can participate in such an endurance event. Both the physical and mental strain of finishing the event would be intense and that it is a competition on top of this, is truly amazing. I’m full of admiration for all of them.

I have a number of favourite parts in the event. It’s hard to only have one favourite in a 23 day / 21 stage race over 3,500km so I try not to limit myself. That said, the team time trail has a lot going for it. Unfortunately for me though, it wasn’t held last year and I don’t think it is being held this year either. It’s probably because those with really strong teams do exceptionally well and the others, while they may have strong individual riders, are left behind.

I also enjoy watching the sprinters thrash it out for the green jersey. This tends to happen mainly in the earlier stages before the more hardcore mountain stages are reached. Once the mountain stages start, the King of the Mountains competition is on and they are all competing for what, as far as I’m concerned, is the most flamboyant jersey – the red polka-dots on the white background. The mountain stages are also quite spectacular to watch from a scenery and a stacking perspective.

There are a few other jerseys too but I’m not so interested in those ones. The other part that I find fascinating is the cycling etiquette that goes with the event. For example, on the last day of the race, typically the person that already has the overall yellow jersey is not attacked and allowed to lead the peloton into Paris; people are not passed while they are eating / weeing (interesting that these are combined together); if the leader has a mechanical issue, they are not passed and so on. It’s all very gentlemanly at times, until you hear the trash talk at the end!

Mr Shallot is way more interested than I am and for him, July is the month where he is consistently sleep deprived. This year he is also training for a half Ironman so he has mentioned tempering his viewing habits somewhat. This is yet to be seen as between Le Tour and Wimbledon last night, it is lucky he had any sleep at all!

* Thanks to The White Stripes for the title to this post – another Burt & Hal tune.