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It is the nerve center of the Tour de France arrivals: the technical area is a sort of traveling campsite, in which all those behind the scenes work and rest. Workers, journalists, podium hosts, managers, image and sound technicians come together in this maze of cables and astonishing objects.
There is the stage, the Route du Tour, its actors, the cyclists; and there is the backstage, the technical area, where we meet two trained actors. For almost a month, Basile and Sébastien leave the boards for the floor of a Renault Scénic, the vehicle with which they drive the technicians of a major audiovisual service provider from one city to another. The day starts early, ends late – you have to walk the troops back to the hotel – and in the meantime, the two friends, who are not in their first Grande Boucle, are working on their jokari, a racquet sport. ‘Basque origin, composed of a rubber ball connected to a base by an elastic thread: ” The more you do Tour de France, the more you learn to be equipped : the first year, you come with nothing, you wait in the car all afternoon. So the following year, you think of the hammock to rest in a cool place in a meadow, and there, we had the idea of Jokari to do a little sport and not gain too much weight, because we eat well on the Tour », Says Sébastien, quite proud of his find. ” It’s a real, Basile insists, made in the Jura, French quality. 30 euros for hours of sport, plus it doesn’t take up too much space and you can play almost anywhere, like here in the parking lot of a gas station. »
The camping chair, an essential object
There are athletes, musicians, rarer this year, lovers of outdoor walks and those who prefer video games. There are also, more simply, those who take advantage of the cut, the quiet time between installation and dismantling, to take a nap. And for this category, it is better to be equipped. In the technical area, we can spot large productions with the quality of camping chairs: from the most basic to the most sophisticated. Another variant: the hammock, like the one Vincent made in his truck: ” It is important to be well installed, because we spend a lot of time in the truck, and without that the comfort is quite precarious. “, Specifies this technician-sound in the Tour de France. ” We take turns going, everyone can enjoy it! »
Sharing a hammock, a drink or a good time, the technical area is also an art of living which must regret adapting to the constraints of the moment: ” We are asked to mix less between providers, we are more among ourselves, the ‘big family’ side is a little less present », Explains Vincent, disappointed. ” In our truck, usually everyone came for coffee or breakfast, it was a meeting place “, Adds Enzo his colleague, who concludes:” Now we see each other, but from afar “. So far, and yet closer: the technical area is almost half the size this year than in 2019.
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