Tour organizers have very strong opinions about charging fans on climbs

Well that’s settled.

On Nov. 6, former pro Jérôme Pineau put forth the idea of charging fans for the last five km of Alpe d’Huez during the Tour de France. On the RMC Sport’s Grand Plateau podcast, he said: “I’m going to shock some people. But they’ve created a route that will go up Alpe d’Huez twice. So let’s privatize the last five km,” Pineau said. “Let’s charge admission! Let’s have VIPs, let’s create something to make money!”

It’s common to pay to watch ‘cross, MTB and track–but rare in road races. There are exceptions–VIP areas, hospitality tents and some circuit races–but up until now there has never been ticketing on the climbs of races like the Tour.

At the Trouée d’Arenberg during Paris-Roubaix, for example, there is a VIP area.

“And who gets the money from the people who paid? It is ASO,” Pineau said. “Fans come to watch the race to see your riders, but your riders have zero on the revenue sheet. That’s what’s not right. Hospitality areas are organized at the Tour and other major races, but it’s the organizer who takes the cash.”

Despite the Frenchman’s pitch, it still ain’t going to happen.

ASO’s Pierre-Yves Thouault spoke to DH Les Sports about the idea. “Cycling is, by nature, free to watch,” he said, saying tickets “are simply not on the table.”

UCI president David Lappartient had also already weighed in on the idea.

“If you try to get people to pay to see the Tour, you get huge resistance,” he said to Ouest-France.

Groupama-FDJ’s Marc Madiot summed up the beauty of spectators being able to enjoy cycling from the side of the road and why feels it should never change: “We’re the last major sport that’s free. It’s one of the sport’s strengths.”

If you’ve never sat on the side of the road at a race like the Tour de France–it’s quite the thing. Spectators will find their spots hours before the race even comes through. And there’s not just the spectacle of the peloton. Hundreds of publicity cars will precede the race–giving out all kinds of junk–and then the riders will follow. And then hundreds of more cars which make up the caravan.