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Tour de Yorkshire seeks Tour Makers for 2016

News has also emerged the Grand Depart made a £1.05m loss in 2014/15

The Tour de Yorkshire is on the lookout for volunteers, similar to the London 2012 Olympics Games Makers, to help marshal and co-ordinate different aspects of the 2016 event.

In partnership with local police forces, Welcome to Yorkshire asks anyone interesting in being a Tour Maker for the event, which takes place Friday 29 April to Sunday 1 May 2016, to fill in an online form.

The local tourist board, Welcome to Yorkshire, is also hosting a roadshow, with workshops across the county in January to help local businesses make the most of the event, which will be in its second year in 2016, after hosting the Tour de France Grand Depart in 2013.

Sir Gary Verity, Chief Executive of Welcome to Yorkshire, said: “This is the third year we’ve gone out to local communities to share information about how the race works and to discuss how businesses and communities can make it a spectacular weekend.

“The feedback from the inaugural Tour de Yorkshire was extremely positive and I’d encourage everyone on the route, particularly those in areas the race hasn’t visited before, to come along and find out how to make it your Tour.” 

There is a one-day training course available for volunteers, and though no previous experience is required, those with language and first aid skills are particularly welcome.

The Tour de Yorkshire will feature a three stage men’s race, from Beverley to Settle (185km), Otley to Doncaster (135.5km) - stage two also being the route for the women's race - and Middlesbrough to Scarborough (198km), and a sportive.

Meanwhile, news has emerged the Grand Depart made a loss of £1.05m in the year to March 2015, while the Tour de Yorkshire is set to make a "modest surplus" this financial year.

A directors' report, quoted by the Yorkshire Post, blamed a Grand Depart loss of £1.05m on a lack of expected Government support, lower-than-expected event ticket sales and losses in merchandising, but said Welcome to Yorkshire is on track to deliver a modest surplus this financial year. 

WtY said: "The Tour de France brought an estimated boost of £102m to the Yorkshire economy, and its legacy event the Tour de Yorkshire generated an additional £50m this year."

 

Laura Laker is a freelance journalist with more than a decade’s experience covering cycling, walking and wheeling (and other means of transport). Beginning her career with road.cc, Laura has also written for national and specialist titles of all stripes. One part of the popular Streets Ahead podcast, she sometimes appears as a talking head on TV and radio, and in real life at conferences and festivals. She is also the author of Potholes and Pavements: a Bumpy Ride on Britain’s National Cycle Network.

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Gkam84 | 8 years ago
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I hope they are more organised than last year. I was in the area for the women's race, so decided to go watch the mens stage the day before.

I parked in a car park on a climb the night before and then in the morning was asked to stop people parking in there, also as the van came round handing out tour makers hi viz, I got thrown one and asked to stand at the KOM point and stop people encroaching, then man the car park after the team cars came through because there were riders still coming through.

Then I headed to York, to park at the race course the night before the womens race, I pulled up, the guys there were hired in security, who had no idea what they were doing. Eventually found where I was to spend the night, alongside a tour maker, who'd been doing TdF for years, giving up his summer to go over and marshal the race. In his optioning the TdY was a complete shambles.

I met him again after the team I was helping won the race and we had the podium....etc. He said there was no communication, people that were there to spectate were being pulled in to marshal junctions.

I would volunteer, but I'll be busy with the women's race again to be donning a hi viz and shouting at idiots who decide to drive into the middle of the road as the team cars are coming through.

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